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From Fluidity to Fetters: How the British Codified Caste

Introduction

The caste system in India before British rule was a complex and regionally diverse web of social groups, occupational clans, and kinship networks. Identity was often fluid, with communities rising or falling in status through land ownership, marriage alliances, and local power dynamics.

When the British arrived, they encountered this fluid tapestry and set about simplifying it into rigid categories. Over six decades, through census enumeration, ethnographic surveys, legal statutes, and administrative policies, the colonial state froze caste into immutable castes—turning a dynamic social structure into a tool of domination.

This article traces the key phases, actors, and mechanisms through which the British codified caste between 1871 and 1931, examining the enduring impact on Indian society.

1. The First Census and the Birth of Official Categories (1871–1881)

The British Empire conducted its first all-India census in 1871, marking the administrative beginning of caste enumeration. Prior to this, provincial surveys noted landholdings and revenue but rarely delved into social identity.

The 1871 census recorded age, sex, religion, and caste in broad terms.
By 1881, district-level collectors began listing “principal castes” alongside primary occupations.
Fluid local identities were forced into static “jatis,” often based on outdated colonial sketches or hearsay.

This early effort laid the groundwork for a bureaucratic obsession: once a category entered government records, it acquired the weight of legality and permanence.

2. Herbert Risley and the Ethnographic Survey (1901–1903)

Sir Herbert Hope Risley, Census Commissioner of India, embarked on a mission to classify Indians not just socially but racially. His key methods included:

Anthropometry
- Measuring nasal index, skull dimensions, and stature to link caste to race.
- Concluding that higher castes had “Aryan” features, while lower castes bore “Dravidian” traits.
Ethnographic Notes
- Documenting rituals, dress, and language for over 4,000 jatis.
- Publishing the Ethnographic Atlas of India in 1903, a pseudo-scientific tome that fortified caste prejudices.
Racial Hierarchy
- Elevating Brahmins and Rajputs as “pure” races.
- Labeling Dalit and tribal groups as “primitive” or “quasi-savages.”

Risley’s survey cemented the idea that caste was a biological essence, not a mutable social practice.

3. The National Census Expansion (1901–1931)

Between 1901 and 1931, four comprehensive censuses deepened the granularity of caste data:

Census Year	Castes Enumerated	Key Developments
1901	~4,000	First granular caste list at national level
1911	~4,300	Inclusion of sub-castes and regional variants
1921	~4,528	Emergence of caste-based status disputes
1931	~4,635	Last full caste census before independence

Each round spurred groups to petition collectors for “upward” caste recognition, igniting status-mobility conflicts that previously operated at local scales.

4. Legal Statutes and Land Legislation

Caste categories gained enforceable power through colonial laws:

Punjab Alienation of Land Act (1900)
Restricted land ownership to “agricultural castes,” freezing caste mobility in property rights.
Criminal Tribes Act (1871)
Designated entire castes as “criminal,” subjecting them to surveillance, forced settlements, and restricted movement.
Madras and Bombay Land Tenures
Courts upheld caste-based inheritance and tenancy rules, often citing Manusmriti or Hindu law commentaries to adjudicate disputes.

By embedding caste into property law and criminal codes, the British ensured that social stratification had legal teeth.

5. Divide-and-Rule: Communal Electorates and Martial Races

To prevent unified opposition, the colonial state reinforced divisions:

Separate Electorates
The Morley-Minto Reforms (1909) and Communal Award (1932) reserved legislative seats by religion and caste, institutionalizing political fragmentation.
Martial Race Theory
Recruitment into the Indian Army prioritized “martial races”—Punjabi Muslims, Sikhs, Gurkhas, and Jats—while Dalit and tribal groups were largely sidelined.
Police and Administration
Local governance bodies were structured along caste lines, with village headmen often appointed from “high” castes.

These policies weaponized caste identity to sustain colonial authority.

6. Education, Missionaries, and Reinforcement of Caste Roles

School textbooks, missionary reports, and college curricula reproduced caste hierarchies:

British-authored histories portrayed Vedic Aryans as the pinnacle of civilization.
Missionary accounts sometimes decried caste but often relied on Brahmin informants for translation and interpretation.
Native educational boards mandated caste identifiers in student registers, reinforcing early life segmentation.

As literacy grew, so did caste consciousness—young Indians learned to see themselves primarily through colonial lenses.

7. Archival Voices: Census Commissioner and Risley’s Reflections

“Caste relations are, at present, the most powerful factor among the Hindus in restraining any form of social or political equality. To disturb them would be to invite social chaos.”
— Sir Herbert Risley, Ethnographic Survey of India, 1903

“It is, moreover, invidious to treat caste as mere local usage. Our duty is to reduce it to a uniform code, so as to render it intelligible and manageable by the state.”
— Census Commissioner Report, 1883

These statements reveal the colonial motive: stability through artificial uniformity.

8. The Lasting Impact on Post-Colonial India

Although independent India abolished caste discrimination in law, the colonial codification left deep scars:

Rigid Jati Identities
Census-born categories endured in voter rolls, school quotas, and welfare schemes.
Political Mobilization
Caste became a primary axis of party politics, as leaders courted specific jati blocs for votes.
Social Stigma
Groups once deemed “criminal” by colonial statutes still face prejudice and over-policing.

The very tools of oppression—statistical enumeration, legal caste lists, and administrative quotas—have become instruments of both justice and division in modern India.

Conclusion

Between 1871 and 1931, the British transformed India’s fluid, negotiable caste mosaic into a rigid hierarchy legible to colonial administrators. Census enumeration, racial anthropology, punitive laws, and divide-and-rule politics froze social identities into immutable castes.

Understanding this history is essential—not only to grasp the roots of contemporary caste conflicts but also to guide efforts toward genuine social fluidity. By recognizing the colonial origin of rigid castes, India can reclaim the flexibility, mobility, and dignity that pre-colonial society once offered.