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CASTES AND TRIBESOF

SOUTHERN INDIA

CASTES AND TRIBESOF

SOUTHERN INDIABY

EDGAR THURSTON,Superintendent, Madras Government

c.i.e.,

Museum;

;

Correspondant Etranger,

Soci6t6 d'Anthropologie de ParisSocieta

Socio Corrispondante,

Romana

di

Anthropologia.

ASSISTED BY

K.

RANGACHARI,of the

m.a..

Madras Government Museum.

VOLUME V M

TO P

GOVERNMENT

PRESS,

MADRAS

1909.

U h OV.

^

3

RA1 ? 1966

L

NOV

!??/rv OF 1055:^

113S748

CASTES

AND

TRIBESINDIA.V.

OF SOUTHERN

VOLUME

^ARAKK Avar. TheY^iI

Marakkayars are described, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as "a Tamil-speaking Musalman tribe of

mixed Hindu and Musalman origin, the people of which are usually traders. They seem to be distinctfrom the Labbaisstatistics{g'.z'.)

in

several respects,

but the

of the two have

apparently been confused,

as the

they should be."

numbers of the Marakkayars are smaller than Concerning the Marakkayars of thedistrict,

South Arcot"

Mr. Francis writes as follows.*

The Marakkayars

are largely big traders with other

countries such as Ceylon and the Straits Settlements,

and own most of the native coasting craft. They are particularly numerous in Porto Novo. The word Marakkayaris

usually derived from the Arabic markab, a boat.

The

story goes that,

when

the

first

immigrants of

this

were driven from their own country by persecutions) landed on the Indian shore, they were naturally asked who they were, and whencethey came.In answer they pointed to their boats, and

class (who, like the Labbais,

pronounced the word markab, andconsequence knownto

they

became

in

the Hindus as Marakkayars, or

* Gazetteer of the South Arcot

district.

MARAKKAYARthe people of markab.

2

The Musalmans

of pure descent

hold themselves to be socially superior to the Marakkayars, and the Marakkayars consider themselves better

than the Labbais.

There is, of course, no religious bar to intermarriages between these different sub-divisions, but such unions are rare, and are usually only broughtoffer of

about by the

strong financial inducements to the

socially superior party.

Generally speaking, the pure-

bred Musalmans

differ

from those of mixed descent bytheir

dressing themselves

and

women

in

theat

strict

Musalman fashion, and by speaking Hindustani among themselves. Some of the Marakkayarsof

home are now

following their example in both these matters, but most

high hat of plaited coloured grass and (kambayam) waist-cloth. The Labbais also very generally wear these, and so are not always readily distinguishable from the Marakkayars, but some of them use the Hindu turban and waist-cloth, and let their womankind dress almost exactly like Hindu women. In the same way^ some Labbais insist on the use ofaffect the

them

the tartan

Hindustani

in their houses, while others

speak Tamil.

There seemsof

to

be a growing dislike to the introductiondomestic ceremonies, and the proces-

Hindu

rites into

sions and music, which were once

common

at marriages,in

are slowly giving place to a simpler ritual

more

resem-

blance with the nikka ceremony of the

Musalman faith." Of 13,712 inhabitants of Porto Novo returned at the census, 1901, as many as 3,805 were Muhammadans. " The ordinary vernacular name of the town is Farangipettai or European town, but the Musalmans call it Muhammad Bandar (Port). The interest of the majorityof the

inhabitants centres

in

matters

connected withtheir living

the sea.either as

A

large proportion ofof,

them earn

owners

or sailors

in,

the boats which ply

3

MARAKKAYAR

between the place and Ceylon and other parts, and it is significant that the most popular of the unusually large

numberis

of

Musalman

saints

who

are buried in the town

one Malumiyar, who was apparently in his lifetime a His fame as a sailor has been notable sea-captain.magnified into the miraculous, andit

is

declared thatto

he owned ten or a dozen

ships,

and used

appearhas

in

commandthose

of

all

of them simultaneously.of being able to deliverto the sea in ships,

Heand

now

the reputation

from dangersailors

who go down

setting out

on a voyage or returning from onean offeringin

in safety

usually put

the

little

box keptin

at his

darga, and these

sums are expendedand whitewashed.is

keeping that

building

lighted

Another curious

darga

in the

town

that of Araikasu Nachiyar, or the

one pie

lady.

Offerings to her must on no account be(-jJ-^

worth more than one piesmall an

of a rupee)effect.

;

tributes in

excess of that value are of no

If

sugar for so

amount cannot be procured, the devotee spends the money on chunam (lime) for her tomb, and this isconsequently covered with a superabundance of whitewash.Stories are told of the

way

in

which the valuablefailed to obtain her

offerings of richfavour,

men have altogether

and have had to be replaced by others of the

regulation diminutive dimensions.well kept.

The

chief

mosque

is

Behind

it

are two tombs, which stand at anparallel as

odd angle with one another, instead of beingusual.

The legend goes

was a great saint called even more devout disciple called Saiyad Shah. The latter died and was duly buried, and not long after the saint died also. The disciple had always asked to be buried at the feet of his master, and so the grave of this latter was so placed that his feet were opposite the headV-I B

upon a time there Hafiz Mir Sahib, who had anthat once

marakkAyarof his late pupil.pupil was

4Buthisspirit

recognised that the

really greater than the master,

and when menhisfeet

camesaint

later to

see the two graves they found that the

had turned his tomb round so that

no

longer pointed with such lack of respect towards the head of his disciple." *In

the Madras Census Report, 1901, the Jonagans

are separated from the Marakkayars, and are described as

And, Mr. Francis says that in the Gazetteer of South Arcot, "the term Jonagan or Sonagan, meaning a native oftraders of partly

Musalman

Hindu parentage.

Sonagan^or Arabia,

is

applied by Hindus to both Labbaisis

and Marakkayars, but it tuous flavour about it."but

usually held to have a contemp-

There

is

some

little

confusion

concerning the exact application of the name Jonagan,I

gather that

it

is

applied to sea-fishermen and

boatmen, while the more prosperous traders are calledMarakkayars.to differ

A

point, in

which the Labbais are saidis

from the Marakkayars,

that the former are

Hanafis, and the latter Shafis.

The Marakkayarsvarious

are said to admit converts from

Hindu

classes,

who

are called Pulukkais, andfor

may

not

intermarry with the Marakkayars

several

generations, or until they have

become prosperous.rites,

In one form of the marriage

the ceremonial

extends over

four

days.

The most important

itemsin

on the

first

day are fixing the mehr (bride-price)rite

the

presence of the vakils (representatives), and the per-

formance of the nikka

by the Kazi.

The nikka

and the hands of the contracting couple are united by male elders, the bride standing within a screen. During the reading of the kudbha, a sister ofis

kudbha

read,

* Gazetteer of the South Arcot

district.

5

mAran or MARAYANpresent set up a roar,sit

the bridegroom ties a string of black beads round thebride's

neck.

