TREHAṆ, a sub-caste of Khatrīs. It belongs to the Sarīn group, one of the four sub-groups into which the Khatrīs are divided. They are categorized in two main divisions ---the higher and the lower. The Trehaṇs belong to the higher group.

        The etymology of the word trehaṇ is not very clear. According to some, trehaṇ is the distorted form of conjunctive trai-rin, lit. three debts. The legend has it that their elder was freed in his lifetime itself from three Purāṇic debts --- debt to the parents, debt to the gods and debt to the pitrs (ancestors). According to another legend, Trehaṇ is the title which an elder in the line known for his piety and philanthrophy adopted for himself.

        The Trehaṇs, also known as Bāvās, are numerically very small and are mostly found in and around Khaḍūr Sāhib, in the Amritsar district, which was once the abode of Gurū Aṅgad, who was himself born in a Trehaṇ family.