Chapter VI: Part 6

Concerning the history of the Paravas, and their connection with the pearl-fisheries on the Indian side of the Gulf of Manaar, much information is given by Mr. J. Hornell, [77] from whose account the following extracts are taken. "When the Portuguese rounded Cape Comorin, they found the pearl fisheries of the Gulf of Manaar in the hands of the Paravas, whom tradition shows to have had control of this industry from time immemorial. Of the origin of these people we know extremely little. We know, however, that in the old days, from 600 B.C. and for 1,500 years or more thereafter, the country now comprehended in the districts of Madura and Tinnevelly formed the great Tamil kingdom of Pandya. And, in the old Tamil work called the Kalveddu, the position of the pearl-fishing caste to this monarchy is incidentally mentioned in the following extract: 'Vidanarayanen Cheddi and the Paravu men who fished pearls by paying tribute to Alliyarasani, daughter of Pandya, king of Madura, who went on a voyage, experienced bad weather in the sea, and were driven to the shores of Lanka, where they founded Karainerkai and Kutiraimalai. Vidanarayanen Cheddi had the treasures of his ship stored there by the Paravas, and established pearl fisheries at Kadalihilapam and Kallachihilapam, and introduced the trees which change iron into gold.' In the Maduraik-kanchi the Paravas are described as being most powerful in the country round Korkai. 'Well fed on fish and armed with bows, their hordes terrified their enemies by their dashing valour.' The Maduraik-kanchi describes Korkai as the chief town in the country of Parathavar and the seat of the pearl fishery, with a population consisting chiefly of pearl divers and chank cutters. [78] When the Pandyan kingdom was powerful, the Paravas had grants of certain rights from the monarchy, paying tribute from the produce of the fisheries, and receiving protection and immunity from taxation in return. The conditions under which the Paravas lived at the opening of the sixteenth century are graphically set forth in a report, dated 19th December, 1669, written by Van Reede and Laurens Pyh, respectively Commandant of the coast of Malabar and Canara and senior merchant and Chief of the sea-ports of Madura. Under the protection of those Rajas there lived a people, which had come to these parts from other countries [79]--they are called Paravas--they lived a seafaring life, gaining their bread by fishing and by diving for pearls; they had purchased from the petty Rajas small streaks of the shore, along which they settled and built villages, and they divided themselves as their numbers progressively increased. In these purchased lands they lived under the rule of their own headmen, paying to the Rajas only an annual present, free from all other taxes which bore upon the natives so heavily, looked upon as strangers, exempt from tribute or subjection to the Rajas, having a chief of their own election, whose descendants are still called kings of the Paravas, and who drew a revenue from the whole people, which in process of time has spread itself from Quilon to Bengal. Their importance and power have not been reduced by this dispersion, for they are seen at every pearl fishery (on which occasions the Paravas assemble together) surpassing in distinction, dignity and outward honours all other persons there. The pearl fishery was the principal resource and expedient from which the Paravas obtained a livelihood, but as from their residence so near the sea they had no manner of disposing of their pearls, they made an agreement with the Rajas that a market day should be proclaimed throughout their dominions, when merchants might securely come from all parts of India, and at which the divers and sutlers necessary to furnish provisions for the multitude might also meet; and, as this assemblage would consist of two different races, namely, the Paravas and subjects of the Rajas, as well as strangers and travellers, two kinds of guards and tribunals were to be established to prevent all disputes and quarrels arising during this open market, every man being subject to his own judge, and his case being decided by him; all payments were then also divided among the headmen of the Paravas, who were the owners of that fishery, and who hence became rich and powerful; they had weapons and soldiers of their own, with which they were able to defend themselves against the violence of the Rajas or their subjects. The Moors who had spread themselves over India, and principally along the coasts of Madura, were strengthened by the natives professing Muhammadanism, and by the Arabs, Saracens, and the privateers of the Sammoryn, [80] and they began also to take to pearl-diving as an occupation, but being led away by ill-feeling and hope of gain, they often attempted to outreach the Paravas, some of whom even they gained to their party and to their religion, by which means they obtained so much importance, that the Rajas joined themselves to the Moors, anticipating great advantages from the trade which they carried on, and from their power at sea; and thus the Paravas were oppressed, although they frequently rose against their adversaries, but they always got the worst of it, until at last in a pearl fishery at Tutucoryn, having purposely raised a dispute, they fell upon the Moors, and killed some thousands of them, burnt their vessels, and remained masters of the country, though much in fear that the Moors, joined by the pirates of Calicut, would rise against them in revenge. The Portuguese arrived about this time with one ship at Tutucoryn; the Paravas requested them for assistance, and obtained a promise of it, on conditions that they should become Christians; this they generally agreed to, and, having sent Commissioners with some of the Portuguese to Goa, they were received under the protection of that nation, and their Commissioners returned with priests, and a naval force conveying troops, on which all the Paravas of the seven ports were baptized, accepted as subjects of the King of Portugal, and they dwindled thus from having their own chiefs and their own laws into subordination to priests and Portuguese, who however settled the rights and privileges of the Paravas so firmly that the Rajas no longer dared interfere with them, or attempt to impede or abridge their prerogative; on the contrary they were compelled to admit of separate laws for the Paravas from those which bound their own subjects. The Portuguese kept for themselves the command at sea, the pearl fisheries, the sovereignty over the Paravas, their villages and harbours, whilst the Naick of Madura, who was a subject of the King of the Carnatic, made himself master at this time of the lands about Madura, and in a short time afterwards of all the lower countries from Cape Comoryn to Tanjore, expelling and rooting out all the princes and land proprietors, who were living and reigning there; but, on obtaining the sovereignty of all these countries, he wished to subject the Paravas to his authority, in which attempt he was opposed by the Portuguese, who often, not being powerful enough effectually to resist, left the land with the priests and Paravas, and went to the islands of Manaar and Jaffnapatam, from whence they sent coasting vessels along the Madura shores, and caused so much disquiet that the revenue was ruined, trade circumscribed, and almost annihilated, for which reasons the Naick himself was obliged to solicit the Portuguese to come back again. The Political Government of India, perceiving the great benefit of the pearl fishery, appointed in the name of the King of Portugal military chiefs and captains to superintend it, leaving the churches and their administration to the priests. Those captains obtained from the fisheries each time a profit of 6,000 rix-dollars for the king, leaving the remainder of the income from them for the Paravas; but, seeing they could not retain their superiority in that manner over the people, which was becoming rich, luxurious, drunken, with prosperity, and with the help of the priests, who protected them, threatening the captains, which often occasioned great disorders, the latter determined to build a fort for the king at Tutucoryn, which was the chief place of all the villages; but the priests who feared by this to lose much of their consequence as well as of their revenue, insisted that, if such a measure was proceeded with, they would all be ruined, on which account they urged on the people to commit irregularities, and made the Paravas fear that the step was a preliminary one to the making all of them slaves; and they therefore raised such hindrances to the work that it never could be completed.

