Gotra

Gotra (also spelled as Gothra in South India) in Hindu society refers to a group of people who trace their ancestry to a common male ancestor. Some of the common Gotras are Bharadvaja, Sandilya, Kashyapa and Vatsa.

Technical Definition of Gotra

---

1. Gotra means an enclosure for cows. Just as cows of a cowherd flock together in a shelter, so too people of similar family and lineage are bound by the same gotra.^[1]
2. Gautama and Bharadvaja, Visvamitra and Jamadagni, Vashishtha and Kashyapa and Shandilya are seven sages (also known as Saptarishi); the progeny of these seven sages is declared to be gotras.^[2]
3. A descendant beginning with a grandson is termed Gotra.^[3]
4. Gotra is the instrument by which knowledge is spread. Go also means rays of knowledge and tra means instrument. People who belong to a Gotra spread knowledge.

Reference

---

1. Rig Veda
2. Brihadaranyaka Upanisad 2.2.6
3. Panini - apatyam pautraprabhrti gotram (IV. 1. 162)