The Mannan people are a
scheduled tribe
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
(ST) 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 ...
,
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 ...
. They are one of the
Adivasi
The Adivasi refers to inhabitants of Indian subcontinent, generally tribal people. The term is a Sanskrit word coined in the 1930s by political activists to give the tribal people an indigenous identity by claiming an indigenous origin. The term ...
who live in
Idukki District. The Mannan follow a matrilineal system of descent, and their ruler, the ''Raja Mannan'', is elected by community headmen from among those eligible by heredity. They are traditional forest-dwellers, gaining their livelihood by collecting and utilising resources of the dense forest, and supplementing these with shifting agriculture. They are believed to be descendants of a Pandyan King and their mother tongue is
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 ...
. Changes since the mid-20th century, including an influx of settlers from the plains of Kerala, degradation of the forest environment, and exposure to modern economic and cultural systems have all posed challenges to their survival as a people continuing their customary way of life.
Demographics
Environment and economic development
See also
*
Kozhimala the Mannan settlement that is the community's "headquarters"
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References
Further reading
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* {{cite web , last1=''Better India'' photographer , last2=''Better India'' Writer , title=In Photos: The Fascinating Story of Kerala's Forest King & His Tribe's 700-Year-Old Legacy , url=https://www.thebetterindia.com/95726/kerala-forest-king-raja-raman-mannan-idukki/ , website=The Better India , language=en , date=13 April 2017
External links
Government of Kerala: Iddukki District official website
Ethnic groups in India
Social groups of Kerala