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A Rajput is a member of one of the major Hindu Kshatriya (warrior) groups of India. They enjoy a reputation as soldiers; many of them serve in the Indian Armed Forces, while persons of Rajput ancestry also serve in the Pakistani Armed Forces. During the British Raj, the Government accepted them and recruited them heavily into their armies. Current-day Rajasthan is home to most of the Rajputs, although demographically the Rajput population and the former Rajput states are found spread through much the subcontinent, particularly in North India and central India. Rajputs rose to prominence during the 9th to 11th centuries and are divided into three major lineages. The four Agnivanshi clans, namely the Pratiharas (Pariharas), Solankis (Chaulukyas), Paramaras (Parmars), and Chauhans (Chahamanas) rose to prominence first. Rajputs ruled more than four hundred of the estimated six hundred princely states at the time of India's independence in 1947. Rajputs ruled 81 of out the 121 Salute states extant at the time of independence. |