All the

women

called kulavi-idal.

On

the following day, the coupleties

among women, and the bridegroomon thebride's

a goldenfourth

tali

neck.

Onis

the third

or

day a

ceremony

called paparakkolam, or

performed.

The

bride

Brahman disguise, is dressed like a Brahman woman,

and holds a brass vessel in one hand, and a stick in the Approaching the bridegroom, she strikes him other.gently,

and says

"for

Did notthem."in

I

give you buttermilk and

curds

?

Pay me

The bridegroom

then places

a few tamarind seedsobjects to this, and

the brass vessel, but the bride

demands money, accompanying the

demand withretires in

strokes of the stick.

The man then

places

copper, silver, and gold coins in the vessel, and the bride

triumph to her chamber.in

Like the Labbais, the Marakkayars write TamilTamil,

Arabic characters, and speak a language called Arabin

which the Kuran and other books have been[See Labbai.)(sand).

published.

Maralu

Maranup,"in

or

Marayan.

A gotra of Kurni. The Malayans

are

summed

Madras Census Report, 1901, as being temple servants and drummers in Malabar. Like many of the Malabar castes, they must have come fromthethe east coast, as their

name

frequently occurs in the

Tanjore inscriptions of 10 13 A.D. They followed then the same occupation as that by which they live to-day,

and appearIn parts of"

to

have held a tolerably highofthis

social position.

North Malabar"

they are called Oc'chan."caste,"

The developmentwrites,*is

Mr.

H.

A.the

Stuart

interesting.

In

Chirakkal,

*

Madras Census Report,

1891.

MArAN or MArAYAN6district,

northernmost taluk of the Malabar

and

in

the

adjoining Kasargod taluk of South Canara, Marayansare barbers, serving Nayars and higher castes;

in the

Kottayam and Kurumbranaddrummers, and alsothey are

taluks they are barbers and

officiate as purohits (priests) at the

funeral ceremonies of Nayars.

In the latter capacity

known

in

those parts also as Attikurissi Marayan.

Going

still

further south,

we

find

the

called simply Attikurissi, omitting the

Nayar purohit Marayan, andNeverthe-

he considersless,

it

beneath his dignity to shave.

he betrays his kinship with the Marayan of thefirst

north by the privilege which he claims of cutting thehair

when

a Nayar

is

shaved

after funeral

obsequies.

On

the other hand, the drummer,

who

is

called

Marayan,

and would be insulted if it were said that he was akin to the shaving Marayan of the north. He is considered next in rank only to Brahmans, and would be polluted by the He loses caste by eating the food of touch of Nayars. Nayars also lose caste by eating his food. Nayars, but theor honorifically Marar, poses as a temple servant,

A

proverb says that a Marayan has four privileges1.

:

Pani, or drum, beaten with the hand.

2.

Koni, or

bier,

i.e.^

the making of the bier.

3.4.

Natumittam, or shaving.Tirumittam, or sweeping the temple courts.

North Malabar a Marayan performs all the above duties even now. In the south there appears to have been a division of labour, and there a Marayan is in these days" In

only a

drummer and temple

servant.

Funeral

rites are

conducted by an Attikurissi Marayan, otherwise knownas simply Attikurissi, and shavingis

the duty of thefor

Velakattalavan.

This appears to have been the caseI

many

generations, but

have not attempted

to distinall

guish between the two sections, and have classed

as

7barbers.

mArAn or MARAYAN

Moreover,and,

it is

only in parts of South Malabar

that the caste has entirely given

up the profession of

barber

;

curiously enough, these are the localitiesis

where Nambudiri influenceas

supreme.

The Marayanstitle

there appear to have confined themselves to officiating

drummers

in temples,;

and

to

have obtained theIn

of Ambalavasi

and, in course of time, they were even

honoured with sambandham of Nambudiris.places an attempt

some

is made to draw a distinction between Marayan and Marayar, the former denoting the barber, and the latter, which is merely the honorific plural, the temple servant. There can, however, be little doubt that this is merely an ex post facto argument in support of the alleged superiority of those Marayans who have abandoned the barber's brush. It may be here noted

that

it is

common

to find barbers acting as musicians

throughout the Madras Presidency, and that there areseveral other castes in Malabar, such as the Tiyyans,

Mukkuvans,

etc.,

who employ

barbers as purohits at

their funeral ceremonies."

In the Cochin Census Report, 1901, Mr.

M. Sankara

Menon

writes that the Marars are " Sudras, and, properly

speaking, they ought to be classed along with Nayars.

Owing, however,vices in temples,

to their close

connection

with

ser-

and the absence ofNayars,they

free interdining or

intermarriage with

are

classed

along

with Ambalavasis.

Theyalso

are drummers, musicians, and

storekeepers in temples.sections

Like Tiyattu Nambiyars, some

among themknown

draw

figures of the goddess in

Bhagavati temples, and chant songs.they are alsoas

In

some placessub-castes

Kuruppus.

Someif

among them doNayars.In

not dine, or intermarry.

As they havethey touch

generally to serve in temples, they bathethe

matter

of

marriage (tali-kettu and

marAn or marAyan

8pollution, etc., they

sambandham), inheritance, period of

follow customs exactly like those of Nayars.

Inin

thethe

southern taluks Elayads officiate as purohits, but,

northern taluks, their

own castemen

take the part of the

Elayads

in

their

sradha ceremonies.

Thein

tali-kettu

is

likewise performed by Tirumalpadstaluks, but

the

southernin

by their own castemen, called Enangan,withtheir

the northern taluks.

Their castemen or Brahmans unite

themselves

women

in

sambandham.

As

among Nayars,etc.,

purificatory ceremonies after funerals,

are performed

by Checthiyans or Nayar

priests."

For the following detailed note on the Marans of

Travancore

I

am

indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Iyer.has nothing to do withis

The name MaranTamil root mar,

maranam

or

death, as has been supposed, butto beat.

derived from the

In the Tanjore inscriptions of

Coromandel coast appears to have been known by this name. The Marans correspond to the Occhans of the Tamil country, and a class of Marans in North Malabar are sometimes calledthe eleventh century, the caste on the

by

this designation.

In the old revenue records of theto

Travancore

State,

Mangalyam appears

be the term

made use of. The two well-known titles of the caste are Kuruppu and Panikkar, both conveying the idea of In a person who has some allotted work to perform. modern days, English-educated men appear to havegiven these up forPillai,

the titular affix added to the

name of the Sudra population generally. Marans may be divided into two main divisions, viz., Marans who called themselves Marars in North Travancore, and who now hesitate to assist other castes in the performance of their funeral rites and Marans who do;

not convert their caste designationplural,

into

an honorific

and

act as priests for other castes.

This distinction

9is

MArAN or MArAYANto

most clearly marked

in

North Travancore, while

the south of Alleppey the boundary line

may be

said to

remain only dim.

