| Group: | Halwai |
| Popplace: | •  •  *  |
| Langs: | • Hindi • Maithili .Awadhi • Bhojpuri . Angika • Marwari Punjabi |
| Related: | • Muslim Halwai • Bania • Vaishya |
Halwai is an Indian caste and a social class, whose traditional occupation was confectionery and sweet-making. The name is derived from the word Halwa which is a sweed dish.
The community is known by different names in different parts of India. For instance, it's called Modanseni,Yagyaseni, etc. in Uttar Pradesh; Kanu(Kandu) in Bihar; Moira-Modak in West Bengal; Gudia in Odisha and so on.[1]
The nature of their work has undergone a paradigm shift in the last couple of decades as the members of this community is taking up works from various other fields. The community is gradually attaining social mobility as they are not limited to their traditional profession any longer as of date. This is the case not just in India but also in Nepal and Pakistan.
Balarama is the celebrated plougher so called Halwahi or Halwai, one of the pillars of agriculture along with livestock with whom Krishna is associated with. The plough is Balarama's weapon. In the Bhagavata Purana, he uses it to fight demons, dig a way for Yamuna river to come closer to Vrindavan and pull the entire capital of Hastinapura into the Ganges river.[2]
Baba Ganinath Govindji is the kul Guru (school) of Halwai caste.[3]
The Central Bureau of Statistics of Nepal classifies the Halwai as a subgroup within the broader social group of Madheshi Other Caste.[4] At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, 83,869 people (0.3% of the population of Nepal) were Halwai. The frequency of Halwais by province was as follows:
The frequency of Halwais was higher than national average (0.3%) in the following districts:[5]