"The Paravas," Mr. Hornell continues, "although the original holders of the fishery rights, had begun, prior to the arrival of the Portuguese, to feel the competition of the restless Muhammadan settlers on the coast, who, coming, as many must have done, from the coast of the Persian Gulf, knew already all there was to know of pearl-fishing. The descendants of these Arabs and their proselytes, known as Moros to the Portuguese, are the Moormen or Lubbais of to-day. Their chief settlement was Kayal, a town situated near the mouth of the river Tambrapurni, and which in Marco Polo's time (1290-91) was a great and noble city. It shared with Tuticorin for fully 500 years the honour of being one of the two great pearl markets of the coast--the one being the Moor, the other the Parava, head-quarters.... Menezes, writing in 1622, states that for many years the fisheries had become extinct because of the great poverty into which the Paravas had fallen. Tuticorin, and the sovereignty of the pearl banks and of the Paravas, passed to the Dutch in 1658.

In the report of the pearl fishery, 1708, the following entries occur in the list of free stones according to ancient customs:--

96 1/2 to the Naick of Madura--4 Xtian, 92 1/2 Moorish;
10 to Head Moorman of Cailpatnam--5 Xtian, 5 Moorish.
60 to Theuver--60 Moorish.
185 to the Pattangatyns of this coast--all Xtian stones.

"The 185 stones," Mr. Hornell writes, "given to the Pattangatyns or headmen of the Paravas was in the nature of remuneration to these men for assistance in inspecting the banks, in guarding any oyster banks discovered, in recruiting divers, and in superintending operations during the course of the fishery.... In 1889, the Madras Government recorded its appreciation of the assistance rendered by the Jati Talaivan, and directed that his privilege of being allowed the take of two boats be continued. Subsequently, in 1891, the Government, while confirming the general principle of privilege remuneration to the Jati Talaivan, adopted the more satisfactory regulation of placing the extent of the remuneration upon the basis of a sliding scale, allowing him but one boat when the Government boats numbered 30 or less, two for 31 to 60 boats, three for 61 to 90 boats employed, and so on in this ratio. The value of the Jati Talaivan's two privilege boats in the 1890 fishery was Rs. 1,424, in that of 1900 only Rs. 172." The Jadi Talaivan is said to have been denominated by the Dutch the prince of the seven havens. It is noted in the pearl fishery report, 1900, that "the Paravas are a constant source of trouble, both on the banks and in the kottoo (shed), where they were constantly being caught concealing oysters, which of course were always confiscated. Only one Arab was caught doing this, and his companions abused him for disgracing them."

According to Mr. Casie Chitty, the Paravas are divided into thirteen classes, viz.:--

Headmen.
Dealers in cloth.
Divers for corals.
Sailors.
Divers for pearl-oysters.
Divers for chanks.
Packers of cloth.
Fishers who catch tortoises (turtles).
Fishers who catch porpoises.
Fishers who catch sharks and other fish.
Palanquin bearers.
Peons, who wait about the person of the Chief.
Fishers, who catch crabs.

It is noted by Canon A. Margoschis that the Parava females are famous for the excessive dilatation of the lobes of the ears, and for wearing therein the heaviest and most expensive gold ear jewels made of sovereigns. Ordinary jewels are said to cost Rs. 200, but heavy jewels are worth Rs. 1,000 and even more. The longer the ears, the more jewels can be used, and this appears to be the rationale of elongated ears.

In a recent account of a Parava wedding in high life, I read [81] that "the bride and bridegroom proceeded to the church at the head of an imposing procession, with music and banners. The service, which was fully choral, was conducted by a priest from their own community, after which the newly wedded couple went in procession to the residence of the Jati Talavamore, being escorted by their distinguished host in person. The Jati Talavamore, who wore a picturesque, if somewhat antiquated, robe, rode in a gorgeously upholstered palanquin, with banners, trophies, elephants, and other emblems of his high office. The bride, who was resplendent with diamonds, was becomingly attired in a purple Benares sari with gold floral designs, and wore a superb kincob bodice."

