Widow remarriages in some rural areas of Northern India

It is commonly believed thai widows belonging to high-caste Hindus in India do not remarry because of various social restrictions imposed on their remarriage. Though some information on widowhood and widow remarriages is available, there is need for more detailed information. A study, carried out by the author, of 1 percent of the rural households in Mathura and Saharanpur districts in Uttar Pradesh and in Rohtak district in Panjab has brought out that nearly SO percent of the ever-widowed are remarried. The survey covered 6,211 households, of which 887 were Muslim and the remaining were Hindu.Of the ever-widowed females, 84 percent in Saharanpur, 25 percent in Rohtak, and 19 percent in Mathura were found to have remarried. With a view to finding out whether differences in widow remarriage percentages by districts were real or were due to variations in the distribution of the ever-widowed females by age, occupation, caste, and the number of living children, the standardized widow remarriage rates were obtained. The population of Saharanpur district was taken to be the standard population. As a result of standardization for age, number of living children, and caste, the difference narrowed down considerably; and, while the widow remarriage percentage was 34.2 in Saharanpur. it was found to be 334 in Rohtak and 31.1 in Mathura. A 3 percent lower figure for Mathura district could be a result of the Brahminic influence.Widow remarriages were found to be very common among younger widows, since nearly 90 percent of those below age 16 and 80 percent of those in the age group 15-19 were remarried. Also, roughly 80 percent of those who did not have a child at the time of their widowhood were remarried. But the per-centage of remarried widows declined with an increase in age and in the number of living children. The percentage of widow remarriages was highest among the Muslims-between 35 and 37-because they put no restrictions on such remarriages. Among the Hindus, the lower castes, such as Chamars, Bhangis, and artisan castes, had the highest percentage of widow remarriages-around 30-because of the absence of social restrictions on such remarriages. Among the high-caste Hindus, the Jats (one of the warrior castes) had the highest percentage of remarried widows. The reason for this is that they have socially permitted such remarriages. Widow remarriages, though on a smaller scale, were also found prevailing among other warrior castes, such as Gujjars, Ahirs, and Rajputs. Among other high-caste Hindus, such as Brahmins, Banias, Khatris, and Aroras, cases of widow remarriages were very few-only around 7 percent. This is the result of a long standing religious sanction against such remarriages.On the basis of our data, we are inclined to say that in the rural areas of northern India no marked change in the social position regarding widow remarriages is noticeable.