Chitralia

Chitralia (चित्रालिया) or Chitaria (चितारिया) is a Jat clan which comes from Dhillon family found in the region of Punjab, Haryana, Jammu, Lahore (Pakistan).

Jat Gotras

• Dhillon

Origin

• Chitral
• Ferozepur tradition avers that Saroia, Jat, had five sons, Sangha, Mallhi, Dhindsa, Dhillon and Dusanj, eponyms of as many gots.

Religion

Dhillons are mostly Sikhs or Muslims. Dhillon Sikhs founded the Bhangi Army Misl. In Punjab (India) and Haryana, Dhillons are mostly Sikh. In Punjab (Pakistan), they are mostly Muslim.In Jammu (Samba and R.s.Pura) they are mostly Hindus.Majority of the Dhillons in Sirsa, Hisar, Ambala and Karnal areas of Haryana are Sikhs. Majority of the Dhillons in Sialkot, Lahore and Gujranwala have converted to Islam.

Secondary Dhillon Jat Surnames

Due to the age and size of the ancient royal Dhillon clan, it has some small number of derivative secondary family names that keep Dhillon as their main surname but have minor family name before main Dhillon surname. But in present time different parts of India, Dhillon Jats use surnames like Dhindsa, Chitralia, Malhi, Chitra, Kairon

. The Sikh Dhillon Jats of the village of Kairon take on the name of the village and keep the main royal Dhillon name as their fourth name. The most famous Dhillon 'Kairon' is probably Pratap Singh Kairon Dhillon.

History

Ram Swarup Joon writes that about Dhillon, Chitralia, Dhilla, Aharyar

Dhillons are called the descendants of King Karna. There was a King Karna in the Bhin-baroliya gotra too. According to Radhe Lal, who quotes 'Waqiate-panch Hazarsala, 800 years before Christ, 13 rulers of Dhillon gotra - ruled for about 450 years. Their names are Birmaha, Mahaval, Sarupval, or Suryaval, Birsan, Sanghamia or Manipal, Singhpal or Kalik, Tejpal or Jitmal, Kamsen, or Kamdhan, Shatrumardhan, Jiwan Siagh, Hari Rao or Bir Bhujann, Birsen II, Udai Bhutt or Drutyaketu . It is after the name of Dhillon that we have the word Dhilli or Delhi. The Dhillon Sikhs belongs to the Bragyan and Karoriya Misls. According to the census of 1911 people belonging to the Dhillon gotra were 5200 only in Amritsar, and 40000 in the whole of the Punjab. They are also found in UP and Haryana. Bhariyar gotra is a branch of the Dhillon gotra.

Sometimes known as the "Raja Jats" (King Jats), this mainly due to the large number of Kings, royalty and warriors that have come from this tribe throughout history. It is considered to be one of the oldest Jat tribes with history dating back over 4000 years.

The Dhillons are called the descendants of Karna [15], the famed royal warrior mentioned in the great Hindu epic, the Mahabharata and he was also the eldest son of Queen Kunti. There was a King Karna in the Bhin-baroliya gotra too. Most Dhillons today trace their history back to Prince Dhillon, the first Dhillon, the grandson of Karna and great grandson of Queen Kunti.

Notable people

Notable people who bear the name and may or may not be associated with the clan are:

→Amritpal Singh Dhillon, an Indian-born Canadian singer, rapper, songwriter and record producer

→Bob Singh Dhillon, Canadian businessman and property owner

→Chhajja Singh Dhillon, 18th-century founder of the Bhangi Misl

→Gurinder Singh Dhillon, guru of Radha Soami Satsang Beas

→Gurdial Singh Dhillon (1915–1992), Speaker of Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India

→Hari Singh Dhillon, 18th-century maharaja

→Harmeet Dhillon (born 1969), American lawyer and political official

→Janet Dhillon, American lawyer and business executive, chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 2019–21

→Jhanda Singh Dhillon, 18th-century maharaja

→Joginder Singh Dhillon (1914–2003), officer in the British Indian Army and Indian Army

→Kanwal Jeet Singh Dhillon, is a retired Lieutenant General Officer of the Indian Army

→Navneet Kaur Dhillon, Femina Miss India 2013 and Bollywood and television actress

→Poonam Dhillon, Bollywood and television actress

→Rukshar Dhillon, British actress

→Jang Dhillon, Songwriter and Producer working in Punjabi industry

→Uttam Dhillon, American attorney and law enforcement official, husband of Janet Dhillon

→Vic Dhillon, Canadian politician

→Zulfiqar Ahmad Dhillon (born 1948), Pakistan Army brigadier.

References

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Further information: The Dhillon are one of the largest and most widely distributed Jat tribes in the Panjab.

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