In a note on the Paravans of Travancore, Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar writes that "they are found in most taluks of the State. The title sometimes used by them is Kuruppu. The Paravans of Chengannur and Tiruvella call themselves Chakka, a word supposed by the castemen to be derived from slaghya or praiseworthy, but perhaps more correctly from Chakku, the basket carried by them in their hands. The Paravans are divided into numerous sections. In the south, the Tamil-speaking division follows the makkathayam, while all the Malayalam-speaking sections follow the marumakathayam law of inheritance. There is also a difference in the dress and ornaments of the two sections, the former adopting the fashion of the east coast, and the latter that of the west. The Travancore Paravas are really one with the Tamil-speaking Paravas of the east coast. While most of them became converts to Christianity, in Travancore they have tried to preserve their separate existence, as they had already spread into the interior of the country before the proselytism of St. Xavier had made its enduring mark on the sea-coast villages. There is a curious legend about the settlement of the Chakkas in Central Travancore. Formerly, it would appear, they were Sudras, but, for some social offence committed by them, they were outcasted by the Edappalli chieftain. They were once great devotees of Sri Krishna, the lord of Tiruvaranmulai in the Tiruvella taluk. The Paravas say further that they are descended from a high-caste woman married to an Izhava. The word Parava is accordingly derived from para, which in Sanskrit means foreign. The Paravas engage in various occupations, of which the most important in Central Travancore are climbing palm trees, catching fish, and washing clothes for Christians, Muhammadans, and depressed classes of Hindus. In South Travancore they make wicker baskets, rattan chairs, and sofas. Women, in all parts of the State, are lime and shell burners. They worship at the Aranmula temple, and pay special worship to Bhadrakali. Their priest is known as Parakuruppu, who, having to perform four different functions, is also entitled Nalonnukaran. It is his duty to preside at marriage and other rites, to be caste barber, to carry the news of death to the relations, and to perform the priestly functions at funerals. The Paravas perform both the tali-kettu and sambandham ceremonies."

Parel Maddiyala.--Barbers of the Billavas.

Parenga.--A sub-division of Gadaba.

Pariah.--See Paraiyan.

Parikimuggula.--Professional tattooing women in the Telugu country. The name refers to the patterns (parika or muggu), which they carry about with them, as designs for tattooing or to be drawn on the floor on occasions of festival and ceremonial.

Parivara.--A sub-division of Bant.

Parivaram.--It is noted, in the Census Report, 1891, that "this is a caste, which presents some difficulty. Parivaram means 'an army, a retinue,' and it is alleged that the people of this caste were formerly soldiers. Parivaram is found as a sub-division of Maravan and Agamudaiyan, and the Parivaras of Madura and Tinnevelly are probably either a sub-division or an offshoot of the Maravans. In Coimbatore, the only other district in which the Parivaras are numerous, they seem to be a sub-division of Toreyas, a fishing caste, and Mr. Rice, in his Gazetteer (of Mysore), says that Parivara is a synonym of Besta." Further, in the Census Report, 1901, it is stated that "the word Parivaram means 'a retinue,' and was probably originally only an occupational term. It is now-a-days applied to the domestic servants and the Tottiya zamindars in the districts of Coimbatore, Trichinopoly, Madura, and Tinnevelly, who are recruited from several castes, but have come to form a caste by themselves. The Kotaris of South Canara are a somewhat parallel case, and probably in time the Paiks among the Oriyas, and the Khasas, who are servants to the Telugu zamindars, will similarly develop into separate castes. The caste is said to require all its members of both sexes to do such service for its masters as they may require. Persons of any caste above the Paraiyas are admitted into its ranks, and the men in it may marry a woman of any other caste with the permission of the zamindar under whom they serve. They do not habitually employ Brahmans as priests, and in places the head of the Tottiyan caste conducts their ceremonies. Their titles are Maniyagaran and Servaigaran. The latter is also used by the Agamudaiyans."

The title Servaigaran or Servaikaran indicates that members of the caste do servai, or service, and the further title uliyakkaran is a sign that they do uliyam, or menial work. Servaikaran is also a title of the Tamil Ambalakarans, Agamudaiyans, Kallans, and Maravans, and the Canarese Toreyas, some of whom have settled in the Tamil districts of Madura and Coimbatore. It also occurs as a synonym of the Canarese Kotegaras.

The illegitimate offspring of Maravans, Kallans, and Agamudaiyans, are said to become members of the mixed Parivaram caste.

It is recorded, in the Gazetteer of the Madura district, that the Parivaram caste "is divided into two endogamous sections; the Chinna Uliyam (little services) who are palanquin-bearers, and have the title Tevan, and the Periya Uliyam (big services), who are called Maniyakaran. The Kombai Parivarams, who are the servants of the Kappiliyan Zamindars of Kombai and Tevaram in the Periyakulam taluk, are a separate community, and do not intermarry with the others. When a girl attains maturity, she is kept for sixteen days in a hut, which is guarded at night by her relations. This is afterwards burnt down, and the pots she used are broken into very small pieces, as there is an idea that, if rain-water collects in any of them, the girl will be childless. Some of the ceremonies at weddings are unusual. On the first day, a man takes a big pot of water with a smaller empty pot on top of it, and marches three times round the open space in front of the bride's house. With him march the happy couple carrying a bamboo, to which are tied in a turmeric-coloured cloth the nine kinds of grain. After the third journey round, these things are put down at the north-east corner, and the marriage pandal is made by bringing three more poles of the same size. Afterwards the wrists of the couple are tied together, and bridegroom's brother carries the pair a short distance. They plunge their hands into a bowl of salt. Next the husband takes an ordinary stone rolling-pin, wraps it in a bit of cloth, and gives it to his wife, saying 'Take the child; I am going to the palace.' She takes it, replying 'Yes, give me the child, the milk is ready.' This has to be repeated three times in a set formula. Several other odd rites are observed. Brahmans officiate, and the bridegroom's sister, as usual, ties the tali. Divorce is allowed to both sides. Adultery within the caste, or with the Zamindar, is tolerated. The husbands accept as their own any children their wives may bear to the Zamindar. Such children are called Chinna Kambalattar, and may marry with Tottiyans. But adultery outside the caste is most rigorously prohibited, and sternly punished with excommunication. A mud image of the girl who so offends is made, two thorns are poked into its eyes, and it is thrown away outside the village."

