The Kingdom of Cochin, named after its capital in the city of Kochi (Cochin), was a kingdom in the central part of present-day Kerala state. It commenced at the early part of the 12th century and continued to rule until 1949, when monarchy was abolished by the dominion of India.
The Nair, also known as Nayar, are a group of Indian Hindu castes, described by anthropologist Kathleen Gough as "not a unitary group but a named category of castes". The Nair include several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom historically bore the name 'Nair'. These people lived, and continue to live, in the area which is now the Indian state of Kerala. Their internal caste behaviours and systems are markedly different between the people in the northern and southern sections of the area, although there is not very much reliable information on those inhabiting the north.
Malabar District, also known as Malayalam District, was an administrative district on the southwestern Malabar Coast of Bombay Presidency (1792-1800) and Madras Presidency (1800-1947) in British India, and independent India's Madras State (1947-1956). It was the most populous and the third-largest district in the erstwhile Madras State. The British district included the present-day districts of Kannur, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Malappuram, Palakkad, Chavakad Taluk and parts of Kodungallur Taluk of Thrissur district, and Fort Kochi area of Ernakulam district in the northern and central parts of present Kerala state, the Lakshadweep Islands, and a major portion of the Nilgiris district in Tamil Nadu. The detached settlements of Tangasseri and Anchuthengu, which were British colonies within the kingdom of Travancore in southern Kerala, also formed part of Malabar District until 1927. Malayalam was the administrative as well as the most spoken lingua franca of Malabar District during British Rule. Jeseri, a distinct dialect of Malayalam, was spoken in the Laccadive Islands. Malabar District merged with the erstwhile state of Travancore-Cochin (1950-1956) to form Kerala according to the States Reorganisation Act, 1956. On the same day, the present Kasaragod district of South Canara District was also attached to Malabar, and the Laccadive & Minicoy Islands of Malabar were reorganised to form a new Union Territory. Malabar was trifurcated to form the districts of Kannur, Kozhikode, and Palakkad, on 1 January 1957.
The caste system in Kerala differed from that found in the rest of India. While the Indian caste system generally divided the four-fold Varna division of the society into Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras, in Kerala, that system was absent. The Malayali Brahmins formed the priestly class, and they considered all other castes to be either Shudra or Avarna. The exception to this were the military elites among the Samantha Kshatriyas and the Nairs, who were ritually promoted to the status of Kshatriya by means of the Hiranyagarbha ceremony. This was done so that the Samanthans and Nairs could wield temporal ruling powers over the land, as they constituted the aristocratic class.
Kaimal is an aristocratic title that was historically used by various chiefs from the Nair caste during the feudal period of what is now the Indian state of Kerala. The Kaimals are one of the highest caste of Hindus in Kerala and South India in general. It was the title awarded to notable Samanthan and Kiryathil Nair families. Various families have used the title, including the Kaimals of Koratti, Angi and Koddachery.
Samantan Nair or more commonly Samantan, was a generic term applied to dignify a group of sub-clans among the ruling elites and feudal lords of the Nair community in Kerala. The Samantan Nairs are members of the Kiryathil, Illathu and Swaroopathil Nair communities whose ancestors performed various Śrauta rituals (Hiranyagarbha) to achieve a higher status that enabled them to rule over the Brahmins.
The Nambudiri, also transliterated as Nampoothiri, Nambūdiri, Namboodiri, Namboothiri and Nampūtiri, are a Malayali Brahmin caste, native to what is now the state of Kerala, India, where they constituted part of the traditional feudal elite. As the highest ranking caste in South India, they owned a large portion of the land in the region of Malabar until the Kerala Land Reforms starting in 1957, and intermarried with the Nair monarchs and aristocracy through Sambandham. This marriage relation between the Nambudiris, who were feudal Brahmin lords, and the Nairs, who were kings and warriors, formed a crucial aspect in the administration (Jenmi) of colonial Kerala. The Nambudiris have traditionally lived in ancestral homes known as Illams and have been described by anthropologist Joan Mencher as, "A wealthy, aristocratic landed caste of the highest ritual and secular rank." Venerated as the carriers of the Sanskrit language and ancient Vedic culture, the Nambudiris held more power and authority than the kings and were "above and outside the political systems of the kingdoms."
Naduvazhi refers to feudal elites, ruling chieftains and descendants of royal kingdoms in various regions that are now administrative parts of Kerala, India. They constituted the aristocratic class within the Hindu caste system and were either kings themselves or nobility in the service of the kings of Kerala.
Edgar ThurstonCIE was the British Superintendent at the Madras Government Museum from 1885 to 1908 who contributed to research studies in the fields of zoology, ethnology and botany of India, and later also published his works at the museum. Thurston was educated in medicine and lectured in anatomy at the Madras Medical College while simultaneously holding a senior position at the museum. His early works were on numismatics and geology, and these were later followed by researches in anthropology and ethnography. He succeeded Frederick S. Mullaly as the Superintendent of Ethnography for the Madras Presidency.
