Nadar (also referred to as ''Nadan'', ''Shanar'' and ''Shanan'') is a
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nati ...
caste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. Nadars are predominant in the districts of
Kanyakumari
Kanniyakumari (; , referring to Devi Kanya Kumari), also known as Cape Comorin, is a city in Kanniyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent and the southernmost city in mainland Ind ...
,
Thoothukudi
Thoothukudi (formerly Tuticorin) is a port city, a municipal corporation and an industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city lies in the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal. Thoothukudi is the capital and he ...
,
Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tami ...
and
Virudhunagar
Virudhunagar is a city and the administrative headquarter of the Virudhunagar district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located southwest of the state capital Chennai and south of Madurai. Virudhunagar emerged as an important trade ...
.
The Nadar community was not a single caste, but developed from an assortment of related subcastes, which in course of time came under the single banner Nadar.
Nadar climber
Nadar climbers (also known as Pannayeri Nadars or Pannayeri Shanars) were a sub- caste of today's Nadar community. They were regarded as the largest Nadar sub-caste. Their traditional occupation was climbing trees, gathering the sap of coconuts ...
s were the largest subsect of today's Nadar community. A few subsects of the Nadar community, such as the
Nelamaikkarars, were traditionally wealthy landlords and money lenders. Historically, most Nadars were cultivators of
palmyra trees and
jaggery
Jaggery is a traditional non-centrifugal cane sugar consumed in the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and Africa. It is a concentrated product of cane juice and often date or palm sap without separation of the molasses and crystals, and can ...
and a few were also involved in the
toddy trade. Nadar climbers had faced discrimination from major upper castes in some regions. The martial art of
Varma Kalai
Varma Kalai (Tamil: ''varmakkalai'', Malayalam and Sanskrit: ''marma-vidya'', Sinhala: ''maru kalā'', Telugu: ''marma-vidya kaḷa'') is a Tamil traditional art of vital points. It originated in present-day Kanyakumari,Tamilnadu, the southern ...
was historically practiced by the Nadars.
The socio-economic development achieved by the Nadars in southern India has elicited academic interest.
Nadars are classified and listed as an
Other Backward Class
The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, S ...
by the governments of both Tamil Nadu and India.
Etymology
The community was previously known as ''Shanar'' but legally changed their name to ''Nadar'' in 1921. The title ''Nadar'' is believed to be derived from the Nelamaikkarars, the aristocrats of the Shanar community who had previously used it exclusively. Nadars claim that the original name of the community was ''Shantror'' or ''Shandrar'' (noble one) which, in course of time, was corrupted to Shanar.
Channar is a title used by the
Ezhava
The Ezhavas () are a community with origins in the region of India presently known as Kerala, where in the 2010s they constituted about 23% of the population and were reported to be the largest Hindu community. They are also known as ''Ilhava'' ...
community of
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
.
However, there is no evidence to support these claims.
History
The origin of Nadars as a social group is uncertain. Hardgrave stated that the Teri palmyra forests around today's
Tiruchendur
Tiruchendur is a municipality located in Thoothukudi District, Tamil Nadu, India. It is home to the Arulmigu Subramaniya Swamy Temple, which is one of the Six Abodes of Murugan.
Etymology
Tiruchendur, a temple town like many towns in the st ...
must have been their original abode.
In the late 19th century, some Nadar activists started claiming that the Nadars are the descendants of those who ruled the
Pandyan kingdom and that when
Nayak rulers captured the Pandya country, it was divided into several ''Palayams'' (divisions) for each of which
Palaiyakkars were appointed as rulers. They also claimed that the Nayak rulers of Tamil Nadu imposed ''Deshaprashtam'' (ostracism) on the ancient Nadars to ensure that they would not rise.
According to Hardgrave these claims were not completely baseless. The traditions followed by the Nelamaikkarars and the existence of the ruins beneath the Teri palmrya forests of Tiruchendur and the Pandyan capital city of
Korkai
Korkai is a small village in the Srivaikuntam taluk of Thoothukudi district in Tamil Nadu, India. It was called Pandya-Kavada in the Kapatapuram in Kalithogai. It is situated about 3 km north of the Thamirabarani River and about 6 km ...