Pariyari (doctor).--A name given to Tamil barbers (Ambattan), who practice as barber-surgeons.

Pariyata.--Five individuals were recorded, at the census, 1901, under the name Pariyata or Parit, as members of a Bombay caste of washermen in South Canara.

Parvatha.--Parvatha or Parvathala, meaning hill or mountain, has been recorded as an exogamous sept of Gamalla, Kapu, Mala, and Medara.

Pasi.--A few members of this Bengal caste of toddy-drawers were returned at the Madras census, 1901. The name is said to be derived from pasa, a noose or cord, probably in reference to the sling used by them in climbing palm trees. [82] Pasi, meaning coloured glass beads, occurs as a sub-division of Idaiyan, and the equivalent Pasikatti as a sub-division of Valaiyan.

Pasu.--Pasu (cow) or Pasula has been recorded as an exogamous sept of Boya, Mala and Madiga, and a sub-division of west coast Pulayans, who eat beef.

Pasupula (turmeric).--Pasula or Pasupula is an exogamous sept of Boya and Devanga. Pasupuleti occurs as a sub-division of Balija. See Arashina.

Patabonka.--A sub-division of Bonka.

Patali.--An occupational name applied to priests of temples and bhuthasthanas (devil shrines), and Stanikas in South Canara.

Patha (old).--A sub-division of Idiga, and a sept of Togata.

Pathanchitannaya (green pea sept).--An exogamous sept of Bant.

Pathi (cotton).--A sub-division of Kurubas, who use a wrist-thread made of cotton and wool mixed during the marriage ceremony. Also an exogamous sept of Gudala and Padma Sale.

Pathinettan.--The Pathinettan or eighteen are carpenters in Malabar, who "are said to be the descendants of the smiths who remained to attend to the repairs to the eighteen temples, when the rest of the community fled to Ceylon, as related in the tradition of the origin of the Tiyans". [83]

Paththar.--A section of Saivite Chettis, who wear the lingam, and have separated from the Acharapakam Chettis. They bury their dead in a sitting posture. A bamboo stick is tied to the kudumi (hair-knot) of the corpse, and the head pulled by its means towards the surface of the grave. Paththar is also a name given to goldsmiths by other castes.

Patnaik.--A title of Karnam.

Patnulkaran.--The Patnulkarans are described, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as "a caste of foreign weavers found in all the Tamil districts, but mainly in Madura town, who speak Patnuli or Khatri, a dialect of Gujarati, and came originally from Gujarat. They have always been known here as Patnulkarans, or silk thread people. They are referred to in the inscriptions of Kumara Gupta (A.D. 473) at Mandasor, south of Gujarat, by the name of Pattavayaka, which is the Sanskrit equivalent of Patnulkaran, and the sasanam of Queen Mangammal of Madura, mentioned below, speaks of them by the same name, but lately they have taken to calling themselves Saurashtras from the Saurashtra country from which they came. They also claim to be Brahmans. They thus frequently entered themselves in the schedules as Saurashtra Brahmans. They are an intelligent and hard-working community, and deserve every sympathy in the efforts which they are making to elevate the material prosperity of their members and improve their educational condition, but a claim to Brahmanhood is a difficult matter to establish. They say that their claim is denied because they are weavers by profession, which none of the Southern Brahmans are, and because the Brahmans of the Tamil country do not understand their rites, which are the northern rites. The Mandasor inscriptions, however, represent them as soldiers as well as weavers, which does not sound Brahmanical, and the Tamil Brahmans have never raised any objections to the Gauda Brahmans calling themselves such, different as their ways are from those current in the south. In Madura their claim to Brahmanhood has always been disputed. As early as 1705 A.D. the Brahmans of Madura called in question the Patnulkarans' right to perform the annual upakarma (or renewal of the sacred thread) in the Brahman fashion. [Eighteen members of the community were arrested by the Governor of Madura for performing this ceremony.] The matter was taken to the notice of the Queen Mangammal, and she directed her State pandits to convene meetings of learned men, and to examine into it. On their advice, she issued a cadjan (palm leaf) sasanam (grant) which permitted them to follow the Brahmanical rites. But all the twice-born--whether Brahmans, Kshatriyas, or Vaisyas--are entitled to do the same, and the sasanam establishes little. The Patnuls point out that, in some cases, their gotras are Brahmanical. But, in many instances which could be quoted, Kshatriyas had also Brahmanical gotras."