In this part of the country, therefore,is

a fourfold division of the caste

the one best

known

to

the people, namely Orunul, Irunul, Cheppat, and Kulanji.

The Orunulsamong themdeath.

look upon themselves as higher than the

Irunuls, basing their superiority

on the custom obtaining

of marrying only once in their lifetime,first

and

contracting no second alliance after theLiving,

husband's

however, with a Brahman, or one of

a distinctly higher caste, is tolerated

among them

in the

event of that calamity.string,

The word Orunul means oneof

andthe

signifies

the absence

widow marriage.tali-tier is

Among

Irunuls

(two strings) the

not

necessarily the husband, nor is a second husband forbidden after the death of the first. Cheppat and Kulanji

were once mere

local varieties, but

have now becomeof the four sections,rapidity

separate sub-divisions.

The malesinterdine.in

but not the females,castes sub-divide

With what

and ramify

Travancore may be seen

from the

fact of

the existence of a local variety of

Ma-

rans called Muttal, meaning substitute or

emergency

employee,

in

the Kalkulam taluk,

who

are believed to

represent an elevation from a lower to a higher class of

Marans,

rendered

necessary by a temple

exigency.

The Maransare entitled

are alsoto

known

as Asupanis, as they alone

sound the two characteristic musical

instruments, of In

Malabar temples,

called asu

and

pani.

the south they are called Chitikans, a corruption

of the Sanskrit chaitika, meaning one whose occupationrelates to the funeral pile,(asthi,in

and

in the north Asthikkurichis

a bone), as they help the relations of the dead the bonesafter

the collection of

cremation.

The

Marans

are, further, in

some places known

as Potuvans,

mArAn or mArAyan

to

as their services are engaged at the funerals ofcastes.

many

Before the days of Sankaracharya, the sole occupationof the

Marans

is

said to

have been beatino- the drum

in

Brahmanical temples.

Whenis

Sankaracharya was refused

assistance in the cremation of his dead mother by the

Nambutiri Brahmans, he

believed to have sought in

despair the help of one of these temple servants, with

whosethe

aid the corpsein

deposited

the

pit.

was divided into eight parts, and For undertaking this duty, which

Nambutiris repudiated from a sense of offended

religious feeling, the particular

Maran was thrown outrest of the caste,

of his caste by the general community, and a compromise

had

to

be effected by the sage with thein

who

returned

a body on the day of purification along

with the excommunicated man, and helped Sankaracharyato bring to a close his mother's death ceremonies.

In

recognition of this timely help, Sankara

is

believed to

have declared the Maran to be an indispensable functionary at the death ceremonies of Nambutiris and

Ambalavasis.

It

has even been suggested that the

original form of(to

chop

off),

in

Maran was Muran, derived from mur reference to the manner in which theof.is

remains of Sankara's mother were disposed

Thements

traditional occupation of the

Maransare

sounding

or playing on the panchavadya or five musical instru-

used

in

temples.

Thesein

the

sankh or

conch-shell,

timila,is

chendu,

kaimani,

and maddalam.

Theis

conch, which

necessary

every Hindu temple,

loudly sounded

in

the early morning, primarily to

wake

the deity, and secondarily to rouse the villagers.

Again,

when

the

temple service commences, and when theis

nivedya or offering

carried, the

music of the conch

is

heard from the northern side of the temple.

On

this

II

mArAn or mArAyanTheasu and pani

account,

many Marans

call

themselves Vadakkupurattu,

or belonging to the northern side.

are sounded by the

highest dignitariesis

among them.

The

beating of the pani

the accompaniment of expiatory

offerings to the Saptamata, or seven

mothers of HinduOfferings

religious

writings,

viz.,

Brahmi, Mahesvari, Kaumari,

Vaishnavi, A^arahi, Indrani, andare

Chamunda.

made

to these divinein

mothers

during the daily sribali

procession, and

important temples also during the

sribhutabali hours,at

and on the occasion of the utsavabali There are certain the annual utsava of the temple.

well-established rules prescribing the

hymns

to be recited,

and the musicrulespriest

to

be played.

So

religiously

have thesecarries

to be observed

during the utsavabali, that the

who makesall

the offering, the Variyar

who

the light before him and the

Marans who perform the

music

and to dress themselves in orthodox Brahmanical fashion, with the uttariya or upper garment worn in the manner of the sacred thread. It is sincerely believed that the smallest violation of the rules would behave tofast,

visited with dire

consequences to the delinquents before

the next utsava ceremony.

In connection with the musical instrument calledthe timila, the following legendtimila in the Sriis

current.

There was aof kuruntotti,

and there

Padmanabha temple made was a Maran attached to the

temple,

who

was such an expert musician that the priest was unableto adjust his

hymnin

recitation to the

music of the Maran's

drum, and waswrath.It

consequence the recipient of the divineto get a

was contrived

officiate as priest, and, as he could not recite the in

Brahman youth to hymnsto a height

consonance with the sounds produced by the drum, aspirit lifted

hungry

him up from the ground

of ten feet.

The

father of the youth, hearing

what had

MARAN or MARAYANfingers, the blood of

12

occurred, hastened to the temple, and cut one of his

which he offered

to the spirit.

The

boy was then set free, and the old man, who was more than a match for the Maran, began to recite the hymns. The spirits, raising the Maran on high, sucked away hisblood, and vanished.this

The

particular timila

has since

event never been used by any Maran.higher classes of Marans claim six privileges,

The

called pano, koni,

tirumuttam, natumuttam, velichchor,literally

and puchchor.to

Koni means

a ladder, and refers

the stretcher,

made

of

bamboo and kusa

grass or

straw, onlaid.

which the corpses of high caste Hindus are Tirumuttam is sweeping the temple courtyard,courtyard of a Nambutiri's house, where oblations

and natumuttam the erection of a small pandal (booth)in the

are offered to the departed spirit on the tenth day afterdeath.

Velichchor,

or sacrificial

rice,

is

the right to

retain the remains of the food offered to the manes,

andthe

puchchor the offering madeceremony.

to the

deity,

on

whom

priest throws a few flowers as part of the

consecration

Aover

large portion of the time of aall

Maran

is

spent

within the temple, andit.

through the night some watch

Many

functions are attended to by

them

in the

houses of Nambutiris.

Not only

at the

tonsure ceremony,

and samavartana or closing of the Brahmacharya stage, but also on the occasion of sacrificial rites, the Maranacts as the barber.

At the

funeral ceremony, the pretil

paration of the last bed, and handing theseeds, have to be

{Sesamtim)

done by him.

The Chitikkans perform

only the functions of shaving and attendance at funerals,and, though they

may

beat drums in temples, they are

not privileged to touch the asu and pani.thereis

a class of potters called

At Vechur Kusa Maran, who should

13

marasAri

be distinguished from the Marans proper, with they have absolutely nothing in common.

whom

Manytype,

families of the higher division of the

Marans

regard themselves as Ambalavasis, though of the lowest

and abstain from

flesh

anda

liquor.