, where the Nadar population is predominant, suggest they could very well be the heirs of the
Early Pandyas.
However, there is little evidence to support the community's claim to be descendants of the later Pandya rulers.
The identity or caste of the Pandyan kings remains a mystery.
This belief, that the Nadars had been the kings of Tamil Nadu, became the
dogma
Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Islam ...
of the Nadar community in the 19th century.
According to legendary accounts, some of the Nadars had migrated to Sri Lanka, but they had to return to India as they didn't receive proper treatment in Sri Lanka.
Nadars of the 19th century
In the early nineteenth century, the Nadars were a community mostly engaged in the palmyra industry, including the production of toddy.
However, there were a few subsects comprising wealthy landlords and money lenders.
[Bishop Stephen Neill: from Edinburgh to South India By Dyron B. Daughrity](_blank)
/ref> At this time, the majority of Nadars lived south of the Thamirabarani River, and formed 80 – 90 per cent of the population between there and Cape Comorin
Kanniyakumari (; , referring to Devi Kanya Kumari), also known as Cape Comorin, is a city in Kanniyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent and the southernmost city in mainland Ind ...
. Although numerically dominant in the area, the Nadars had a minimal interaction with other communities and they were themselves divided by their various endogamous subcastes, and thus lacked communal cohesion.
While the majority of the Nadar population in the south of Thamirabarani river were poor, landless palmyra climbers, there also existed a small endogamous sub group of aristocratic Nadars
Nadar (also referred to as ''Nadan'', ''Shanar'' and ''Shanan'') is a Tamil caste of India. Nadars are predominant in the districts of Kanyakumari, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar.
The Nadar commu ...
, known as the Nelamaikarrars or Nadans, who owned vast tracts of land. These Nadans either held their position directly under Nayak rulers in the Tiruchendur area or as petty lords under the Palaiyakkarar. They commanded high respect among the population, including from groups such as the Nadar climbers, the minority Vellalar
Vellalar is a generic Tamil term used primarily to refer to various castes who traditionally pursued agriculture as a profession in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and northeastern parts of Sri Lanka. The Vellalar are members of several ...
s and the Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
s. Nadan men rode horses and their women rode in covered palanquins
The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the el ...
.
Nadar climbers were also to be found in other regions of Tamil Nadu where a few palmyra trees grew. In areas where the Nadar climber population consisted of only a few families in a village, they faced discrimination from major upper castes. Due to their association with toddy, the Nadars were considered lower than other middle castes, but relatively higher than the low castes, and were also prohibited to enter temples built by higher ranked castes. Although associated with toddy, the Nadars did not themselves consume it. The Nadars were schismatic about their position in the caste hierarchy and firmly claimed that they were wrongly placed in the caste system due to the Nayak invasion. They were also very caste conscious.
Nadars of Travancore
Hardgrave conjectures that the Nadars of Southern Travancore
The Southern Division, or Padmanabhapuram Division till 1921 and Trivandrum Division from 1921 to 1949, was one of the administrative subdivisions of the princely state of Travancore. It covered the five taluks of Agastiswaram, Eraniel, Kalkula ...
migrated there from Tirunelveli in the 16th century after the invasion of Tirunelveli by the Raja of Travancore. Like their Tirunelveli counterparts, the Nadars of Travancore were mostly palmyra climbers. However, a significant number of Nadars were subtenants to 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 histor ...
or Vellalar landlords. These aristocratic Nadars called themselves Nadans and some of them had direct control over their lands. The Nadans enjoyed special privileges under the Raja and claimed that they were superior to the climbers. The climbers of Travancore fared a little better than their Tirunelveli counterparts but suffered severe social disabilities not found in Tirunelveli due to Travancore's rigid caste hierarchy. As Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda (; ; 12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta (), was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the intro ...
stated, the Keralite hierarchy was a lunatic asylum of castes. One example of the social disabilities was that Nadar climber women were not allowed to cover their bosoms to punctuate their low status. However, the Nadan women of the region were exempted from this restriction.