It is stated, in the Gazetteer of the Madura district, that the inscription at Mandasor in Western Malwa "relates how the Pattavayas, as the caste was then called, were induced to migrate thither from Lata on the coast of Gujarat by king Kumara Gupta (or one of his lieutenants), to practice there their art of silk-weaving. The inscription says many flattering things about the community, and poetically compares the city to a beautiful woman, and the immigrants to the silk garments in which she decks herself when she goes to meet her lover. [The inscription further records that, while the noble Bandhuvarman was governing this city of Dasapura, which had been brought to a state of great prosperity, a noble and unequalled temple of the bright-rayed (sun) was caused to be built by the silk-cloth weavers (pattavayair) as a guild with the stores of wealth acquired by (the exercise of their) craft.] On the destruction of Mandasor by the Mussalmans, the Pattavayas seem to have travelled south to Devagiri, the modern Daulatabad, the then capital of the Yadavas, and thence, when the Mussalmans again appeared on the scene at the beginning of the fourteenth century, to Vijayanagar, and eventually to Madura. A curious ceremony confirming this conjecture is performed to this day at Patnulkaran weddings in South India. Before the date of the wedding, the bridegroom's party go to the bride's house, and ask formally for the girl's hand. Her relations ask them in a set form of words who they are, and whence they come, and they reply that they are from Sorath (the old name for Saurashtra or Kathiawar), resided in Devagiri, travelled south (owing to Mussalman oppression) to Vijayanagar, and thence came to Madura. They then ask the bride's party the same question, and receive the same reply. A Marathi MS., prepared in 1822 at Salem under the direction of the then Collector, Mr. M. D. Cockburn, contains the same tradition. Mr. Sewell's 'A Forgotten Empire: Vijayanagar' shows how common silk clothing and trappings were at Vijayanagar in the days of its glory. Most of the Patnulkarans can still speak Telugu, which raises the inference that they must have resided a long time in the Telugu country, while their Patnuli contains many Canarese and Telugu words, and they observe the feast of Basavanna (or Boskanna), which is almost peculiar to the Bellary country. After the downfall of Vijayanagar, some of the caste seem to have gone to Bangalore, for a weaving community called Patvegars, who speak a dialect similar to Patnuli, still reside there." Concerning the Patnulis who have settled in the Mysore Province, it is noted, in the Mysore Census Report, 1891, that "with silk they manufacture a fine stuff called katni, which no other weavers are said to be able to prepare. It is largely used by Mussalmans for trousers and lungas (gowns). It is said that Haider Ali, while returning from his expeditions against Madras, forcibly brought with him some twenty-five families of these weavers, who were living in the Tanjore district, and established them at Ganjam near Seringapatam, and, in order to encourage silk and velvet weaving, exempted them from certain taxes. The industry flourished till the fall of Seringapatam, when most of the class fled from the country, a few only having survived those troublous times. At present there are only 254 souls returned to these people, employed in making carpets in Bangalore."

"The Patnulkars," Mr. H. A. Stuart writes, [84] "say that they were originally Brahmans, living in a town of Surat called Devagiri, in which twelve streets were entirely peopled by them. For some reason, of which they profess themselves to be ignorant, the residents of one of these streets were excommunicated by the rest of the caste, and expelled. They travelled southwards, and settled in Tirupati, Arni, and Vellore, as well as in Trichinopoly, Tanjore, Madura, and other large towns, where they carried on their trade of silk-weaving. Another story is to the effect that they were bound to produce a certain number of silken cloths at each Dipavali feast in Devagiri for the goddess Lakshmi. One year their supply fell short, and they were cursed by the goddess, who decreed that they should no longer be regarded as Brahmans. They, however, still claim to be such, and follow the customs of that caste, though they refuse to eat with them. They acknowledge priests from among themselves, as well as from among Brahmans, and profess to look down upon all other castes. In religion they are divided into Smartas, Vaishnavas, and Vyaparis, some among the Smartas being Lingayats. Those who can write usually employ the Telugu characters in writing their language."

The Patnulkarans, according to one tradition, claim descent from a certain Brahman sage, known as Tantuvardhanar, meaning literally a person who improves threads, i.e., manufactures and weaves them into cloths. This is, it is suggested, probably only an eponymous hero.

In the Manual of the Madura district, the Patnulkarans are described as "a caste of Surat silk-weavers, whose ancestors were induced to settle in Madura by one of the earlier Nayakkan kings, or in response to an invitation from Tirumala Naik, and who have thriven so well that they now form by far the most numerous of all the castes resident in the town of Madura. They are very skilful and industrious workmen, and many of them have become very wealthy. They keep altogether aloof from other castes, and live independently of general society, speaking a foreign tongue, and preserving intact the customs of the land of their origin. They are easily distinguished in appearance from Tamils, being of a light yellowish colour, and having handsomer and more intelligent features. They are called Chettis or merchants by Tamils." In a recent note, [85] the Patnulkarans of Madura are described as being "exceedingly gregarious; they live together in large numbers in small houses, and their social status in the country is quite unsettled. Though they delight to call themselves Saurashtra Brahmans, the Tamils consider them to be a low caste. Like the Brahmans, they wear the sacred thread, and tack on to their names such titles as Iyengar, Iyer, Rao, Bhagavather, Sastrigal, and so forth, though the conservatives among them still cling to the time-honoured simple Chetti. Child marriage is the rule, and widow marriage is never practiced. Hindus by religion, they worship indiscriminately both the Siva and Vaishnava deities, but all of them wear big Iyengar namams on their foreheads, even more prominently than do the real Iyengars themselves. All of them pass for pure vegetarians. The proud position of Madura to this day as second city in the Presidency is mainly, if not solely, due to her prosperous and industrious community of Saurashtra merchants and silk-weavers, who have now grown into nearly half her population, and who have also come to a foremost place among the ranks of her citizens. They have their representatives to-day in the Municipal Councils and in the Local and District Boards. Their perseverance has won for them a place in the Devastanam Committee of one of the most prosperous temples in the district. But, in spite of their affluence and leading position it must be confessed that they are essentially a 'backward class' in respect of English education and enlightenment. They are, however, making steady progress. An English high school for Saurashtra boys, and a number of elementary schools for girls, are now maintained by the Saurashtra Sabha for the proper education of their children." In 1906, a member of the community was appointed a member of the committee of the Sri Kalla Alagar temple in the Madura district.

In an order of the Director of Public Instruction, in 1900, it was laid down that "Saurashtras having been recognised (in 1892) as a backward class falling under Pattunulgars, the manager cannot continue to enjoy the privileges accorded under the grant-in-aid code to schools intended for backward classes, if he returns his pupils as Brahmans. If the pupils have been returned as Saurashtra Brahmans, the manager should be requested to revise, as no such caste is recognised." A deputation had an interview with the Director, and it was subsequently ruled that "Saurashtras will continue to be treated as a backward class. Pupils belonging to the above class should invariably be returned in future as Saurashtras, whether the word Brahman is added or not."

