Draft:Masuta: Difference between revisions – Wikipedia

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{{AFC submission|d|ai|u=SA4039|ns=118|reviewer=AlphaCore|reviewts=20251209210846|decliner=AlphaCore|declinets=20251209211356|reason2=nn|small=yes|ts=20251209013300}} <!– Do not remove this line! –>

{{AFC comment|1=YouTube is not a reliable source. [[User:AlphaCore| <b><span style=”color:#0066FF”>A<span style=”color:#0099FF”>l<span style=”color:#00CCFF”>p<span style=”color:#00EEFF”>ha</span>C</span>o</span>re</span></b>]] [[User talk:AlphaCore|talk]] 21:13, 9 December 2025 (UTC)}}

{{AFC comment|1=In accordance with Wikipedia’s [[Wikipedia:Conflict of interest|Conflict of interest policy]], I disclose that I have a conflict of interest regarding the subject of this article. <!–Comment automatically added by the Article Wizard–> [[User:SA4039|SA4039]] ([[User talk:SA4039|talk]]) 01:28, 9 December 2025 (UTC)}}

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== Origin and etymology ==

== Origin and etymology ==

Rajput caste associated with the Masuda estate in Rajasthan

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• Comment: YouTube is not a reliable source. AlphaCore talk 21:13, 9 December 2025 (UTC)

• Comment: In accordance with Wikipedia’s Conflict of interest policy, I disclose that I have a conflict of interest regarding the subject of this article. SA4039 (talk) 01:28, 9 December 2025 (UTC)

Masuda (also known as Masuta or Masotra) is a Rajput caste which originates from the Mertia branch of the Rathore dynasty. The caste is primarily associated with the feudal landholders and their descendants from the Masuda estate in Ajmer district, Rajasthan, India.^[1]

The term Masuda comes from the Masuda estate, which was a major feudal holding in Ajmer–Merwara Province during the British Raj period. The estate was established in 1557 by Thakur Hanwant Singh, who was a member of the Rathore dynasty’s Mertia branch. The caste designation thus functions as a territorial patronym linked to this estate.^[2]

The Mertia branch itself was founded by Rao Duda (also known as Dudaji), son of Rao Jodha, in 1461. Rao Jodha (1438–1488) established Jodhpur and the Marwar territory, and granted the Merta region to his son Rao Duda as a jagir (feudal estate).^[3]

The Mertia clan, including the Masuda Istimrari line, belongs to the Rathore Rajput clan, one of the major Rajput dynasties of India. The genealogical structure is usually given as:

• Rao Jodha (r. 1438–1488) – founder of Jodhpur, established Marwar as a major kingdom
• Rao Duda (Dudaji) (fl. 1461) – son of Rao Jodha, granted Merta, founder of the Mertia branch
• Rao Viram Deo of Merta – descendant of Rao Duda
• Thakur Hanwant Singh – founder of the Masuda estate (1557), grandson of Rao Viram Deo

This line from Rao Jodha through Rao Duda to Thakur Hanwant Singh is used to establish the genealogical position of the Masuda line within the wider Rathore clan structure.^[4][5]

During the British colonial administration, Masuda was formally classified as an Istimrari estate, a feudal holding under the direct control of the British Crown rather than a semi-autonomous princely state. According to the District Gazetteer of Ajmer-Merwara (1904), Masuda was ranked among the 16 most prominent “Tazimi Istimraris” (aristocratic feudal estates) in the Ajmer Province.^[6]

The estate encompassed 252 villages and maintained administrative and military functions under British supervision. A sanad (formal grant deed) issued by the British Government on 29 March 1875 formalised the estate’s status and fixed revenue obligations to the Crown.^[7]

The Masuda estate appeared in official decennial census records for the Ajmer–Merwara Province. The Census of India, 1901 documented Masuda as a distinct administrative division within the Ajmer region, recording population, occupational distribution and caste composition among residents of the 252 villages comprising the estate.^[8]

The Census of India, 1911 similarly listed Masuda, indicating continued administrative recognition of the estate in the early twentieth century.^[9]

After Indian independence, the Istimrari feudal system was dismantled under the Ajmer Abolition of Intermediaries and Reforms Act, 1955. The Masuda estate was formally abolished on 31 May 1955, terminating the feudal land tenure system and transferring estate properties to the Rajasthan state government.^[10]

The dissolution of the estate ended the administrative role of the Masuda territorial designation, although the caste identity continued among descendants of the estate’s ruling family and associated communities.

The Masuda caste designation is still maintained among descendants of the estate’s ruling family and associated communities, particularly in Punjab and Rajasthan. Following the abolition of the feudal system in 1955, the designation functions mainly as a genealogical marker of descent from the Rathore–Mertia lineage and the historic Masuda estate.^[11]