Vokkaliga
 |
|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (8 to 9 million) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Karnataka, India | |
| Languages | |
| Kannada, Tulu | |
| Religion | |
| Hinduism, Jainism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Dravidian · Kannadiga · Kodava · Tuluva |
Vokkaliga (Kannada: ಒಕ್ಕಲಿಗ) (pronounced Okkaliga)also known as Gowda is a term for various agricultural, previously endogamous social groups with a martial past, found mainly in the Old Mysore Region, Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, Kolar, Chikkaballapura, Ramanagara, Tumkur, Mandya, Shivamogga, Chikmagalur, Madikeri,Dakshina Kannada and Hassan of southern Karnataka. The Vokkaligas are primarily agriculturists. They form a politically and numerically dominant Hindu forward caste group and were the most populous group until the States Reorganisation Act of 1956 which enlarged the erstwhile State of Mysore by the inclusion of predominantly Canarese districts of the State of Bombay, State of Hyderabad and Coorg, (Mysore State was renamed Karnataka in 1973) following which the Lingayats became the most populous social group in Karnataka.
Vokkaliga is a Kannada word of considerable antiquity finding mention in some of the earliest available literary works of the language, such as the Kavirajamarga, Pampa Bharata, Mangaraja's Nighantu et al. and has been used as an appellation for the cultivator community since time immemorial. Generally the term has come to mean an agriculturist though various etymological derivations are available. A few likely derivations are as follows:
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