In a "History of the Saurashtras in Southern India" [86] it is recorded that "when the Saurashtras settled in the south, they reproduced the institutions of their mother country in the new land; but, owing to the influence of the Southern Dravidians, some of the institutions became extinct. During their migrations, the men were under the guidance of their leader, and the process of migration tended to increase the power of kinship. The people were divided into four heads, called Goundas (chiefs), Saulins (elders), Voyddoos (physicians), and Bhoutuls (religious men). Some traces of the division still survive in the now neglected institution of Goundans. The Goundans were supposed to be responsible for the acts and doings of their men. The masses enjoyed the property under the joint undivided Hindu family system as prescribed in the Code of Manu. The chiefs were the judges in both civil and criminal affairs. They were aided in deciding cases by a body of nobles called Saulins. The office of the Saulins is to make enquiries, and try all cases connected with the community, and to abide by the decision of the chiefs. The Voyddoos (pandits) and Bhoutuls (Josis and Kavis also ranked with Voyddas and Bhoutuls) had their honours on all important occasions, and they are placed in the same rank with the elders. The Karestuns, or the Commons, are the whole body of the masses. Their voice is necessary on certain important occasions, as during the ceremonies of excommunication, and prayaschittas for admitting renegades, and during periodical meetings of the community. The Goundans at present are not exercising any of their powers, except in some religious matters. Saurashtra Brahmans were originally leading a purely religious life, but now they have begun to do business of different descriptions fitted to their position. Their chief occupation is agriculture, but some are trading, dyeing and weaving; however, it can be safely affirmed that their business interferes in no way with their religious creed and ceremonies. The name Patnulgar means silk weavers, and is sometimes erroneously applied to the Saurashtras too; but, on the contrary, the term strictly applies to all classes of weavers in Southern India, called Seniyars, Kaikkolars, Devangas, Kshatris (Khattris), Parayas, Sengundas, Mudaliars, Saliyurs, Padmasalays, but not to the Saurashtras in any way. The Saurashtras are now seen as a mercantile community. They are brave but humble, god-fearing, hospitable, fond of festivities and amusement. The Saurashtras, it is said, were originally a class of sun worshippers, from soura meaning sun, but the term Saurashtra means inhabitants of the fruitful kingdom. Their religion is Hinduism, and they were originally Madhvas. After their settlement in Southern India, some of them, owing to the preachings of Sankaracharya and Ramanujacharya, were converted into Saivites and Vaishnavites respectively. The Saurashtras belong to the Aksobhya and Sankaracharya Matas. The Saurashtras, like other nations of India, are divided into four great divisions, viz., Brahma, Kshatriya, Vaisya and Sudra. The Vaisyas and Sudras are to be found in almost all towns and villages, and especially at Tirupati, Nagari, Naranavanam, Arni, Kottar, Palani, Palamcottah, Vilangudi, and Viravanallur."

The affairs of the Patnulkarans at Madura are managed by a Saurashtra Sabha, which was started in 1895. Among the laudable objects for which the Sabha was established, the following may be noted:--

(a) To manage the Madura Saurashtra school, and establish reading-rooms, libraries, etc., with a view to enable members of the Saurashtra community to receive, on moderate terms, a sound, liberal, general and technical education.

(b) To manage the temple known as the Madura Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swami's temple, and contribute towards its maintenance by constructing, repairing and preserving buildings in connection therewith, making jewels, vehicles and other things necessary therefor, and conducting the festivals thereof.

(c) To found charitable institutions, such as orphanages, hospitals, poor-houses, choultries (resting-places for travellers), water-sheds, and other things of a like nature for the good of the Saurashtra community.

(d) To give succour to the suffering poor, and the maimed, the lame, and the blind in the Saurashtra community.

(e) To give pecuniary grants in aid of upanayanams (thread marriages) to the helpless in the Saurashtra community.

(f) To erect such works of utility as bathing ghauts, wells, water fountains, and other works of utility for the benefit of the Saurashtra community.

(g) To fix and raise subscriptions known as mahamais (a sort of income-tax).

Among the subjects of the lectures delivered in connection with the Saurashtra Upanyasa Sabha at Madura in 1901 were the life of Mrs. Annie Besant, the Paris Exhibition of 1900, Mr. Tata and higher education, Saurashtra bank, Columbus, and the Saurashtra reform hotel.

A few years ago, the Saurashtra community submitted a memorial to the Governor of Madras to the effect that "as the backward Saurashtra community have not the requisite capital of half a lakh of rupees for imparting to their members both general and technical education, the Saurashtra Sabha, Madura, suggests that a lottery office may be kept for collecting shares at one rupee each from such of the public at large as may be willing to give the same, on the understanding that, every time the collections aggregate to Rs. 6,250, Rs. 250 should be set apart for the expenses of working the said office, and two-thirds of the remainder for educational purposes, and one-third should be awarded by drawing lots among the subscribers in the shape of five prizes, ranging from Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 125." In passing orders on this sporting scheme, the Government stated that it was not prepared to authorise the lottery. It has been well said [87] that the Patnulkarans have a very strong esprit de corps, and this has stood them in good stead in their weaving, which is more scientifically carried on, and in a more flourishing condition than is usual elsewhere.