Thandan is the honorary title given to the headman of the mainly Thiyya community people in Palakkad, Thrissur district, who reside in the Indian State of Kerala. Thandan is the hereditary headman of a Thiyyar tara (village) and is a Thiyya by caste. He is appointed by the senior Rani of the Zamorin's family or by a local Raja in territories outside the Zamorin's jurisdiction. Thandan becomes the jenmi of the dhesam or dhesavazhi. They are designated as Other Backward Classes by the Government of Kerala as per anthropological studies conducted by the Kerala Institute of Research, and Development Studies.
The Samantha Kshatriya are a community of Kerala, India. They were historically ruling elites and feudal land owners in the Kingdom of Cochin and Kingdom of Travancore. Despite their nomenclature suggesting that they are a part of the Kshatriya class in the Hindu ritual ranking system known as varna, that system has never existed in South India. Anthropologist Christopher Fuller, suggests such claims are vanity and that "most unbiased observers ... have concluded that the Kshatriya and Samanthan subdivisions should be treated merely as supereminent Nayar (Nair) subdivisions". The notable exception to that scholarly consensus is the sociologist Louis Dumont.
The Kavalappara is an aristocratic Indian Nair family. In medieval Kerala, they served as part of the landed nobility and were sworn to the service of the rajas of the area, first that of Palghat and then later that of Cochin. Based at Kavalappara Desam in Karakkat, Valluvanada, their holdings extended to areas such as Kailiad and Panayur.
The Mannanar were a Thiyya dynasty of Malabar, a well known ruler, in the present-day Kannur and Kasaragod districts of India. The ruins of Mannanar palace can still be seen at the foot of the Ghats borders of Coorg. The Mannanar palace in Eruvesi to the North West of Taliparamba was called as Anju Aramana.Kunnathoor Padi Muthappan madapura and Padikutti temples were their royal family temples.
The word "Dheevara" is of Sanskrit origin, and has been used to describe fishermen in Gautama DharmasutraMahabharata. The Dheevara community is a powerful caste in Kerala. These castes were traditionally employed as fisherman. Dheevara Mahasabha, which is a politically powerful organization. Guru Veda Vyasa was born into the Dheevara caste. Vyasa, the legendary author of the Mahabharata, Vedas, and Puranas, some of the most important works in the Hindu tradition. He is also called Veda Vyāsa, was born to this community. The community was formed by Arayan, Valan and other castes to lobby for the fishers' rights, and to seek caste-based reservations in government jobs.
There are numerous ceremonies and customs adopted by the Nair caste, which is prominent in the South Indian state of Kerala.
Kiryathil Nair or Kiriyath Nair is a martial nobility caste belonging to the Kshatriya varṇa, which forms one of the highest-ranking subcastes of the Nair community along with the Samantha Kshatriyas with whom they share a close history. They constituted the ruling elites (Naduvazhi) and feudal aristocrats (Jenmimar) in the regions of Malabar and Cochin in present-day Kerala, India, and have traditionally lived in ancestral homes known as Tharavads. As the pinnacle of the Nair hierarchy, the Samanthan and Kiryathil Nairs were second only to the Namboodiri Brahmins in the social status system of Kerala.
Tirumalpād or Thirumalpād is a Hindu Kshatriya title used in North and Central Kerala, India. The title is used independently by certain sections of Samanthan Nairs and Samanta Kshatriya as well as by some Namboothiri clans. Sāmantha Thirumalpād is investituted with a sacred thread and observes customs and manners exactly similar to other Samantan Nairs. In contrast, the Samanta Kshatriya Thirumalpāds wear the sacred thread, performing vedic rites.
Madampi(equivalent to Lord in English) is an aristocratic title given to the uppermost subdivisions of Nairs in Kerala, by the Maharajahs of Travancore and Cochin. Usually, it was given in addition to the Pillai title. Madampis served as Jenmis or landlords during the pre-independence era. Their power was severely reduced after the Communist government passed the Land Reforms Ordinance. The title Madampi was also used in Cochin, to denote the 71 Nayar chiefs who ruled under the Maharajah of Cochin. A few Nambuthiri landlord families, most notable of whom being those in Vanjipuzha and Makilanjeri, were also given the Madampi title. In Cochin, the Madampis had their own armies, but seldom numbered more than 100. Their power was only a little bit higher than that of the Desavazhis. Madampis supplied chieftains along with soldiers in times of war to the King.
Korattymuthy at Koratty Church is the locally known name of Hail Mary or Mother Mary of Syro-Malabar Catholic community at Koratty in Kerala State, India. Korattymuthy's Shrine is famous for its annual feast with 'Poovankula', Muttilizhayal offerings.