Some Maransvice,

are

engaged

in the practice of sorcery,

while others are

agriculturists.

Drinking

is

common

sanctionedit

by popular opinion owing to the notion thatfor

is

good

persons with overworked lungs.In their ceremonies the Marans resemble the Nayars,

as they do also in their caste

government and religiousorfirst

worship.

The annaprasana,is

food-giving cere-

mony,

is

the only important one before marriage, and

the child

taken to the temple, where

it

partakes of the

consecrated food.ally

The Nayars, onat

the contrary, generPurification

perform the ceremonyis

home.

by aInto

Brahmanpollution,

necessary to release theis

Maran from death

whichin

not the case with the Nayars.rate, the

Travancore, at any

Nayars are considered

be higher

the social scale than the Marans.

In connection with asu and pani, which have beenreferred to in this note,I

gather

that, in

Malabar, the

instruments called

maramif

(wood), timila, shanku, chen-

gulam, and chenda,kottugu, or playing

played together, constitute pani

pani.

Asu and maramwhichis

are thein

namesble, are

of an

instrument,

includedthisis

pani

kottugu.

Among the

occasions

when

indispensa-

the dedication of the idol at a newly built temple,

the udsavam

puram and

Sriveli festivals,

and the carryingon which a

of the tadambu,

or shield-like structure,is

miniature idol (vigraham)

borne outside the temple.

Marasari. Marasaridivision of

or

Marapanikkan, meaningis

carpenter or worker in wood,

an occupational sub-

Malayalam Kammalas.

marAthaMaratha. Mariithasof thelatest

14

are

found

in

every

district

Madras Presidency, but are, according to the census returns, most numerous in the following:

districts

South Canara

....

...

...

..

31,3517,3147,1566,311

SalemTaj-ijore

.

.

.

....

....

..

..

..

BellaiyItis

recorded, in theIvlarathi

Madras Census Report,

1891,

that

"the term

denotes the various Marathito the south either as

non- Brahman castes,soldiers or

who came

camp

followers in the armies of the Marathiin

invaderscasteis

;

but in South Canara,it

which

district the

most numerous,

appears to be the same as

Are, a class of Marathi cultivators.of 65,961, asas both caste

Of the

total

numberof sub-

many

as 40,871

have returned Marathi

and sub-division.by therestis

The numbernocastes.

divisions returned

less than 305, of

which the majority are the names of otherhave evidently been used

Somesense.

of these castes are purely Dravidian, and the namesin their occupational

For example, we have Bogam, Gandla, Mangala, etc." Mr. H. A. Stuart writes further, in the South Canara Manual, that " Marathi, as a caste name, is somewhat open to confusion, and it is probable that many people of various castes, who speak Marathi, are shown asbeine of that caste.

The

true Marathi casteis

is

said to

have come from Goa, and that placedivided into twelve

the head-quarters.

balls, which The caste is Caste disputes are settled are exogamous sub-divisions. by headmen called Hontagaru, and allegiance is paid to The favourite deity the head of the Sringeri math.

wargs or

is

the goddess Mahadevi,

Brahmans, usually Karadis,Marriageis

officiate at their

ceremonies.

both infant

15,

marAtha

and

adult.

Bant).

The dhare form of marriage is used {see Widows may remarry, but they cannot marry

again into the family of the deceased husband

a rulesome

whichparts,

is

just the reverse of the

Levirate.

In

however, the remarriage of widows is prohibited. husband or a wife can divorce each other at will, and A Marathis are either both parties may marry again.farmers, labourers, or hunters.

They

eat fish

and

flesh

(except that of cattle and animals generally regarded asunclean) and they use alcoholic liquors.either the ordinary Marathi or theit."

They speakdialect of

Konkanicall

The Marathis

of South Canara

themselves Are

and Are Kshatri. In the North Arcot Manual, Mr. Stuart records that the term Marathi is " usually applied to the various

Maratha Sudracaste affixtois

castes,

which have come south.It is

Their

always Rao.

impossible to discover

what particular Sudra division each belongs, for they do not seem to know, and take advantage of being awayfrom their own country to assert that they are Kshatriyas a claim which is ridiculed by other castes. In

marriage they are particular to take a bride only fromwithin the circle of theirof the oriorinal castesis

own

family, so that

an admixture

is

thus avoided.

Their laneuaeeare tailors.*

Marathi, but they speak Telugu or Tamil as well,in

and engageOthers

many

professions.

Many

enlist in

the army, in the police, or as peons

(orderlies or messengers),

and some take

to agriculture

or trading."

Of

the history of Marathas in those districts in whichwill

they are most prevalent, an account

be found

in

the

Manuals and Gazetteers.

The Rangaris

are

Maratha dyers and

tailors.

MARATHAThedied inthatlast

l6

Maratha King of Tanjore, Maharaja Sivaji, It is noted by Mr. M. J. Walhouse * 1855.stately

"an eye-witness has recorded the

and

solemn spectacle of his funeral, when, magnificently arranged, and loaded with the costliest jewels, his body,placed in an ivory palanquin, was borne by night throughthe torchlit streets of his royal city amid the wail ofvast multitudes lamenting the last of their ruling race.

The

nearest descendant, a boy of twelve, was carried

thrice round the pile,

and

at the last circuit a pot of water

was dashed to pieces on the ground.lit

The boy

then

the

pile,

and loud long-sustained lament of a nation

filled

the air as the flames rose."

Upon

the death of

Sivaji, the

Raj became, under the decision of the Courtextinct.

of Directors,

His private estate was placedtheCollectorof

under theInaddition

chargeto

of

the

district.

three

wives

whom

he

had already

married, Sivaji, three years before his death, married ina body seventeen girls.

In 1907, three of the RanisItis

were

still

living

in

the palace at Tanjore.that,

re-

corded

t

by the Marchioness of Dufferinin

when

the

Viceroy visited the Tanjore palace

1886 to speak

with the Ranis, he was admitted behind the purdah.

"The

ladies

had not expected him,in their best,

and

were

not

dressed outintelligible

language.

and no one could speak any However, a sort of chatteringchair, which,cloth,

went

on,

and they made signs towards a

being covered with crimson

Dufferin

thought

down on. He turned and was just about to do so, when he thought he saw a slight movement, and he fancied there might be a little dog there, when two women pulled the cloth open, and there was thehe wasto sitInd. Ant., VII, 187S.

f

Om

Viceregal Life in India, 1884-88.

7

1

marAthareached halfthe Viceroysaidit

principal

Rani

a!"

little

old

way up the back of thehim such a turn

woman who chair, and whom

had been within an act of squashino-.

He

gave

Ain

classified

index to

the Sanskrit Manuscripts in

the Tanjore palace was published by Mr. A. C. Burnell1880.

In

the

introductionfirst

thereto, he

states that

"the library was

brought to the notice of Euro-

pean scholars by H.S.H. Count Noer, Prince Fredericof Schleswig-Holstein,

who brought an accountButinits full

of

it

to

the late Professor Goldstticker.

importance

was not knownit

till

I

was deputed,

1871, to

examine

by the then Governor of Madras, Lord Napier and

Ettrick.