For the following note on the Patnulkaran weavers of Madura, I am indebted to Mr. A. Chatterton, Director of Technical Enquiries:--"As a general rule, they are in a flourishing condition, and much better off than the Saurashtra weavers in Salem. This is probably due to the fact that the bulk of the Madura trade is in a higher class of cloth than at Salem, and the weavers are consequently less affected by fluctuations in demand for their goods due to seasonal variations. In various ways the Saurashtras of Madura have furnished evidence that they are a progressive community, particularly in the attention which they pay to education, and the keenness with which they are on the look-out for improvements in the methods of carrying out their hereditary craft. Nearly all the so-called improvements have been tried at Madura, and the fact that they have rejected most of them may be taken to some extent as evidence of their unsuitability for Indian conditions. Some time ago, one A. A. Kuppusawmy Iyer invented certain improvements in the native shedding apparatus, whereby ornamental patterns are woven along the borders, and on the ends of the better class of silk and cotton cloths. This apparatus was undoubtedly a material improvement upon that which is ordinarily used by the weaver, and it has been taken up extensively in the town. It is said that there are 350 looms fitted with this shedding apparatus, and the inventor, who has obtained a patent for it, is trying to collect a royalty of Rs. 1-4-0 a month on each loom. But this claim is resisted by a combination of the weavers using this shedding apparatus, and a suit is at the present time (1907) pending in the District Court. One of the most important weaving enterprises at Madura is the Meenakshi Weaving Company, the partners of which are Ramachandra Iyer, Muthurama Iyer, and Kuppusawmy Iyer. Their subscribed capital is Rs. 1,00,000, of which they are spending no less than Rs. 40,000 on building a weaving shed and office. The Madura dyeing industry is in the hands of the Saurashtras, and the modern phase dates back only as far as 1895, when Mr. Tulsiram started dyeing grey yarn with alizarine red, and, in the twelve years which have since elapsed, the industry has grown to very large proportions. The total sales at Madura average at present about 24 lakhs a year. There are from 30 to 40 dye-houses, and upwards of 5,000 cwt. of alizarine red is purchased every year from the Badische Aniline Soda Fabrik. The yarn is purchased locally, mainly from the Madura Mills, but, to some extent, also from Coimbatore and Tuticorin. The mordanting is done entirely with crude native earths, containing a large percentage of potassium salts. Drying the yarn presents considerable difficulty, especially in the wet weather. To secure a fast even colour, the yarn is mordanted about ten times, and dyed twice, or for very superior work three times, and between each operation it is essential that the yarn should be dried. The suburbs of Madura are now almost entirely covered with drying yards."

In a note on the Patnulkarans who have settled in Travancore, Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar writes as follows. "The Patnulkarans are generally of yellowish tinge, and in possession of handsomer and more intellectual features than the Tamil castes, from which they may be easily differentiated by even a casual observer. They are, however, more fair than cleanly. They keep in Travancore, as elsewhere, aloof from other castes, and live independently of general society, speaking a foreign language. This they have preserved with astonishing attachment, and recently a Saurashtra alphabet has been invented, and elementary books have begun to be written in that dialect. They are a very conservative class, religious enthusiasts of a very remarkable order, and skilful and industrious workmen. They take a peculiar pleasure in music, and many of them are excellent songsters. There are many kinds of amusement for both men and women, who generally spend their leisure in singing songs of a devotional nature. They believe largely in omens, of which the following may be noted:--

Good.--A pot full of water, a burning light, no Brahmans, a Sudra, a cow, a married woman, and gold.

Bad.--A barber, a patient, a person with some bodily defect, fuel, oil, a donkey, a pick-axe, a broom, and a fan.

"On entering a Patnulkaran's house, we are led to a courtyard, spacious and neat, where all the necessary arrangements are made for weaving purposes. The Patnulkarans live in streets. A male Patnulkaran resembles a Tamil Vaishnava Brahman in outward appearance, but the women follow the custom of the Telugu Brahmans alike in their costume and ornaments. Their jewels exactly resemble those of the Telugu Brahman women, and indicate a temporary residence of the caste in the Telugu country on the way from Gujarat to Madura. There is a Tamil proverb to the effect that, if a male Patnulkaran is seen without his wife, he will be taken for a Vaishnava Brahman, whereas, in the case of the Tatan caste, a woman without her husband will be taken for an Aiyangar. Children wear the karai round the neck. Tattooing prevails on a very large scale.

"The Patnulkarans may be divided into three classes on a religious basis, viz., (1) pure Vaishnavites, who wear the vertical Vaishnavite mark, and call themselves Vadakalas or northerners; (2) those who are mainly Smartas; (3) Sankara Vaishnavas, who wear gopi (sandal paste) as their sect-mark. It is to the last of these religious sects that the Travancore Patnulkarans belong, though, in recent times, a few Smartas have settled at Kottar. All these intermarry and interdine, and the religious difference does not create a distinction in the caste. The chief divinity of the Patnulkarans is Venkatachalapati of Tirupati. The month in which he is most worshipped is Kanni (September-October), and all the Saturdays and the Tiruvonam star of the month are particularly devoted to his adoration. One of their men becomes possessed on any of these days, and, holding a burning torch-light in his hand, touches the foreheads of the assembled devotees therewith. The Patnulkarans fast on those days, and take an image of Garuda in procession through the street. The Dipavali, Pannamasi in Chittiray, and the Vaikuntha Ekadasi are other important religious days. The Dusserah is observed, as also are the festivals of Sri Rama Navami, Ashtami, Rohini, Avani Avittam, and Vara Lakshmivratam. Formal worship of deities is done by those who have obtained the requisite initiation from a spiritual preceptor. Women who have husbands fast on full-moon days, Mondays, and Fridays. The serpent and the banyan tree are specially worshipped. Women sing songs in praise of Lakshmi, and offer fruits and cocoanuts to her. The Patnulkarans have a temple dedicated to Sri Rama at Kottar. This temple is visited even by Brahmans, and the priests are Aiyangars. The Acharya, or supreme religious authority of the Patnulkarans, in Travancore is a Vaishnava Brahman known as Ubhaya Vedanta Koti Kanyakadana Tatachariyar, who lives at Aravankulam near Tinnevelly, and possesses a large number of disciples. Once a year he visits his flock in Travancore, and is highly respected by them, as also by the Maharaja, who makes a donation of money to him. Elders are appointed to decide social disputes, and manage the common property of the caste. In Travancore there are said to be only three families of Patnulkaran priests. For the higher ceremonies, Brahman priests are employed.

