he Thugs travelled in groups across India for six hundred years.^[1] Although the Thugs traced their origin to seven Muslim tribes, Hindus appear to have been associated with them at an early period. They were first mentioned in Ẓiyā-ud-Dīn Baranī's History of Fīrūz Shāh dated around 1356 In the 1830s they were targeted for eradication by William Bentinck, Governor-General of India, and his chief captain William Henry Sleeman. The Thuggees were seemingly destroyed by this effort.

The Thugs would join travelers and gain their confidence. This would allow them to then surprise and strangle their victims by pulling a handkerchief or noose tight around their necks. They would then rob their victims of valuables and bury their bodies. This led them to also be called Phansigar (English: using a noose), a term more commonly used in southern India.The term Thuggee is derived from the Hindi word ठग, or ṭhag, which means "deceiver". Related words are the verb thugna, "to deceive", from Sanskrit स्थग sthaga "cunning, sly, fraudulent", from स्थगति sthagati "he conceals".This term for a particular kind of murder and robbery of travellers is popular in South Asia and particularly in India.