Kinship, Memory, and Cultural Continuity: An Ethnographic and Islamic Sociological Study of the Tribal Social Order of Nomadic Communities in Cholistan (Rohi)

Abstract

The Cholistan Desert of southern Punjab has been studied mainly for its archaeological record, whereas the living tribal communities that inhabit it have received far less systematic ethnographic attention. This article examines the genealogical origins, social institutions, ritual life, customary norms ('Urf), material culture, and oral heritage of the nomadic tribes of Lesser Cholistan. It draws on ethnographic fieldwork carried out in the Fort Marot corridor between October 2024 and April 2025, together with colonial and contemporary literature, analyzing the region through the lens of Islamic social organization. Participant observation, semi-structured interviews with tribal elders, and focus group discussions were analysed thematically. The study finds that kinship-based authority, exercised through sardars, elders, panchayats, and pirs, still regulates collective life by integrating customary practices with communal ethics; that Sufi devotionalism and the tribal branding system known as tottam sustain religious and tribal identity; and that conversion to Islam added a new religious layer to existing lineage structures instead of replacing them. It also finds that oral tradition, the principal vehicle of this heritage, is eroding as younger people turn toward markets and peri-urban settlement. The article argues that tribal culture in Cholistan is best understood as a dynamic system synthesizing Islamic values with local tradition, calling for urgent documentation of the region's intangible heritage.