Garhwali

The Garhwali people inhabit the Himalayan valleys of Garhwal on the upper reaches of the Ganges. Their language belongs to the Central Pahari group of Indo-Aryan and descends from Khas Prakrit; its earliest records appear on tenth-century copper plates and temple stones.

Tradition dates the Panwar dynasty to 823, when the Malwa prince Kanak Pal inherited Chandpur Garhi; his descendants slowly absorbed the country's fifty-two hill fortresses. In 1358 Ajay Pal united these principalities into the Garhwal kingdom, moving his capital to Srinagar. In 1640 Rani Karnavati, regent for her young son, repelled a Mughal army and earned the name of the queen who cut off invaders' noses.

Gorkha armies from Nepal overran Garhwal in 1803 and ruled it for twelve years, until the 1815 Treaty of Sugauli split the country into British Garhwal and the princely state of Tehri Garhwal.