The manuscripts;

are the result of perhaps 300;

years' collections

secondly, after

by the Nayaks of Tanjore about 1675, by the Mahratha princes.firstly,

Someand

of the palm-leaf manuscripts belong to the earlier

period, but the greater

part were collected in the lastAll

present

centuries.

the

Nagari

Manuscripts

belong to the Mahratha times, and a large number ofthese were collected at Benares by the Raja Serfojee

(Carabhoji) aboutIn the are large

fifty

years ago."

Maratha Darbar Hall of the Tanjore palacepictures,

of

little

artistic

merit,

of

all

the

Maratha kings, and the palace also contains a fine statue Sarabhoji by Chantrey. The small but splendid series of Maratha arms from this palace constitutes one of the most valuable assets of the Madras Museum.of

"The

armoury," Mr. Walhouse writes,* "consisted ofall

great heaps of old weapons oftions, lying piled

conceivable descrip-

(music-hall),

upon the floor of the Sangita Mahal which had long been occupied by many* Loc.cit.

V-2

8

MARATHAtonsof rusty arms

I

and weapons,curved

in

confusedrust.

heaps,

coated and caked together with thickof swords,beautifullystraight,

Hundreds

and

ripple-edged,

many

damascened and;

inlaid with

hunting or battle

scenesin

in

gold

many broad

blades with long inscriptions

Marathi or Kanarese characters, and some so finelyto

tempered aswerelongdevices,

bend and quiverwith gold,

like

whalebone.steel,

Thereendless

gauntlet-hilts,

brass

or

in

hilts inlaid

and

hilts

and guards of

the most tasteful and elaborate steel -work.

There wereswords,

long-bladed

swords and

executioners'

two-

handed, thick-backed, and immensely heavy.knives, and poniards

Daggers,

by

scores,

of

all

imaginable and;

almost unimaginable shapes, double and triple-bladed

some withbeautiful

pistols

or spring-blades concealed in their

handles, and the hilts of

many

of the kuttars of the moststeel-

and elaborate piercedrivalling

work,

in

endless

the European metalThere was a profusion of long narrow thin-bladed knives, mostly with bone or ivory handles very prettily carved, ending in parrot-heads and the like, or the whole handle formino- a bird or monster, with lesfs anddevices,

best medieval

work.

wings pressed close to the body,

all

exquisitely carved.;

The use

of these

seemed problematicalfruit,

some

said they

were used to cut

others that they had been poisoned

and struck about the roofs and walls of the women's quarters, to serve the purpose of spikes or broken glass!

A

curious point was the extraordinary

number

of old

European blades,distinctly

often graven with letters

and symbols

of Christian meaning, attached to hilts and handles most

Hindu,

adorned

idolatrous emblems.

with figures of gods and There was an extraordinary number

of long straight cut-and-thrust blades termed Phirangis,

which Mr.

Sinclair,

in his

interesting

list

of

Dakhani

19

MARATHAin

weapons,* says means the Portuguese, or else madeimitation of such

imported swords.disclosed(siV.).

A

kuttar,

with a

handsomeinformedcaptured

steel

hilt,

theSir

well-knownWalter

namehas

ANDREA FERARAmein

Elliot

that,

when

a notorious

freebooter was

the Southern Maratha country

many

years

Andrea Ferrara,' Mr. Sinclair adds that both Grant DufI" and Meadows Taylor have mentioned that Raja Sivaji's favourite Evensword Bhavani was a Genoa blade t tually the whole array (of arms) was removed to Trichinapalli and deposited in the Arsenal there, and, after a Committee of officers had sat upon the multifarious collection, and solemnly reported the ancient arms unfit for use in modern warfare, the Government, after selecting the best for the Museum, ordered the residue This was in to be broken up and sold as old iron.ago, his sword

was found

to be

an

'

.

.

.

.

1863."It is

recorded,

in

the Gazetteer of the Bellary district,

that ''in 1790

Lord Cornwallis, then Governor-General

of India, entered into an alliance with the Marathas and the Nizam to reduce Tipu to order, and it was agreed that whatever territories should

be acquired by themthe chiefs

from Tipu

should be equally divided between them.

Certain specified poligars,of Bellary,to be left

among whom were

Rayadrug and Harpanahalli, were, however, in possession of their districts. Tipu wasin 1792,

reduced to submissionyear he ceded half

and by the treaty of that| Sandur and a part of the Bellary

his territories to the allies.

was

allotted to the Marathas,

Ind. Ant., II, 1S74.tX

The word Genoa occurs on several blades in the Madras Museum collection. The bas-relief of the statue of Lord Cornwallis in the Connemara Publichim receiving Tipu's two youthful sons as hostages.

Library, Madras, represents

V-2 B

MARATHAdistrict

20Nizam."

to the

The

present Maratha chief ofis

the

little

hill-locked

Sandur State

a minor, whose

name and titles are Raja Venkata Rao Rao Sahib Hindu Rao Ghorpade Senapati Mamalikat Madar. Of theeleven thousand inhabitants of the State, the variouscastes of Marathasfamiliesofficials

number over a thousand. " Three of them are Brahmans, who came to Sandur as with Siddoji Rao when he took the State fromExceptfor

the Jaramali poligar.Siddoji's

two short

intervals,

descendants have held the State ever since.

The

others are grouped into three local divisions, namely,

Khiisgi,

Kumbi,

and

Lekavali.

The

first

of these

consists of only

some eight

families,

and constitutes theto

aristocracy of the State.

Some

of

them came

Sandur

from the Maratha country with Siva Rao and other rulers of the State, and they take the chief seats at

Darbars and on other public occasions, and are permittedto dine

and intermarry with the Raja's

family.

They

wear the sacred thread of the Kshatriyas, belong to the orthodox Brahmanical gotras, have Brahmans as their purohits, observe many of the Brahmanical ceremonies,burn their dead, forbid widow re-marriage, and keep On the other hand, they do their womankind gosha.not object to drinking alcohol or to smoking, and they eat Their family god is the same as meat, though not beef.that of the Raja's family, namely,

Martanda Manimallari,to his

and they worship him in the temple in his honour whichis

in

the Raja's palace, and

make pilgrimages[Itis

shrine at Jejuri near Poona.

noted by Monler(also

Williams * that

'

a deification,

Khando-ba

called

Khande-Rao), was a personage whobourhood of thehill

lived In the neigh-

Jejuri,

thirty miles

from Poona.

Brahmanism and Hinduism.

1

2

marAthaof

He

is

probably a deification

some powerful Raja

or aboriginal chieftain,

who made himself useful to the Brahmans. He is now regarded as an incarnation of Siva in his form Mallari. The legend is that the god Siva descended in this form to destroy a powerful demon named IMallasura, who lived on the hill, and was a terrorto the

neighbourhood.

