Khatana is a major and ancient clan of the Gurjar community of India, Afghanistan and Pakistan. They follow several religions, including Hinduism, Islam, and Sikhism. They ruled in some princely states and independent estates in India and Pakistan, including the Samthar princely state and Swat princely state in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Origin

According to the record of the Khatana Gurjars of Samthar state (Shamshergarh), they are the descendants of the Raja Kedar Rai who ruled in Punjab in ancient times and later Khatana rulers were vessels of the Qanauj in 930 A.D Khatana Gurjars claim being the descendants of Raja Jaipal of the Hindu Shahi Khatana dynasty, who encountered the Sebuktigin (also known as Sultan Mehmud Gaznavi) near the Jehlum river at Attock in Punjab. They claim their lineage back to the Pandavas of the Mahabharata. The Pandavas were a set of five legendary brothers, Yudhishtira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva, who were prominent characters in the Mahabharat.

Offshoots

Khatana Gujjars have many sub-branches/sub-sections including the:

Distributions

They are found in all regions and provinces of Pakistan, including Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Hazara, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir, and Islamabad Capital Territory. In Pakistani Punjab's Gujarat district alone, there are 40 village with a Khatana Gujjar majority population.