Discontented with their social status, a large number of Nadar climbers embraced Christianity and became upwardly mobile. Although they improved their status with the aid of Christian missionaries, the outcome of their conversion did not conform to the intent of those missionaries. Both the Christian and Hindu Nadar climber women wore the upper jacket in the manner of upper-class women, in order to improve their social status. In turn, upper-class men abused and discriminated against them. One Nadan family of Agastheeswaram
Agastheeswaram is a panchayat town in Kanniyakumari district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
History
Agasteeswaram is named after Sage Agastya who had visited this place to teach Ramayana. Most of the people from this village are well educat ...
, instead of supporting their depressed counterparts, supported the upper-class men and claimed that only their women had the right to wear an upper cloth. The situation became known as the Upper cloth controversy
The Channar Lahala or Channar revolt, also called Maru Marakkal Samaram, refers to the fight from 1813 to 1859 of Nadar climber women in Travancore kingdom of India for the right to wear upper-body clothes covering their breasts.
Background
...
and became violent. Eventually, with assistance from the Travancore authorities, British Christian Missionaries and Vaikunta Swamy, the depressed Nadar climber women won the right to wear their upper cloth in the manner of their Nadan counterparts.
Northern Nadars
Some petty Nadar traders migrated from southern Tirunelveli to northern Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar. Over time they became commercially skilled and by the late 19th century were socially aspirant. Mercantilism
Mercantilism is an economic policy that is designed to maximize the exports and minimize the imports for an economy. It promotes imperialism, colonialism, tariffs and subsidies on traded goods to achieve that goal. The policy aims to reduce a ...
played a crucial role in facilitating their upward mobility but religion was also perceived as a vehicle. Around 10 percent of the community converted to Christianity, both Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
.
British rule in the southern districts introduced new opportunities for trade and commerce, of which the Nadars took advantage. They established sophisticated ''pettais'' (fortified compounds) and ''urvinmurais'' (local caste associations) to ensure safety for their goods. Members of the ''uravinmurai'', who were known as ''muraikkarars'', would contribute a portion of their income to the association as ''mahimai'' (literally, to glorify oneself), in order to use the facilities of the ''pettais'' and to improve the common good. As the wealth of the Northern Nadars increased they began also to adopt the customs of the North Indian Kshatriyas in order to improve their social status, in a process now known as Sanskritisation
Sanskritisation (or Sanskritization) is a term in sociology which refers to the process by which castes or tribes placed lower in the caste hierarchy seek 'upward' mobility by emulating the rituals and practices of the dominant castes or upper ...
. Many tried to disassociate themselves from their Nadar climber counterparts and the term Shanar (the term generally used to call a Tamil palmrya climber). They adopted the title of ''Nadan'', previously used only by the Nelamaikkarars.
To demonstrate their wealthy and powerful social position, the Nadars of Sivakasi hired Maravar
Maravar (also known as Maravan and Marava) are a Tamil community in the state of Tamil Nadu. These people are one of the three branches of the Mukkulathor confederacy. Members of the Maravar community often use the honorific title ''Thevar''. The ...
palanquin bearers.
The upward mobility and kshatriya pretensions of the Nadars of the six towns of Ramanad caused resentment among both the Vellalar and the Maravar castes, who were ritually ranked above the Nadars. The outcome was a series of caste conflicts, including the Sivakasi riots of 1899
The Sivakasi riots of 1899 are a series of communal disturbances which occurred during 6 June 1899 in Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu, Virudhunagar district, India.
Background
The Nadar historian Samuel Sargunar claimed that the Nadars are the descendan ...
. However, the Sankritisation movement was a failure initially and the Nadar climbers, who lived as minorities, were still discriminated by the majority castes. However these confrontations aided the community to protest for the required rights and privileges, with integrity, and also test how much other communities were willing to accept the Nadar claims of high status. The Northern Nadar leaders then sought to unite their community by encouraging intermarriages within the five major Nadar subcastes and also uplift the depressed palmrya Nadar climbers. They also sought to maintain amiable relationships with other communities. This led to the formation of the Nadar Mahajana Sangam in 1910.
