Bal – a Jat tribe of the Bias and Upper Sutlej, said to be a clan of the Sekhu tribe with whom they do not intermarry. Their ancestor is also said to have been named Baya Bal, a Jat who came from Malwa. The name Bal, which means ” strength,” is a famous one in ancient Indian history, and recurs in all sorts of forms and places. In Amritsar they say they came from Ballamgarh, and do not intermarry with the Suriyavanshi Dhillon Jats . Also some historians said that Bal are descendants of Raja Bali . But according to Bhagvat Dutt they belong to the Anu dynasty.
Distribution in Punjab :-
Villages in Amritsar district :-
In Amritsar district the Bal population is 17,934. This clan holds a total of 23 villages, for example, Bal Khurad, Bal Kalan, Bal Serai,Sathiala, Butala, and Jodhe,
Villages in Ludhiana district :-
Bal population is 3,783 in Ludhiana district.
Villages in Hoshiarpur district :-
Village Bachaurhi midway between Garhshankar and Balachaur has a fair concentration of Bal Jats.
Villages in Jalandhar district :-
According to B S Dhillon the population of Bal clan in Jalandhar district is 1,500.
Villages in Gurdaspur district :-
Bal named Villages are in Dera Baba Nanak and Gurdaspur tahsils in Gurdaspur district in Punjab.
In Gurdaspur district the Bal population is 1,569.
Villages in Firozpur district :-
Bal named village s in Firozpur district, Zira Tahsil, in Punjab, India.
Villages in Patiala district :-
Bal Majra, Balheri, Balsuan villages in Rajpura tahsil in Patiala district in Punjab.
Villages in Rupnagar district :-
Bal, Balauli, Balewal, Balowal Villages in Anandpur Sahib tahsil of Rupnagar district in Punjab.
- Distribution in Haryana :-
Villages in Yamunanagar district :-
Pabni Kalan , Dhoulra .
- Distribution in Uttar Pradesh :-
Villages in Meerut district :-
Ramraj.
- Distribution in Pakistan :-
Bal is One of the largest Jat tribe, found through out the central districts of Lahore, Kasur, Sialkot, Narowal, Gujranwala and Okara. Prior to partition, Muslim Bal were also found in Amritsar, Jalandhar, Kapurthala and Ludhiana. Many have also settled in the canal colony districts of Faisalabad, Sahiwal and Sargodha.
References :-
- A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province
Book by Horace Arthur Rose - Bharatiya Puralekhon Ka Adhyayan Studies In Ancient Indian Inscriptions By Shiv Swarup Sahaya,p.349