How is caste primarily acquired in traditional social systems? (MCAER 2012)

✔Explanation: In traditional caste systems, an individual's caste is assigned at birth, based on the caste of their parents. This ascription is a fundamental characteristic of caste systems, limiting social mobility and perpetuating social hierarchies.

🔑 Key Points:
-Rigveda is the oldest religious text in the world.
-The 10th Mandala of Rigveda contains the Purushasukta hymn which tells about the origin of the caste system.
-The caste system in India divides people into four distinct categories – Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras.
-The word caste derives from the Spanish and Portuguese “casta”, which means “race, lineage, or breed”.
-Portuguese employed casta in the modern sense when they applied it to hereditary Indian social groups called as ‘jati’ in India.
-According to the traditionaltheory, the caste system is an extension of the varna system, where the 4 varnas originated from the body of Bramha.