Constructing Arya Identity: Making of Modern Hindu Public Culture in Colonial Lahore

Abstract

The establishment of the Dayanand Anglo-Vedic (DAV) College in Lahore in 1886 marked a decisive stage in the institutional development of the Arya Samaj in colonial Punjab. Conceived as an educational institution that combined modern Western learning with Vedic religious principles, the college became a major centre for the production of a new Hindu educated elite and for the dissemination of Arya Samaj ideology. This article examines the historical circumstances that led to the founding of DAV College and analyses its changing role between 1886 and 1947. It argues that the college served not merely as an educational institution but also as an intellectual and organizational hub that fostered religious reform, community consolidation, and political consciousness among urban Hindus in Punjab. Drawing upon institutional records, contemporary newspapers, government reports, and Arya Samaj literature, the study traces how DAV College contributed to the construction of a distinct Hindu public identity while simultaneously responding to the educational and political opportunities created by British colonial rule. It further explores the relationship between the college and emerging nationalist politics, demonstrating that its influence evolved alongside changing political circumstances. By the 1920s and 1930s, as new political organizations and mass movements increasingly dominated public life, the institution's centrality gradually declined, reflecting a broader shift from educational reform to organized political mobilization. Rather than treating DAV College solely as an educational establishment, this article situates it within the wider history of colonial knowledge, religious reform, and communal politics. It argues that the college played a pivotal role in shaping Hindu intellectual life in Punjab and left a lasting imprint on the social and political landscape of late colonial India.