Kattunayakan
Encyclopedia
Kattunayakan is a primitive tribal group of the southern states of India. They live mainly in the states of Kerala
, Tamil Nadu
, Karnataka
, and Andhra Pradesh
. This community is believed to be the modern representatives of the ancient Pallavas.
The word Kattunayakan means the king of the jungle in Tamil
. The Kattunayakan are one of the earliest known inhabitants of the Western Ghats
, who are engaged in the collection and gathering of forest produce, mainly wild honey and wax.
The members of this community are short, have black skin, and have protruding foreheads. The men wear short dhoti
s and half sleeved shirts. The women attach a long single piece of cloth round their body just below the neck, leaving the shoulders and arms bare. Child marriages were common before the 1990s, but now the girls marry after attaining puberty. Monogamy
is the general rule among the Kattunayakan community.
Kattunayakan believe in Hinduism
and have a language, which is a mixture of all Dravidian languages
. The main deity of the tribe is Lord Shiva
under the name of Bhairava. They also worship animals, birds, trees, rock hillocks, and snakes, along with the other Hindu deities
.
Kattunayakan are non-vegetarians and are fond of music, songs, and dancing. They are also called Cholanaickan, Pathinaickans, and Ten Kurumans.
are the two main means of living for the Kattunayakan tribe. However, the restrictions to protect native forest and wildlife have forced them to find work outside the forests. Although willing to work for very low wages, unemployment and poverty is very severe among the Kattunayakan. Another important factor for the tribe is the medicinal system and its close association with the culture. They use traditional medicines for common ailments, but they use modern medicines in an emergency. Even then they only use modern medicine after seeking consent from “God” by the chieftain or priest (generally both roles are taken by the same person), through a well-defined set of traditional rituals or poojas.
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, and Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
. This community is believed to be the modern representatives of the ancient Pallavas.
The word Kattunayakan means the king of the jungle in Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
. The Kattunayakan are one of the earliest known inhabitants of the Western Ghats
Western Ghats
The Western Ghats, Western Ghauts or the Sahyādri is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats block rainfall to the Deccan...
, who are engaged in the collection and gathering of forest produce, mainly wild honey and wax.
The members of this community are short, have black skin, and have protruding foreheads. The men wear short dhoti
Dhoti
The dhoti or pancha is the traditional men's garment in the in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. A similar garment is worn in some rural areas of Punjab province in Pakistan, but the use is fast declining...
s and half sleeved shirts. The women attach a long single piece of cloth round their body just below the neck, leaving the shoulders and arms bare. Child marriages were common before the 1990s, but now the girls marry after attaining puberty. Monogamy
Monogamy
Monogamy /Gr. μονός+γάμος - one+marriage/ a form of marriage in which an individual has only one spouse at any one time. In current usage monogamy often refers to having one sexual partner irrespective of marriage or reproduction...
is the general rule among the Kattunayakan community.
Kattunayakan believe in Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
and have a language, which is a mixture of all Dravidian languages
Dravidian languages
The Dravidian language family includes approximately 85 genetically related languages, spoken by about 217 million people. They are mainly spoken in southern India and parts of eastern and central India as well as in northeastern Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iran, and...
. The main deity of the tribe is Lord Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
under the name of Bhairava. They also worship animals, birds, trees, rock hillocks, and snakes, along with the other Hindu deities
Hindu deities
Within Hinduism a large number of personal gods are worshipped as murtis. These beings are either aspects of the supreme Brahman, Avatars of the supreme being, or significantly powerful entities known as devas. The exact nature of belief in regards to each deity varies between differing Hindu...
.
Kattunayakan are non-vegetarians and are fond of music, songs, and dancing. They are also called Cholanaickan, Pathinaickans, and Ten Kurumans.
Kattunayakan in Kerala
Kattunayakan are one of the five primitive tribal groups in Kerala. They live very much in tune with Nature. Hunting and collecting forest produceForest produce
Forest Produce is defined under section 2 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927. Its legal definition includes timber, charcoal, caoutchouc, catechu, wood-oil, resin, natural varnish, bark, lac, myrobalans, mahua flowers , trees and leaves, flowers and fruit, plants , wild animals, skins, tusks,...
are the two main means of living for the Kattunayakan tribe. However, the restrictions to protect native forest and wildlife have forced them to find work outside the forests. Although willing to work for very low wages, unemployment and poverty is very severe among the Kattunayakan. Another important factor for the tribe is the medicinal system and its close association with the culture. They use traditional medicines for common ailments, but they use modern medicines in an emergency. Even then they only use modern medicine after seeking consent from “God” by the chieftain or priest (generally both roles are taken by the same person), through a well-defined set of traditional rituals or poojas.