Some historians believe Rawat are the direct descendents of Prithviraj Chauhans brother Hariraj who escaped to dense hilly and forest areas after the fall of the Chauhan empire in Ajmer and the defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan. While others believe they are the descendents of Rao Lakhansi of Nadol branch of Chauhans. Two sons of Rao Lakhansi named Rao Anhal and Rao Anoop defeated the Gurjar king ruling in the Magra region and established their empire which was destabilised by the Mughals. They came to be known as Rawats after their two great warrior ancestors Narhaa Singh Rawat and Vihal Singh Rawat. They were awarded the titles of Rawat for their outstanding bravery with commanders Jaitaa and Kumpa in war against Sher Shah Suri by the ruler of Jodhpur Maldev and Vihalji for attacking the Iltutmish camp by the ruler of Mewar Rawal Jait Singh. Their descendents then came to be known as Rawats. It is believed they escaped from Ajmer to hilly and dense forest areas after defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan. With time some other branches of Rajputs also came to these hilly areas like the Rathore (Pokhariya) Gahlot (Gartund etc), Panwar (Dhodhing, Khiyawat etc) and mingled with the Chauhan Rawat Rajputs. Mainly they serve in the army. The present MP of Ajmer, Rasa Singh Rawat, is also a Rawat Rajput. Because they developed their own culture there they are known as Rawat Rajputs. Their culture has been affected by the hard conditions they were living in, surrounded by hills and forests.
Villages of Rawat Rajputs are also found in Pauri Garhwal Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
Some if not all of the Rawat Rajputs are believed to have migrated from the Indian plains during the Middle Ages. They still retain the name of their areas of origin: for instance, the 'Udaipur Patti' in Garhwal is a group of villages inhabited by people believed to have migrated from Udaipur in present-day Rajasthan. [1]
Rawat is a title used by Rajputs, in Uttarakhand (Popularly known as Garhwal & Kumaon) & some parts of Rajasthan. [2] [3] They are believed to be descendants of Chauhans. [4] . There are some notable Rawats like Bangari Rawat, Kunwar Rawat, Jirdhari Rawat and so on all of them are from Rajput families. Some of the Rawats belong to the Royal Rajput families & landlords also.
