Sambandham was an informal mode of marriage followed by Nairs, Samantha Kshatriyas,

Kshatriyas Kshatriya ( hi, क्षत्रिय) (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the c ...

, and Ambalavasis among their own communities as well as with the Nambudiris, in what is the present day state 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 Ca ...

, India. All of these were

matrilineal Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's lineage – and which can involve the inheritance ...

communities. Sambandham also denoted reciprocal marriage among Nairs and this term was not just used to denote hypergamous marriages between the

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 e ...

s and the

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 hist ...

s. 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 Sambandam husbands who also had numerous sambandam wives and they would also arrange schedules to avoid overlaps when they visited their wives at night. The visiting husband placed his weapons outside the bedroom door and if another husband arrived, he might sleep in the

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 ''vera ...

after seeing his weapons. If the women became pregnant, one of the husbands usually accepted the child. If no appropriate man accepted the child, then she is deemed to have had sexual intercourse with a man from a lower caste or even from a man belonging to one of the lower Nair sub-castes. The women was punished in front of the entire enangar, disowned her caste and could be sold as a slave.

Among Nambudhiri Brahmins

Among the Nambudhiri's, the eldest son was only allowed to marry a brahmin woman and make an inheritor to the family's property. The remaining younger sons had sambandam relationships with the Nair women, the elder sons also had sambandham relationships with Nair women along with their Brahmin wives. The Brahmins considered this as

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. Concubin ...

because of their paternal lineage and the Nairs however considered this as legitimate marriages because their lineage passed in a maternal line. Since, the brahmin man was considered more ritually pure than his sambandam Nair wife, he could not touch her or her children or eat in her house during the day-time while he was in a state of ritual purity.

Malabar marriage act

Act IV of the

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 ...

, defined Sambandham as "an alliance between a man and a woman, by reason of which they, in accordance with the custom of the community to which they belong, or to which either of them belongs, cohabit or intend to cohabit as husband and wife."

References

{{reflist

Sources

* Moore, Melinda. "Symbol and Meaning in Nayar Marriage Ritual." American Ethnologist. 15 (1998) 254–273 * Gough, K. (1961) Nayar: Central Kearla, in Schneider, D. M. & Gough, K. (Eds.) Matrilineal Kinship. Berkeley & Los Angeles, p298-404 * Karl, R. (2003) Women in Practice: A Comparative Analysis of Gender and Sexuality in India
2003 Marleigh Grayer Ryan Student Prize
Moore, M. (1998) Symbol and Meaning in Nayar Marriage Ritual, American Ethnologist 15:254-73 * Damodar Dharmanand Kosambi (1975) ''An Introduction to the Study of Indian History''. * Dirks, Nicholas. "Homo Hierarchies: Origins of an Idea." Castes of Mind. Princeton: Princeton University Press 2001. Indian castes Indian surnames Kerala society Telugu society

Practice

Among Nairs

Among Nambudhiri Brahmins

Malabar marriage act

See also

References

Sources