This is a book on this Oshwal history compiled by Keshavlal M. Shah of the U.K.,  available for download here: Glimpses of Heritage [PDF, 2.2MB]

Introduction

Shri Keshavlalbhai the son of Shri Makanji Bhoja Dhara and Smt. Ratnabai, was born in NAVAGAM in India in 1926. He studied in Gujarati upto 4th standard and though he wanted to study more, due to the circumstances he had to go to Kenya in 1937 at the age of 11 years. He had to return to India after about two years due to the prolonged illness of his father,who died in 1941. During this period Shri Keshubhai looked after his father and also assumed total responsibility for his family, including his mother. He is a kind hearted person and has a very helpful nature, and hence he took care of his father most religiously without any regrets.

Shri Keshubhai had to leave Navagam for Bombay, to earn a decent living, as he had to support his mother and-family. He had small brothers and sisters, and there were no proper means of income in absence of his father, yet, he did not lose heart and on the contrary made up his mind to do hard work and earn money. As Navagam was a very small place, the opportunities were very less, hence he decided to try his luck at a much bigger and well established business centre like Bombay and started earning. Read the rest of this entry »

Please find an announcement for a newly published volume under the title “Gujaratis in the West”. The following link includes publishing details as well as a further link to sample pages: http://www.c-s-p.org/Flyers/Gujarati-s-in-the-West.htm

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Dr. Rati Dodhia of Rhode Island has recently written history of Oshwals in English. The book, titled “Rise and Glory – History of Halari Visa Oshwals”, was distributed to all Oshwals living in the USA and Canada. A limited number of copies were provided to our community associations in India, Kenya and U.K. for distribution to Oshwal members. The book is now available online, here: http://oshwal-usa.org/history/

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Link: http://www.movinghere.org.uk/stories/story88/story88.htm

This story is a translation from a Gujarati article “My Mother” by Sumati Shah and it has a lot of depth and very moving information that we all can relate to. The translation was done by Bhadra Patel.

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I am in the process of writing history of Halari Visa Oshwals in the USA in association with Dr. Rati Dodhia of Rhode Island who is writing history of Halari Visa Oshwals world-wide.

I have collected some information, e.g. Jethalal Khimchand Kachara Gudka of Navagam/ Kenya/ Mumbai was the first Oshwal to have studied in the USA. He came to New York in 1946 and stayed for three years. In 1948/1949, four more Oshwals came to the USA for studies. They were (i) Jayantilal Nemchand Fulchand Shah of Kansumara/ Kenya, (ii) Keshav Premchand Popat Chandari of Champa Beraja/ Kenya and his brother (iii) Manu Chandaria, and (iv) Dhiru Premchand Vrajpal Shah of Padana/Kenya. Read the rest of this entry »

Map of Halar, with all names in English, according to 2001 Census. Villages in capital letters have Oshwal inhabitants. Villages in small letters do not currently have Oshwal inhabitants, but did at one time.

Link: http://www.wikipedia.org/w/wiki.phtml?title=Gujarati_language
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Link: Oshwal and Gotra History on Oswals.net by Smart Solutions

This is a commercial site; however, it contains two interesting sections:(a) Oshwal History by Shri C.M. Lodha of Jodhpur. It discusses in details three different versions of Oswals’origin. (b) Gotra History provides information about the origin of our several Ataks.

Link: History of Kutch

From the Asanjo Kutch website. Information on Kutch, a region near Halar, that is part of the Oshwal community’s history. The Asanjo Kutch website is a commercial portal created to give Kutchi businesses a presence on the internet.

The following information about the settlement of Oshwals at Navagam, Gujarat, India has been translated into English from an article written by the late Somchand Ladha Deva Gudhka. The article was included in Part 18 of the Oshwal Community History published in a monthly magazine titled: The Oshwal/Halari Bandhu. This magazine was printed in Mumbai and edited by the late Tarachand P. Shah until his death in 1995. Publication of the magazine has been discontinued. Please note that I have tried to literary translate Somchandbhai’s article without making any additions or changes. Read the rest of this entry »

Link: Oshwal History – Oshwal Association of the UK

A thorough history of the Oshwal Community presented on the Oshwal Association of the UK website

The information contained in this brief history was compiled by Rati Dodhia and Kanti Gosrani, and edited by Manu Shah.

Halari Visa Oshwal community is a very small community. At the beginning of this century, the population was between 10 to 12 thousands. By 1972, it had increased to 45 thousands and at present it is probably between 50 to 55 thousands, almost equally divided between India, Kenya, England with approximately 2,000 members in North America (USA and Canada). The latest migration has been to Australia. Most Oshwals are well informed and aware of their origin and are very proud of their heritage. Read the rest of this entry »

Link: A Brief History of the UK Oshwal Jain Community

Article in Jain Spirit Magazine by Priti Shah