d or southern divisions of
Brahmans except those of Gujarat. They usually abstain from smoking,
and until recently have made widows shave their heads; but this rule is
perhaps now relaxed. As a rule they are well educated, and the majority
of them look to Government service for a career, either as clerks
in the public offices or as officers of the executive and judicial
services. They are intelligent and generally reliable workers. The
full name of a Maratha or Gujarati Brahman consists of his own name,
his father's name and a surname. But he is commonly addressed by his
own name, followed by the honorific termination Rao for Raja, a king,
or Pant for Pandit, a wise man.

Brahman, Maithil

_Brahman, Maithil._--One of the five Panch-Gaur or northern divisions,
comprising the Brahmans of Bihar or Tirhut. There are some Maithil
Brahman families settled in Mandla, who were formerly in the service
of the Gond kings. They have the surname of Ojha, which is one of those
borne by the caste and signifies a soothsayer. The Maithil Brahmans are
said to have at one time practised magic. Mithila or Bihar has also,
from the earliest times, been famous for the cultivation of Sanskrit,
and the great lawgiver Yajnavalkya is described as a native of this
country. [429] The head of the subcaste is the Maharaja of Darbhanga,
to whom family disputes are sometimes referred for decision. The
Maithil Brahmans are said to be mainly Sakti worshippers. They eat
flesh and fish, but do not drink liquor or smoke tobacco. [430]

Brahman, Malwi

_Brahman, Malwi._--This is a local class of Brahmans from Malwa
in Central India, who are found in the Hoshangabad and Betul
Districts. They are said to have been invited here by the Gond kings of
Kherla in Betul six or more centuries ago, and are probably of impure
descent. Malwa is north of the Nerbudda, and they should therefore
properly belong to the Panch-Gaur division, but they speak Marathi and
their customs resemble those of Maratha Brahmans, who will take food
cooked without water from them. The Malwi Brahmans usually belong to
the Madhyandina branch of the Yajurvedi sect. They work as village
accountants (_patwaris_) and village priests, and also cultivate land.

Brahman, Nagar

_Brahman, Nagar._--A class of Gujarati Brahmans found in the Nimar
District. The name is said to be derived from the town of Vadnagar of
Gujarat, now in Baroda State. According to one account they acc