Pancha-Gauda


Pancha Gauda is one of the two major groupings of Brahmins in Hinduism, of which the other is Pancha-Dravida.

In ''Rajatarangini''

According to Kalhana's Rajatarangini, the Pancha Gauda group includes the following five Brahmin communities, which according to the text, reside to the north of the Vindhyas:
The Sahyadrikhanda, considered a part of the Skanda Purana, also mentions the above classification.

In the ''kaifiyat''s

The Maratha-era kaifiyats of Deccan, which give an account of the society in the southern Maratha country, mention the following Brahmin communities as Pancha-Gaudas
According to the kaifiyats, the Pancha Gaudas could be either Smarta, Vaishnavas or Bhagavats.