Rural caste who are numerically dominant amongst Sikhs (about 60% of the Panth), made of farmers, land workers and peasants. They settled in Northern India in the 11th century. They tend to retain the name 'Singh' or 'Kaur' at the end of a name. They made excellent warriors as they faced harsh conditions on the land and as the Punjab was crossed by invaders many times, they had to learn how to defend themselves