Sri Lanka
Some Nadars emigrated from South India to Sri Lanka during the British colonial era.
Nadars of the 20th century
Nadar Mahajana Sangam
The separate Nadar associations of the six Ramanad towns were unable to support a community that was becoming more dispersed as many began to migrate to other parts of Madras Presidency
The Madras Presidency, or the Presidency of Fort St. George, also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision (presidency) of British India. At its greatest extent, the presidency included most of southern India, including the ...
. With the rise of the politically ambitious T. Rattinasami Nadar, a wealthy Nadar of Porayar in Thanjavur
Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the Gr ...
district, a new association was formed. This resulted from Rattinasami Nadar inviting prominent community leaders to attend a plenary session in February 1910, with the intent of establishing an organization to represent the entire community. Rattinasami Nadar's uncle, V. Ponnusami Nadar, was elected to become the first president of the association, which was called the Nadar Mahajana Sangam
Nadar Mahajana Sangam was first established, due to the efforts of T. Ratnasamy Nadar, in 1910. There are several schools and colleges under the control of Nadar Mahajana Sangam.
Rattinasami Nadar's uncle, V. Ponnusami Nadar, was elected to bec ...
. The association was open to any Nadar male of any subcaste or religion, and had as its general purpose the upliftment of the community. The early Sangam conferences were dominated by the Northern Nadars.
Against toddy
The campaign against toddy was one of the first steps taken by the Nadar Mahajana Sangam to enhance the social advancement of the entire Nadar community. Though majority of the Nadar climbers were engaged in the production of jaggery, a significant number of Nadar climbers were also involved in the production of toddy. The Sangam urged the Nadar climbers to abandon their traditional occupation of toddy tapping and not to sell hard toddy. However many Nadar climbers were reluctant to give up their profitable occupation. The situation got out of hand when Nadar leaders tried to intimidate the climbers, by using tenets of their cult, to give up their occupation as toddy tappers. To ease the situation the district magistrate issued a proclamation restricting the climbers to sell hard toddy only in specific regions, where toddy can be legally drawn. However the Sangam's campaign was effective for only about a year.
Prohibition of toddy act
The Sangam then in order to aid the climbers, sought to abolish the tax levied on palmyra trees. After the establishment of the Prohibition (of toddy) act in the Northern districts of Madras Presidency, the Nadar Mahajana Sangam along with its sister association, Dakshina Mara Nadar Sangam of Tirunelveli, sought to remove it to aid the depressed climbers. The British advisor government in turn suspended the act. However, the prohibition act was reintroduced after the independence. Under the rules of the act, the climbers could only tap between 4 am to 2pm and sell sweet toddy between 6am and 2pm. These procedures can also only be practiced by climbers who have license. The rigid government rules pressurized the depressed climbers. The two prominent Nadars Sangams constantly pressurized the government and eventually the enforcement of these regulations gradually eased. By the mid-1950s, the government assigned cooperative societies to promote jaggery production.
Nadar educational institutions
The Nadar community did not completely rely on the Backward Class Commission for educational advancement. In 1885, the Northern Nadars established the Kshatriya Vidhyasala High School in Virudhunagar by using the ''mahimai'' funds from the Nadar ''uravinmurai''. Education was also the primary concern of the Nadar Mahajana Sangam from inception. In 1921, the Sangam began to provide scholarship loans to needy students, and by 1964 more than 3000 such loans were offered. Some students were given assistance for foreign studies. The Sangam also aided the establishment of village schools. Education formed the largest portion of expenditure by the Nadar Mahajana Sangam. The Nadar bank along with other cooperative societies gave 5 percent of their profit to the scholarship fund. The Nadar Mahajana Sangam also established a college, Senthilkumara Nadar College, in 1947.
Resolution of inter-caste conflicts
In villages where there were few Nadar climbers, they were oppressed by those in the majority. The Nadar Mahajana Sangam acted in the interests of such climbers, using the strength and influence of the community at large. The climbers could ask the Sangam to intervene in inter-community issues, which would cause the Sangam to investigate the situation and determine the validity of any Nadar claims. Then, if necessary, the Sangam would request police intervention or support a claim in court. In situations where the matter went to court, the Sangam would not provide financial support for the Nadar claimant to contest the case, but would rather see that the claim is properly heard. After independence of India
The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947.