ParvatI descended at thewife.

samevery

time topopularcountry.

become Khando-bas

His worship

is

among

the people of low caste in the Maratha

Sheep are sacrificed at the principal temple on the Jejuri hill, and a bad custom prevails of dedicating young girls to the god's service. Khando-ba is sometimes represented with his wife on horseback, attendedby a dog.shipped

A

sect existed in Sankara's time,

who wor-

Mallari

as

lord of dogs.']

At the marriagesBefore the cere-

of the Khasgis, an unusual custom, called Vira Puja, or

the worship of warriors,

is

observed.

mony, the men form themselves into two parties, each under a leader, and march to the banks of the Narihalla

mock combat as they go. At the river an offering is made to Siva in his form as the The godwarrior Martanda, and his blessing is invoked. dess Ganga is also worshipped, and then both parties march back, indulging on the way in more pretended The second division of the Marathas, the fighting.river,

engaging

in

Kuribis, are generally agriculturists,

though some areintermarry

servants to the

first

division.

They cannot

with the Khasgis, or dine with them except in separaterows, and

womanfolk are not gosha but they have Brahmanical gotras and Brahman purohits. Some of them use the Raja's name of Ghorpade, but this istheir;

only because they are servants in his household.

Themany

third division, the Lekavalis, are said to be the offspring

of irregular unions

among

other Marathas, and are

MARAVANof 22

them servants in the Raja's palace. Whence they They all call themselves are also called Manimakkalu. Ghorpades, and members of the Raja's (the Kansika) gotra. They thus cannot intermarry among themselves, but occasionally their girls are married to

Kunbis.

Their

women

are in no

way

gosha." *is,

The

cranial type of the

Marathas

as

shown by the

following table, like that of theor sub-brachycephalic:

Canarese, mesaticephalic

CanareseMarathiCanarese50 Holeyas...

Cephalic

IndexMa.x.

Av.

79-1

87-4 92-2

30 Rangaris50 Vakkaligas

79-8

S1781 -s

93 "888-284-4

Marathi

30 Suka

Sale.'?

Marathi

30 Sukun Sales

82-2

Maravan. " Thewrites, t" are

Maravans,"in

found chiefly

H. A. Stuart Madura and Tinnevelly,Mr.

where they occupy the tracts bordering on the coast from Cape Comorin to the northern limits of the Ramnad The proprietors of that estate, and of the zemindari.great Sivaganga zemindari, are both of this caste.

Theof the

Maravarspeninsula,little

mustand,

have

been

one

of the

first

Dravidian tribes that penetrated to the south of thelike

the

Kalians, they have been butinfluence.

affected

by Brahmanical

There

exists

amongin

them a picturesque tradition to the effect that,

consequence of their assisting

Rama

in his

war against

the

demon Ravana,

that deity gratefully exclaimed in

* Garcilcer of the Bellary ilislricl.

t

Madras Census Rcporl,

1S91.

23

MARAVANnever forget, and that

good Tamil Maraven, or they have ever since been moreprobability, the

I

will

called

Maravans.

But, with

name may be connected with the word maram, which means killing, ferocity, bravery andthelike,

as pointing clearly to their unpleasant profession,

and slaying their neighbours. In former days they were a fierce and turbulent race, famous for At one time they temporarily their military prowess.that of robbing

held possession of the Pandya kingdom, and, at a laterdate, their armies

gave valuable assistance to Tirumalathe British

Nayakkan.end oflast

They gave

much

trouble at the

(eighteenth) century and the beginning ofcentury,

this (nineteenth)

but they are

now much

the

same

as other ryots (cultivators), though perhaps some-

what more bold and lawless.

Agamudaiyan and Kalianis

are returned as sub-divisions by a comparatively large

numbertherevans,is

of persons.

Maravan

also foundlittle

among

the

sub-divisions of Kalian, and there can be

doubt that

a very close connection between Kalians, Mara-

and Agamudaiyans." This connection is dealt But may here with in the article on the Kalians.I

quote the following legend relating thereto. " Once upon a time, Rishi Gautama left his house to go abroad

on business.

Devendra, taking advantage of his absence,his wife,

debauched

and three children were thelike a thief,

result.

When

the Rishi returned, one of the three hid himself

behind a door, and, as he thus actedhenceforward called Kalian.

he was

was therefore calledthe third brazened ing for himself theof pride.it

Another got up a tree, and Maravan from maram, a tree, whilstand stoodhis ground, thus earn-

out,

name of Ahamudeiyan, or the possessor This name was corrupted into Ahambadiyan."**

Madras Review,

1S99.

MARAVAN"Somemarani, sin;

24say

word Maravan is derived from a Maravan being one who commits sin bythe

killing living creatures without feeling pity,

and withoutor

* fear of god."

Kuha, Rama's boatman, who rowed him across to Ceylon. According to the legend, Rama promised Guha that he would come back at a fixed time. When he failed toreturn,to

The Maravans

claim descent from

Guha

Guha made a fire, whereon to burn himself Hanuman, however, prevented him from death.

committing suicide, and assured him thatshortly return.

Rama would

This came to pass, and Rama, on learndone, called him Maravan, a brave

ing what

Guha had

or reckless fellow.

According to another legend, the

god

Indra, having

become enamoured

of Ahalya,

set

out one night to visit her in the form of a crow, and,seating himself outside the dwelling of the

Rishi her

husband, cawed loudly. The Rishi, believing that it was dawn, went off to bathe, while Indra, assuming the form of her husband, went in to the woman, and satisfied When her husband reached the river, there his desire. were no signs of dawn, and he was much perturbed, but not for long, as his supernatural knowledge revealed to him how he had been beguiled, and he proceeded to curse Indra and his innocent wife. Indra was condemnedto have a thousand female organs of generationhisall

over

body, and

the

woman was

turned

into a stone.

Indra repented, and the Rishi modified his disfigurement

by arranging

that, to the onlooker,

he would seem to

be clothed or covered with eyes, and the

woman wasin

allowed to resume her feminine form when Rama,the course of his wanderings, should tread on her.

The

F.

FawccU.

Journ. Anlhrop. Insl.,

XXXIII,

1903.

25result of Indra's

MARAVANHence

escapade was a son, who was stowedplace

away

in

a

secret

(maravuidam).

his

descendants are

known

as Maravan.*is

The heador

of the

Maravans

the Setupati (lord of

the bridge), or Raja of Ramnad.

"The

SethupatiJ.

line,

Marava dynasty

of

Ramnad," the Rev.hadits

E. Tracyto popular

writes,! " claims great antiquity.

According

legendary accounts,great

it

rise in

the time of the

Rama

himself,

who

is

said to have appointed,

on

his

victorious return from

Lanka

(Ceylon), seven

guardians of the passage or bridge connecting Ceylon

with the mainlandplaces the

....

