Shroff
Also called: Sarraf · Topic: Mughal Agrarian Society and Economy · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 4 "Peasants, Zamindars and the State"
Meaning
A shroff (sarraf) was a moneychanger and banker. He exchanged coins and sent money from one place to another. Shroffs were found even in small villages. This shows how widely money was used in the Mughal countryside.
Example
The French traveller Tavernier noted that in India even a tiny village had a shroff. He used this as evidence that money was used even in remote villages.
Don't confuse with
- Hundi: this was a written note that told someone to pay a sum of money. It let people move money over long distances without carrying coins. Shroffs and merchants used hundis, but the shroff was the person and the hundi was the paper.