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Sambandam
Sambandham was an informal mode of marriage followed by Nairs, Samantha Kshatriyas, Kshatriyas, and Ambalavasis among their own communities as well as with the Nambudiris, in what is the present day state of Kerala, India. All of these were matrilineal communities. Sambandham also denoted reciprocal marriage among Nairs and this term was not just used to denote hypergamous marriages between the Nambudiris and the Nairs. The custom is no longer observed. Alternate names for the system were used by different social groups and in different regions; they included ''Pudavamuri'', ''Pudavakoda'', ''Vastradanam'', ''Vitaram Kayaruka'', ''Mangalam'' and ''Uzhamporukkuka''. Practice Among Nairs The Nair women were allowed to take a number of husbands, the number could be of dozens but usually there were three or four regular sambandam husbands. The Nair women also had temporary relationships with the Nair soldiers passing through the area. There were no resentment among the Samban ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nairs
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'. Fuller (1975) p. 309 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. Fuller (1975) p. 284 Historically, Nairs lived in large family units called ''tharavads'' that housed descendants of one common female ancestor. These family units along with their unusual marriage customs, which are no longer practiced, have been much studied. Although the detail varied from one region to the next, the main points of interest to researchers of Nair marriage custo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Concubinage
Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubinage was a formal and institutionalized practice in China until the 20th century that upheld concubines' rights and obligations. A concubine could be freeborn or of slave origin, and their experience could vary tremendously according to their masters' whim. During the Mongol conquests, both foreign royals and captured women were taken as concubines. Concubinage was also common in Meiji Japan as a status symbol, and in Indian society, where the intermingling of castes and religions was frowned upon and a taboo, and concubinage could be practiced with women with whom marriage was considered undesirable, such as those from a lower caste and Muslim women who wouldn't be accepted in a Hindu household and Hindu women who wouldn't be accepted in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indian Surnames
Indian names are based on a variety of systems and naming conventions, which vary from region to region. Names are also influenced by religion and caste and may come from epics. India's population speaks a wide variety of languages and nearly every major religion in the world has a following in India. This variety makes for subtle, often confusing, differences in names and naming styles. Due to historical Indian cultural influences, several names across South and Southeast Asia are influenced by or adapted from Indian names or words. In some cases, Indian birth name is different from their official name; the birth name starts with a randomly selected name from the person's horoscope (based on the ''nakshatra'' or lunar mansion corresponding to the person's birth). Many children are given three names, sometimes as a part of religious teaching. Pronunciation When written in Latin script, Indian names may use the vowel characters to denote sounds different from conventional ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indian Castes
The caste system in India is the paradigmatic ethnographic example of classification of castes. It has its origins in ancient India, and was transformed by various ruling elites in medieval, early-modern, and modern India, especially the Mughal Empire and the British Raj. It is today the basis of affirmative action programmes in India as enforced through its constitution. The caste system consists of two different concepts, ''varna'' and '' jati'', which may be regarded as different levels of analysis of this system. Based on DNA analysis, endogamous i.e. non-intermarrying Jatis originated during the Gupta Empire. Our modern understanding of caste as an institution in India has been influenced by the collapse of the Mughal era and the rise of the British colonial government in India. The collapse of the Mughal era saw the rise of powerful men who associated themselves with kings, priests and ascetics, affirming the regal and martial form of the caste ideal, and it also re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Malayali Brahmins
The terms Malayali Brahmins (also known as Malayala Brahmanar) and Kerala Brahmins apply to the group of Brahmins from the Indian state of Kerala. These groups include the Nambudiri, Pushpaka Unni, Nambeesan, Nambidi, Moothath (Moosad), Ilayath, Chakyar, Nambiar, and the Potti Potti, also written as Potty, is a sect of Brahmins in Kerala state of India. The surname Potti is also used in Arya Vyasa Community in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, in which ''Potti'' means short. Etymology ''Potti'' is a Tamil word meaning "de .... References Malayali Brahmins Brahmin communities across India {{India-ethno-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kettu Kalyanam
Kalyanam, also known as , was the name of an elaborate marriage ceremony of the Samanthan, Nair, Maarar, and Ambalavasi communities of the southern Indian state of Kerala. The customs varied from region to region and caste to caste. (a matrilineal form of marriage) might take place only if the bride had already had this elaborate ritual mock-marriage known as . The is ceremonial only, for after the rituals the groom returns to his house, never to meet the bride again. In some parts of Malabar immediately after the ceremony, a formal divorce is constituted, whereas in other areas the groom enters into with the girl and becomes her husband in practice, if the girl be of marriageable age. Ceremonies Among the communities that practiced the custom, a grand ceremony would be held at its oldest ancestral house. All the girls of appropriate age of the lineage of one generation were ritually married to chosen bridegrooms of (linked neighborhood kinship groups not of the same famil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Malabar Marriage Act, 1896