Another suppositionsecond or third

rise of the family in theIt rests its

century B.C.

case principally upon a statelast ofin

ment

in the

Mahawanso, according to which the

thethe

three Tamil invasions of Ceylon, which took place

second or third century B.C., was under the leadership of

seven chieftains,of the

who

are supposed,

owing

to the silence

Pandyan records on the subject of South Indianwith Ceylon, to

dealings

have been neither Cheras,

Cholas, or Pandyans, but mere local adventurers, whoseterritorial

proximity and marauding ambition had tempted

them

to the undertaking

....

Another supposition

places the rise of the family in the eleventh or twelfth

century A.D.

There are two statements of this case, differing according to the source from which they come. According to the one, which has its source in SouthIndia, the rise of the family took place in or

about 1059

A.D., when Raja Raja, the Chola king, upon his invasionof Ceylon, appointed princesto himself,in his

whomto

he knew to be loyal

and who, accordingall

some, had aided him

conquest of

Pandya, to act as guardians of the

r. I'awccU,

loc, cil.

t Madras journ. Lit. Science, 1890.

MARAVAN

26

passage by which his armies must cross to andsupplies be received from the mainland.the other statement, which hasrecords, the family tookits riseits

and According tofro,

source

in

Sinhalese

from the appointment of

Parakrama Bahu's General Lankapura, who, accordingto a very trustworthy Sinhalese

epitome of the Maha-

wanso, after conquering Pandya, remained some time at

Ramespuram, building a templeisland,

there, and, while

on the

struck kahapanas (coins similar to those of the

Whichever of these statements we may accept, the facts seem to point to the rise of the family in the eleventh or twelfth century A.D., and inscriptions quoted from Dr. Burgess by Mr. Robert Sewell * show that grants were made by Sethupati princes in 14 14, again in 1489, still again in 1500, andSinhalese series).finally as late as 1540.

These bring thein 1604, to

line

down

to

within two generations of the time

when Muttuhave found

Krishaffairs

nappa Nayakka

is

said,

sadly disordered in the

Marava

re-established the old family in

and to have the person of Sadaiyakacountry,

Tevar Udaiyar Sethupati.earlier series present

The

coins of the Sethupatis

divide themselves into an earlier and later series.

The

specimens which are usually larger and better executed, and correspond in weight andappearance very nearly to the well-known coins of theSinhalese series,found.'

together with which they are often

These

coins,'

Rhys Davids

writes, t

'

are prob-

ably the very ones referred to as having been struck by

Parakrama's General Lankapura.'series are very rude in device

The

coins of the later

and execution. The one face shows only the Tamil legend of the word Sethupati, while the other side is taken up with various devices."* Sketch of the Dynasties of

t Numismata Orient.

South India, Ancient Coins and Measures of Ceylon.

27

MARAVAN

and whose curled beards resemble the furious twisted horns of the stag-, the loud twang of whose powerful bowstrings, and the stirring sound of whoseMaravar,

A

poet, in days of old, refers to " the wrathful

double-headed drums, compel even kingslarge armies to turn their back andfly."

at the

head of

are further described as follows.

"

The Maravans Of strong limbs andMaravans,

*

hardy frames, and

fierce

looking as tigers, wearing longthe blood-thirsty

and curled locks of

hair,

armed with the bow bound withtravellers,

leather, ever ready to

injure others, shoot their arrows at poor

and defencelesstheir victims." tdistrict,it

from

whom

they can steal nothing, only to

feast their eyes

on the quivering limbs of" to

In a note on the Maravans of the Tinnevelly

is

recordedPoligars,

:j;

that

this

class

belonged most of the

or feudal

chieftains,

who disputed

with thelast,

English the possession of Tinnevelly during thefirst

and

years

of

the

present

(nineteenth)

century.

As

feudal chiefs

and heads of a numerous

class of the

population, and one whose characteristics were eminently

adapted

for the roll of followers of

a turbulent chieftain,

bold, active, enterprising, cunningclass constituted themselves, or

and capricious,

this

were constituted by the

peaceful cultivators, their protectors in time of bloodshed

and rapine, when no central authority, capable of keeping

Hence arose the systems of Desha and Stalum Kaval, or the guard of a tract of country comprising a number of villages against open marauders in armed bands, and the guard of separate villages, their houses and crops, against secret theft. The feudal chiefthe peace, existed.

received a contribution from the area around his fort

in

*

Kalilh-lhokai.Pillai.

t Kanakasabhai +

The Tamils Eighteen Hundred Vcars

ago.

1904.

Manual of

ihe Tinnevelly dislricl, 1879.

MARAVAN

28

consideration of protection afforded against armed invasion.

The Maravars

are chiefly the agricultural servants

or sub-tenants of the wealthier ryots, undercultivate, receiving a share of the crop.

whom

they

An

increasing

proportion

of this caste are

becoming the ryotwari owners

of land by purchase from the original holders."

Thoughusually

the

Maravans, Mr. Francis writes,* " arethey are

some of them the most In Madura they expert cattle-lifters in the Presidency. particularly ingenious method of removing cattle. have acultivators,

The

actual thief steals the bullocks at night,at a gallop for half a

and drives

themalibi.

dozen miles, hands them over

to a confederate,

and then returns and establishes an The confederate takes them on another stage, and

does the same.

A

third

moving all that night. and rested, and thereafter they are driven by easier stages to the hills north of Madura, where their horns are cut and their brands altered, to prevent them from being recognised. They are then often sold at the great In some papers Chittrai cattle fair in Madura town. read in G.O., No. 535, Judicial, dated 29th March 1899, it was shown that, though, according to the 1891 census, the Maravans formed only 10 per cent, of the population of the district of Tinnevelly, yet they had committed70 per cent, of the dacoities which have occurred in that They have recently district in the previous five years.(1899) figured prominently in the anti-Shanar riots in the

and a fourth man keep them The next day they are hidden

same'

district."

{^See

Shanan.)F. S. Mullaly writes, f " furnish

The Maravans," Mr.

nearly the whole of the village police (kavilgars, watch-

men), robbers and thieves of the Tinnevelly* Madras Census Report, 1901. t Notes on Criminal Classes of the Madras Presidency.

district.

29

MARAVAN

Very often the thief and the watchman are one and the same individual. The Maravans of the present time, of course, retain only a shadow of the power which theirancestors wielded under the poligars,

who commenced the Still the Marava of to-day, as a member kavil system. of a caste which is numerous and influential, as a man ofsuperior physique and bold independentspirit, thief

andan

robber, village policeman and detective combined

is

immense powerIt is

in

the land."

noted, in the

Madras Police Report,predilection

1903, that

" a large section of the population in

Tinnevelly

the

Maravans

are

criminal byefforts

and

training.

Mr. Longden's

have been directed to the suppres-

sion of a bad old custom, by which the police were in

the habit of engaging the help of theselves in the detection of crime.

The

natural result

Maravans themwas

a mass of false evidence and false charges, and, worstofall,

a police indebted to the Maravan,

who was

certain

to \va.w&\\\s qtiid pro quo.