The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...
, the Sangam took advantage of the constitutional provisions encouraging a caste-less society and also supported government attempts to promote this vision. The support included urging their own community members to allow use of their schools, tanks, temples and wells by other communities. The name of the Nadar bank was changed to Tamilnad Mercantile Bank. These activities earned the Nadar community respect and recognition.
Politics
In the 1920s and 1930s, Nadar Mahajan Sangam supported the non-Brahmin movement and Justice party. W. P. A. Soundrapandian Nadar as the president of Nadar Mahajana Sangam led the effort to ally the community with Periyar E. V. Ramasamy
Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy (17 September 1879 – 24 December 1973), revered as Periyar or Thanthai Periyar, was an Indian social activist and politician who started the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam. He is known as the 'Fa ...
's Self-respect movement. The Northern Nadars joined the Justice party in its attack against Brahmins on cultural and religious front. They also practiced self-respect marriages during the non-Brahmin movement.
However, in the late 1940s the Nadars' support shifted to Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
, in part because of the political success of K. Kamaraj
Kumaraswami Kamaraj (15 July 1903 – 2 October 1975, hinduonnet.com. 15–28 September 2001), popularly known as Kamarajar was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as the Chief Minister of Madras State (Tamil Nadu) ...
, whose opinions had originally been disliked by his own community. After the end of Kamaraj's era, the Nadars' political support has become diffused across various parties and the Nadar Sangam has become less politicized.
Nadars today
The social and economical development achieved by the Nadars have evoked academic interest. According to N.S.Ramnath, of Forbes, the Nadars are a close knit, powerful community. The Nadars, who were once predominantly not allowed to enter Hindu temples built by castes above them, now occupy respected positions as Trustee
Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...
s in many Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
temples of Tamil Nadu. They are financially strong and are politically influential in the Southern districts of Tamil Nadu. A political observer points out that there is a Nadar leader in almost every political party. The community has influential Tamil media houses, such as Dina Thanthi
''Dina Thanthi'' ( en, Daily Mail; known as Daily Thanthi in English) is a Tamil language daily newspaper. It was founded by S. P. Adithanar in Madurai in 1942. ''Dina Thanthi'' is India's largest daily printed in the Tamil language and the nin ...
. Crawford Young has said that:
Government classification
Nadars are classified and listed as a Backward Class
The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, S ...
by the governments of both Tamil Nadu and India.
Subcastes
The legend of the origin of the Nadars tell of the birth of seven sons; with the death of two, the remaining five father the separate divisions of the community. There were five major divisions among the Nadars. The Nadar community was not a single caste, but developed from an assortment of related subcastes and classes of different origins, which in course of time, came under the single banner Nadar.
Gazetteers of India Tamil Nadu state: Thoothukudi district by Sinnakani: Page 233-242 Nadar climber
Nadar climbers (also known as Pannayeri Nadars or Pannayeri Shanars) were a sub- caste of today's Nadar community. They were regarded as the largest Nadar sub-caste. Their traditional occupation was climbing trees, gathering the sap of coconuts ...
was the largest subsect of today's Nadar community. Nadars are predominant in the south Indian districts of Tuticorin
Thoothukudi (formerly Tuticorin) is a port city, a municipal corporation and an industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city lies in the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal. Thoothukudi is the capital and he ...
, Kaniyakumari
Kanniyakumari (; , referring to Devi Kanya Kumari), also known as Cape Comorin, is a city in Kanyakumari district, Kanniyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent and the southernmos ...
, Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tami ...
and Virudhunagar
Virudhunagar is a city and the administrative headquarter of the Virudhunagar district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located southwest of the state capital Chennai and south of Madurai. Virudhunagar emerged as an important trade ...
.
