The priestly caste is a social group responsible for officiating over sacrifices and leading prayers or other religious functions, particularly in nomadic and tribal societies.
In some cases, as with the Brahmins of India and the Kohanim and Levites of ancient Israel, the caste was a hereditary one, with a person's position as a priest depending on his biological descent.
[1][2][3] In Sufism, the spiritual guide is also often a hereditary leader,[4][5][6][7] while the Sayyids of South Asia, who claim descent from the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, have been described as a priestly caste.
[8] In the Russian Eastern Orthodox Church, the clergy, over time, formed a hereditary caste of priests.
[11] In other cases, as with the Druids of the Celtic world and the shamans of ancient Eurasian nomads, the position within the caste may have depended more upon apprenticeship; the exact nature of the "caste" in these cases is difficult to ascertain due to our lack of primary sources.