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Kallar (caste)

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by MatthewVanitas (talk | contribs) at 15:01, 15 March 2012 (Removing "literally meaning thief" from the lede; while this theory is worth discussing in Etymology, there is zero reason for it to be in the first sentence). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Kallar
Regions with significant populations
Tamilnadu, Sri Lanka, Malaysia
Languages
Tamil
Religion
Saiva Siddhantam, Hinduism
Related ethnic groups
Mukkulathor, Vellalar.

The Kallar (Template:Lang-ta) are one of the three related castes of southern India which constitute the Mukkulathor confederacy. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]The Kallar, along with the Maravar and Akamudayar, constitute a united social caste on the basis of parallel professions, though their locations and heritages are wholly separate from one another.[6]

Kallars are found largely in the Thanjavur, Trichy, Pudukkottai, Madurai, Theni, Dindigul, Sivagangai, Ramanathapuram, Karur and Kanchipuram districts of Tamil Nadu. Significant Kallar populations are also found in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and other southeast Asian countries. In the 19th century, the British recognised the Raja of Pudukkottai as the hereditary leader of the community.[citation needed]

Etymology

A number of British colonial writers, including Edward Balfour[7], noted that the term kallar or culler mean "thief" in Tamil, and suggest that as the origin of the caste's name, given that their history has included periods of banditry.[8] Alternate theories derive Kallar from the Sanskrit and Tamil term kalla (black),[9] postulating that Aryan groups referred to the Dravidians as Kalla.[10]

History

Kallars lived in the Palai tinai where agriculture was not possible. In more recent times the word kalla has come to have the generic meaning of thief, probably as a consequence of their having a reputation for thievery.[11]

Notables

References

  1. ^ Notes on criminal classes of the Madras presidency. Government press. p. 82.
  2. ^ Kingship and Political Practice in Colonial India. University of cambridge. pp. 62, 87, 193.
  3. ^ Historical dictionary of the Tamils. Rowman and Little field USA. p. 105.
  4. ^ Sociology and social research, Volume 11. University of Southern California. p. 121.
  5. ^ . Government press. p. 581 http://books.google.com/books?id=03qFAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA581&dq=kallar+thieves&hl=en&sa=X&ei=D2IbT_aaLKOpiAKduKStCA&ved=0CEwQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=kallar%20thieves&f=false. {{cite book}}: Missing or empty |title= (help); Text "titleJournal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland, Volume 19" ignored (help)
  6. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=Be3PCvzf-BYC&pg=PA287&dq=kallar+kshatriya&hl=en#v=onepage&q=kallar&f=false
  7. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=TxwaAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA482&dq=kallar+thief+india&hl=en&ei=wZh4TvHxPIGE0QHBlvyPDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=kallar%20thief%20&f=false
  8. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=cegr6zH9PFEC&pg=PA242&dq=kallar+thief&hl=en&ei=upd4Tor6IuOBsgKfwIHxDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC8Q6AEwADgK#v=onepage&q=thief&f=false
  9. ^ கள்வனென் கிளவி கரியோனென்ப' - திவாகரம்[clarification needed]
  10. ^ கள்ளர் சரித்திரம் - நாவலர் பண்டித ந மு வேங்கடசாமி நாட்டார்[clarification needed]
  11. ^ Srivastava, Vinod Chandra (2008). Gopal, Lallanji (ed.). History of agriculture in India, up to c. 1200 A.D. Concept Publishing. p. 619. ISBN 9788180695216.
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