In 1896, the government of Madras passed the Malabar Marriage Act in response to the recommendations of the Malabar Marriage Commission of 1891. This allowed members of any caste practising '' marumakkatayam'' ( matriliny) in Malabar to register a ''sambandham'' as a marriage. It was permissive rather than restrictive law: whether or not a relationship was registered was entirely the decision of the people involved in that relationship. Initiated by the work of Sir C. Sankaran Nair, the measure was largely a failure, with Panikkar noting that in the 20 years following introduction of the Act only six such relationships were registered and that all of those involved family members of Nair himself. Sambandham and marumakkatayam ''Sambandham'' was a form of relationship practiced by the Nair caste. Anthropologist Christopher Fuller has said that, "The Nayars' marriage system has made them one of the most famous of all communities in anthropological circles". Thomas Nossiter has c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ritually Pure
Ritual purification is the ritual prescribed by a religion by which a person is considered to be free of ''uncleanliness'', especially prior to the worship of a deity, and ritual purity is a state of ritual cleanliness. Ritual purification may also apply to objects and places. Ritual uncleanliness is not identical with ordinary physical impurity, such as dirt stains; nevertheless, body fluids are generally considered ritually unclean. Most of these rituals existed long before the germ theory of disease, and figure prominently from the earliest known religious systems of the Ancient Near East. Some writers connect the rituals to taboos. Some have seen benefits of these practices as a point of health and preventing infections especially in areas where humans come in close contact with each other. While these practices came before the idea of the germ theory was public in areas that use daily cleaning, the destruction of infectious agents seems to be dramatic. Others have descri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Veranda
A veranda or verandah is a roofed, open-air gallery or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front and sides of the structure. Although the form ''verandah'' is correct and very common, some authorities prefer the version without an "h" (the ''Concise Oxford English Dictionary'' gives the "h" version as a variant and '' The Guardian Style Guide'' says "veranda not verandah"). Australia's ''Macquarie Dictionary'' prefers ''verandah''. Architecture styles notable for verandas Australia The veranda has featured quite prominently in Australian vernacular architecture and first became widespread in colonial buildings during the 1850s. The Victorian Filigree architecture style is used by residential (particularly terraced houses in Australia and New Zealand) and commercial buildings (particularly hotels) across Australia and features decorative screens of wrought iron, cast iron "lace" or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samantha Kshatriya
The Samantha Kshatriya are a community of Nair ruling elites and feudal land owners who have historically lived in the Kingdom of Cochin and Kingdom of Travancore in Kerala, India. They share most of their history, traditions, culture and customs with the Kiryathil Nair subcaste, with the latter being eligible to be ritually promoted to the status of Samanthan by means of elaborate Śrauta ceremonies such as ''Hiranyagarbha''. 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 that such claims are vanity and that, "most unbiased observers ... have concluded that the Kshatriya and Samanthan subdivisions should be treated merely as super-eminent Nair subdivisions". The notable exception to that scholarly consensus is the sociologist Louis Dumont Louis Charles Jean Dumont (11 August 1911 – 19 November ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nair
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'. Fuller (1975) p. 309 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. Fuller (1975) p. 284 Historically, Nairs lived in large family units called ''tharavads'' that housed descendants of one common female ancestor. These family units along with their unusual marriage customs, which are no longer practiced, have been much studied. Although the detail varied from one region to the next, the main points of interest to researchers of Nair marriage custo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nambudiri
The Nambudiri (), also transliterated as Nampoothiri, Nambūdiri, Namboodiri, Nampoothiri, 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, owning a large portion of the land in the region of Malabar until the Kerala Land Reforms starting in 1957, and intermarrying with the Nair monarchs and aristocracy through sambandham. They have historically been distinguished by rare practices such as the adherence to Śrauta ritualism, the Pūrva-Mīmāṁsā school of Hindu philosophy, and orthodox tradition, as well as many idiosyncratic customs unique among Brahmins, including primogeniture. Cyriac Pullapilly mentions that the dominating influence of the Nambudiris was to be found in all matters: religion, politics, society, economics and culture of Kerala. History Origin Nambudiri mythology associates their immigration to Kerala from the banks of Narmada, Krishna, Kaveri r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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