This method being discoun-

tenanced, and the station-house officer being deprived of

the aid of his tuppans (men

has found himself

who provide a clue), the former very much at sea, and, until sounder

methods can be inculcated, will fail to show successful Still, even a failure to detect is better than a results.police in the

hands of the Maravans."

Further informa-

tion concerning tuppukuli, or clue hire, will be found in

the note on Kalians.

From

a very interesting note on the Maravans of thedistrict,

Tinnevelly

the following extract

is

taken.*

"

On

the principle of setting a thief to catch a thief,

Maravars

are paid blackmail to keep their hands from picking andstealing,

and

to

make

restitution fordistrict,

any

thefts that

may

* Tinnevelly, being an account of the Mission Field, 1897

the

people, and the missions.

MARAVANwatchmen.

30

possibly take place, notwithstanding the vigilance of the

(A

suit

has been

a Munsiff's Court, for failure

known to make

to

be instituted,

in

restitution for theft

after receipt of the kudikavalfact,

money.)

As

a matter of

no robberies on a large scale can possibly take placePeople livingat the

without the knowledge, connivance, or actual co-operationof the Kavalgars.in

country places, remote

from towns, are entirelyby

mercy of the Maravars,hut,

and every householder or occupier of a mudis

which

dignified

being called ais

house,

must pay the

Maravars half a fanam, whichpies, yearly.

equal to one anna eight

Those who ownit is

cattle,

and there are few

who doenemy

not,

must pay one fanam a

year.

At the time

of the harvest,to

the custom in Southern India for anhis antagonist's crops as they are

go and reapfields.

g'rowine in the

He

does this to

brinij

matters to

a climax, and to get the right side of his enemy, so that

he

may be

forced tois

come

to terms, reasonable or other-

wise.

Possession

nine points of the law.

On

occa-

sions such as these, which are frequent, the advantage of

the

employment

of Kavalgars can readily be understood.salt,

The Maravarsbidder.like

are often true to their

though some-

times their services

can be obtained by the highest

The

plan of keeping kaval, or going the roundsis,

a

policeman on duty,

for a village of,

say,

a

hundred Maravars, to divide into ten sections.people living within their range.place,If

Each

section takes a particular duty, and they are paid by the

a robbery takes

and the value of the property does not exceed ten

rupees, then this section of ten

men

willIf,

each subscribe however, theall

one rupee, and pay up ten rupees.property lost exceeds the

sum

of ten rupees, then

the

ten sections of Maravars,together, and

the hundred men, will join

make

restitution for the robbery.

How

31

MARAYAN

they are able to dobe imagined.

and to recoup themselves, can Various attempts for many years havethis,

been made to put a stop to this system of kudi-kaval. At one time the village (Nunguneri) of the chief

Maravar was burnt down, and for many years the police have been on their track, and numerous convictions are Out of 150,000 Maravars in constantly taking place.the whole district,

10,000 are professional thieves, and

of these 4,000 have been convicted, and are living at the

present time.

The

question arises whether

some

plan

could notrogues.It

be devised to make honest

men

of these

has been suggested that their occupation as

watchmen should be recognised by Government, andthat they should be enlisted as subordinate officials, just as

some of them are now employed

as Talayaris

and

Vettiyanssidegirls,

....theis

The villages of the Maravars existcastes, and, as

by side with the otherall

boys and

different

classes

that there

a

bond of

grow up together, so sympathy and regard between

them all. therefore, are not regarded as marauding thieves by the other classes. Their position in the community as Kavalgars is recognised, and no one actually fears them. From time immemorial it has been the mamool (custom) to pay them certain dues,and, although illegal,

The Maravans,

contrary to customthe villagersis

?

who The

in

India

is

prepared to act

small

sum paid annually byit

insignificant,it,

and no one considersthat hissteal,

a

hardship to payin

when he knowsthe

goods arethere

safety

;

and,

if

Maravars did not{e.^:,

are plenty of other roving castes

the Kuluvars,so that, on the

Kuravars, and Kambalatars)whole,

who would,

ordinary unsophisticated natives,

who

dwell in

the country side, rather like the

Maravar than otherwise.torchlight

When, however, these watchmen undertake

MARAVANdacoities,

32

and attack

travellers

on the high-road, thenlittle

they are no better than the professional thieves of othercountries,

and they deserve asin

consideration.is

It

must be borneof

mind

that, while

robbery

the here-

ditary occupation of the Maravars, there are thousands

them who lead strictly honest, upright lives as husbandmen, and who receive no benefit whatever from Some of the most noted and the kudi-kaval system. earnest Native Christians have been, and still are, men and women of this caste, and the reason seems to be If they are that they never do things by halves.murderers and robbers, nothing daunts them, and, onthe other hand,of the earth."ifI

they are honest men, they are the

salt

am

informed

that,

when

a

Maravan

takes food in the house of a stranger, he will sometimes

take a pinch of earth, and put

it

commences

his meal.

This act frees

on the food before he him from the obliga-

tion not to injure the family

which has entertained him. In a note entitled Marava jati vernanam,* from theit

Mackenzie Manuscripts,seven sub-divisionsivelyin

is

recorded that

"

there are

the tribe of the Maravas, respect-

denominated

Sembunattu,

Agattha,

Oru-nattu,

Upukatti, and Kurichikattu.that of the

Among these sub-divisions,is

Sembunattu Maravas In the Madras Census Report,returned as the most

the principal one."

1891,

the

following:

are

important

sub-divisions

Agamudaiyan, Kalian,(or

Karana,

Kondaikatti, Kottani,the Sembanattus

Sembanattu, and Vannikutti.

Among

Sembanadus), the following septs or khilais have been recorded:

Marikka.Piccha.

Thanicha.Karuputhra.Katra.

Tondaman.Sitrama.

* Madras Journ. Lit. Science, IV, 1836.

MARAVAN

33

"The Kondayamkottaiwrites,*

Maravars," Mr. F. Fawcettkothu,I

"are divided into

six sub-tribes, or, as they callis

them, trees.

Each

tree, or

divided into three

khilais or branches.

These

call septs.

Those of the

khilais belonging to the same tree or kothu are never

allowed to intermarry.

A

man

or

woman must marry

with one of a khilai belonging to another tree than his

own, his or her own being that of his or her mother, andnot of the father.

But marriage

is:

not permissible betweenthere are

those of any two trees or kothustions.

some

restric-

For

instance, a branch of betel vine or leaves

may

marry with a branch of cocoanut, but not with areca nutsor dates.I

am

not positive what

all

the restrictions are,

but restrictions of

some

kind,

by which marriage between

persons of

all

trees

may

not be

made

indiscriminately,

certainly exist.

The namesto

of the trees or kothus and of

the khilais or branches, as given toPadel, a

me

from the Maraver

book considered

be authoritative, are theseKhilai.

Tree.

Kothu.

Viramudithanginan.

Milaku

Pepper vine

...