Rath, Ratha or Rathasharma (Odia: ରଥ, ରଥଶର୍ମା, Sanskrit: रथ, रथशर्मा) people are Utkala Brahmins having Atreya or Krishnatreya gotra.
In Ramayana Lord Ram along with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman visited Rishi Atri and Sati Anusuiya at their house near Chitrakoot after crossing Yamuna river from Prayagraj.
He gave them land and other facilities in sixteen villages (sola sashan) near Puri for Vedic studies and performing rituals of Lord Jagannath.
Subsequently, with the permission of Gajapati King Atreya Gotri Brahmins migrated to Nayagad, Ganjam, Paralakhemundi, Jeypore and other kingdoms in southern Odisha.
These are Samhita (Richa), Pada, Krama (3 Prakruti) and Jataa, Rekha, Maala, Dhwaja, Shikha, Danda, Ratha and Ghana (Vikrutis).
The revival of Utkala Brahmins is attributed to Pandit Shri Sadashiva Rathasharma who in the mid 20th century re-established Sanskrit education around Odisha.