Karukkupattaiyathar
The Karukkupattaiyathar are supposed to be the original inhabitants of the country around Manadu. This sub-division was later known as ''Mara Nadar''. They claim to be the descendants of the Pandyans. It is the largest of the five subcastes and constitutes about 80 percent of the entire community, including the aristocratic Nelamaikkarars and the climbers beneath them. The Nelamaikarrars and the climbers are endogamous groups, forming sub-subcastes that each marry only among themselves.
Mel-nattar
The term Mel-nattar comes from ''Mel-nadu'' (western country). Mel-nattars lived traditionally in the Southern Travancore and Western Tirunelveli districts. They claim to be descendants of the Chera kings who settled in the area of the Western Ghats after the fall of their dynasty.
Nattathi
At the time that Robert Hardgrave conducted his study, in the 1960s, the Nattathis were predominant in the village of Nattathi near Sawyerpuram
Sawyerpuram is a town ''panchayat'' in Tuticorin district, Tamil Nadu, India.
Microliths are found in large in numbers around Sawyerpuram (and additionally in Kulattur, Tirunelveli). They were found embedded in the fossil-bearing sand dunes. Th ...
, Tuticorin
Thoothukudi (formerly Tuticorin) is a port city, a municipal corporation and an industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city lies in the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal. Thoothukudi is the capital and he ...
district. There they were traditionally cultivators, traders and money lenders. Legendary accounts claim that the Nattathis are descendants born of the Pandyas and Cholas. The community was mostly Christian and remained an endogamous unit. The overlord of Nattathi was a retainer of the Kattabomma Nayaka. The Nattathi overlord was invested with Zamindari rights under the British. The last of the Nattathi zamindars, Tiruvarudi Vaihunda Nadan, died in 1892. The properties of the Zamindar were eventually divided among a number of claimants.
Kodikal
They are traditionally palmrya climbers. They are supposed to have migrated to the Pandyan country from the banks of the Cauvery River in Tanjore to serve the Pandyan kings as their flag bearers.
Kalla
The Kalla Shanars were considered as the lowest division of the Nadar community. They are also known as Servai. The term ''kalla'' means "false". They are believed originally to have been palanquin bearers for the Pandyan kings or menial slaves of the Nelamaikkarar family, having descended from illegal unions within the Nadar community. They are traditionally toddy tappers.
The subsect culture is not present today among the Nadars north of Tirunelveli but it still exists among those of southern Tirunelveli. The Karkuppatayathars, the endogamaous Nelamaikkarars and the Nadar climbers beneath them, are today known as ''A group'' or ''Mara Nadar'', and the remaining four subcastes are known as ''B group''.
Gazetteers of India Tamil Nadu state: Thoothukudi district by Sinnakani: Copyrighted by the Government of Tamil Nadu, Commissioner of archives and Historical Research Page232- 237
Christian Nadars
In 1680, the first congregation of Nadars was started at Vaddakankulam with the conversion of Nadar women and a church was built accordingly in 1685. A permanent mission was established in 1701. Some Nadars accepted Christianity through will and some accepted it due to their aversion to local beliefs. In 1970, Christian Nadars numbered 150,000 as opposed to 1.5 to 2 million Hindu Nadars in Madras state
Madras State was a state of India during the mid-20th century. At the time of its formation in 1950, it included the whole of present-day Tamil Nadu (except Kanyakumari district), Coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema, the Malabar region of North and c ...
. Nadar Christians, like Hindus, marry within their caste.
Religious customs
The Hindu Nadars, like other Hindus, have a variety of religious rituals and ceremonies. These include procedures relating to birth, adulthood, marriage and death. Every Hindu Nadar belongs to a ''kuttam'' (assemblage) through patrilineal descent, and each ''kuttam'' has a common family deity. During migration, families would often take soil from their family temple and enshrine it at their new home. Traditionally, all the members of a ''kuttam'' would assemble at least once a year at the family temple. With the birth of a child, the family would traditionally go to the family deity temple, where the hair of the child is shaved for the first time and offered to the deity. At the time of marriage the first invitation is presented to the family deity.
The Hindu Nadars are almost entirely Saivite
Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangin ...
(only one ''kuttam'' is Vaishnavite
Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...
