Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Vaisya \Vais"ya\, n. [Skr. vai[,c]ya.]
   The third of the four great original castes among the Hindus,
   now either extinct or partially represented by the mercantile
   class of Banyas. See the Note under {Caste}, 1.

Source : WordNet®

Vaisya
     n 1: a member of the mercantile and professional Hindu caste; the
          third of the four main castes
     2: the third of the four varnas: the commoners or yeoman
        farmers or mercantile and professional category