Mayer, P.Jodhka, S.S.Naudet, J.2025-05-132025-05-132023Oxford Handbook of Caste, 2023 / Jodhka, S.S., Naudet, J. (ed./s), Ch.3, pp.60-7501988967199780198896715https://hdl.handle.net/2440/144497The jajmani system refers to hereditary patron-client ties between members of land-owning castes and members of other castes who provide them with services throughout the year. Since its formal description by Wiser in 1936 almost every aspect of the system has been the subject of controversy. Does the term apply to all service castes, or just to Brahman priests? Is the system found everywhere in India, or in only some regions? Is it characterised by reciprocity between patron and client or by exploitation? Is it separate from the market economy or deeply embedded in it? Is the system of great antiquity or did it come into being in the 19th century?en© Oxford University Press 2023. The moral rights of the authors have been asserted. All rights reserved.jajmani; patron-client; service castes; payment in kind; village servants; agricultural labour; wagesBook chapter10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198896715.013.42024-01-23682326Mayer, P. [0000-0002-2031-2920]