). Of the deities, Murugan
Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesha ...
has been widely popular among the Nadars. Goddess Bhadrakali
Bhadrakali (IAST: Bhadrakālī; ), also known as Mahakali and Kali, is a Hindu goddess.
According to Shaktism, she is one of the fierce forms of the Supreme Goddess Shakti, or Adi Parashakti, mentioned in the Devi Mahatmyam. In Vaishnavism, ...
is the tutelary deity of the Nadar community. The Nadars also claim that they are the descendants of Bhadrakali. A Bhadrakali temple is usually at the centre of almost every Nadar settlement.
Martial arts
The Nadars, traditionally practised a Tamil martial art variously known as ''Adimurai
Adimurai is a Tamil martial art originating in modern-day Kanyakumari, the southernmost region in India. It was traditionally practiced in the Kanyakumari district of modern-day Tamil Nadu as well as nearby areas in southeastern Kerala. Its pr ...
'', ''chinna adi'' and ''varma adi''. In recent years, since 1958, these have been referred to as Southern-style Kalaripayattu, although they are distinct from the ancient martial art of Kalaripayattu itself that was historically the style found in Kerala.
Some Notable Nadars
* H. Vasanthakumar
Harikrishnan Nadar Vasanthakumar (14 April 195028 August 2020) was an Indian businessman and politician from Tamil Nadu. He was the founder and chairman of Vasanth & Co, one of the largest retail home appliance chains in Tamil Nadu. He was al ...
, Former Member of Parliament of the Republic of India and Founder of Vasanth & Co
* K. Kamaraj
Kumaraswami Kamaraj (15 July 1903 – 2 October 1975, hinduonnet.com. 15–28 September 2001), popularly known as Kamarajar was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as the Chief Minister of Madras State (Tamil Nadu) ...
, Former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
The chief minister of Tamil Nadu is the chief executive of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with th ...
* Marshal Nesamony
A. Nesamony, sometimes known as Marshal Nesamony, was a political leader from Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu, India. He was the second son of Kesavan Appavu Nadar, born on 12 June 1895 at Nesarpuram, Palliyadi in Vilavancode Taluk, Kanyaku ...
, politician
* Shiv Nadar
Shiv Nadar (born 14 July 1945) is an Indian billionaire industrialist and philanthropist.
He is the founder and chairman emeritus of HCL Enterprise, HCL Technologies Limited and the Shiv Nadar Foundation. Nadar founded HCL in the mid-1970s and ...
, Founder of HCL Technologies
HCLTech (formerly Hindustan Computers Limited or HCL Technologies) is an Indian multinational information technology (IT) services and consulting company headquartered in Noida.It emerged as an independent company in 1991 when HCL entered into ...
and Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering
Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering (SSN), popularly known as SSN College of Engineering or simply SSN, is a private engineering college located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is an autonomous college affiliated with Anna Unive ...
* Tamilisai Soundararajan
Tamilisai Soundararajan (born 2 June 1961) is an Indian politician serving as the 2nd and current Governor of Telangana, and is the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry (Additional charge) since 18 February 2021. She was the National Secretary and ...
, Governor of Telangana
The governor of Telangana is the head of state of the Indian state of Telangana. The governors have similar powers and functions at the state level as those of the President of India at central level. They exist in the state appointed by the Pre ...
and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry
Puducherry (formerly known as "Pondicherry") is a Union Territory of India. Governance and administration of the territory fall directly under federal authority.
Chief Commissioner (1954 1963)
After the ''de facto'' transfer of French settl ...
* V. Radhika Selvi, Former Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...
for Home Affairs of the Republic of India.
* V. V. Ramasamy Nadar
V. V. Ramasamy Nadar was a politician and social activist from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. He hailed from Virudhunagar. He was an active advocate of Self-respect movements in ranks with Periyar E. V. Ramasamy and exemplified it in his own li ...
, Self Respect movement
* Vijayakumar (Alias) Vijay Vasanth, Indian actor and Member of Parliament of the Republic of India.
Notes
References
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Further reading
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Indian castes
Social groups of Tamil Nadu
Indian surnames
Social groups of India
Merchant castes
Brewing and distilling castes