"A girl's marriage is usually celebrated before puberty, and sometimes when she is a mere child of four or five. Great importance is attached to gotras or exogamous septs, and it is said that the septs of the bride and bridegroom are conspicuously inscribed on the walls of a marriage house. In the selection of an auspicious hour (muhurtam) for a marriage, two favourable planetary situations, one closely following the other, are necessary; and, as such occasions are rare, a number of marriages take place at one time. A man may claim his maternal uncle's daughter as his wife, and polygamy is permitted. The marriage ceremonial resembles the Brahmanical rites in many points. On the fourth day, a ceremonial observed by Telugu Brahmans, called Nagabali, is performed. The marriage badge, which is tied on the bride's neck, is called bottu. [From a note on the marriage ceremonies among the Patnulkarans of Madura, I gather that, as among Telugu and Canarese castes, a number of pots are arranged, and worshipped. These pots are smaller and fewer in number than at a Telugu or Canarese wedding. A figure of a car is drawn on the wall of the house with red earth or laterite. [88] On it the name of the gotra of the bridegroom is written. On the fourth day, the nagavali (or offering to Devas) is performed. The contracting couple sit near the pots, and a number of lights are arranged on the floor. The pots, which represent the Devas, are worshipped.]

"The namakarana, or name-giving ceremony, is performed on the eleventh day after birth. An eighth child, whether male or female, is called Krishna, owing to the tradition that Krishna was born as the eighth child of Vasudeva. Babies are affectionately called Duddu (milk) or Pilla (child). The annaprasana, or first feeding of the child, is sometimes celebrated at the end of the first year, but usually as a preliminary to some subsequent ceremony. Sometimes, in performance of a vow, boys are taken to the shrine at Tirupati for the tonsure ceremony. The upanayana is performed between the seventh and twelfth years, but neither brahmacharya nor samavartana is observed.

"The dead are burnt, and the remains of the bones are collected and deposited under water. Death pollution lasts only for ten days. The sradh, or annual ceremony, when oblations are offered to ancestors, is observed. Widows are allowed to retain their hair, but remove the bottu. Unlike Brahman women, they chew betel, and wear coloured cloths, even in old age."

The Patnulkarans have a secret trade language, concerning which Mr. C. Hayavadana Rao writes as follows. "The most remarkable feature about it is the number of terms and phrases borrowed from the craft, to which special meanings are given. Thus a man of no status is stigmatised as a rikhta khandu, i.e., a spindle without the yarn. Similarly, a man of little sense is called a mhudha, the name of a thick peg which holds one side of the roller. Likewise, a talkative person is referred to as a rhetta, or roller used for winding the thread upon spindles, which makes a most unpleasant creaking noise. Kapiniker, from kapini, a technical term used for cutting the loom off, means to make short work of an undesirable person. A man who is past middle age is called porkut phillias, which, in weavers' parlance, means that half the loom is turned."

Patra.--The Patras are an Oriya caste, which is divided into two sections, one of which is engaged in the manufacture of silk (pata) waist-threads, tassels, etc., and the other in weaving silk cloths. The members of the two sections do not interdine. The former have exogamous septs or bamsams, the names of which are also used as titles, e.g., Sahu, Patro, and Prushti. The latter have exogamous septs, such as Tenga, Jaggali, Telaga, and Mahanayako, and Behara and Nayako as titles. The chief headman of the cloth-weaving section is called Mahanayako, and there are other officers called Behara and Bhollobaya. The headman of the other section is called Senapati, and he is assisted by a Dhanapati. Infant marriage is the rule, and, if a girl does not secure a husband before she reaches maturity, she must, if she belongs to the cloth-weaving section, go through a form of marriage with an old man, and, if to the other section, with an arrow.

The Telugu Patras are summed up, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as "a Telugu caste of hunters and cultivators, found chiefly in the districts of Cuddapah and Kurnool. It has two divisions, the Doras (chiefs), and Gurikalas (marksmen), the former of which is supposed to be descended from the old Poligars (feudal chiefs), and the latter from their followers and servants. This theory is supported by the fact that, at the weddings of Gurikalas, the Doras receive the first pan-supari (betel leaf and areca nut). Widows may not remarry, nor is divorce recognised. They usually employ Brahmans at marriages, and Satanis at funerals. Though they are Vaishnavites, they also worship village deities, such as Gangamma and Ellamma. They bury their dead, and perform annual sraddhas (memorial services for the dead). They will eat with Gollas. Their title is Naidu."

Patramela.--Patramela, or Patradeva, is the name of a class of dancing girls in South Canara. Patramela, Mr. H. A. Stuart writes, [89] is the name by which the Konkani Kalavants (courtezans) are known above the ghauts.

Patro.--The title of the head of a group of villages in Ganjam, and also recorded, at times of census, as a title of Alia, Kalinga Komati, Dolai, and Jaggala. The conferring of a cloth (sadhi) on a Patro is said to be emblematic of conferring an estate. The Patro, among other perquisites, is entitled to a fee on occasions of marriage. I am informed that, in the Ganjam Maliahs, if a Kondh was unable to pay the fee, he met his love at night beneath two trysting trees, and retired with her into the jungle for three days and nights.

Patrudu.--The title, meaning those who are fit to receive a gift, of Aiyarakulu and Nagaralu.

Pattadhikari.--A class of Jangams, who have settled head-quarters.

Pattan.--The equivalent of the Brahman Bhatta. A name by which some Kammalans, especially goldsmiths, style themselves.

Pattanavada.--A synonym for the Moger fishing caste, the settlements of which are called pattana.

Pattanavan.--The fishermen on the east coast, from the Kistna to the Tanjore district, are popularly called Karaiyan, or sea-shore people. Some Karaiyans have, at times of census, returned themselves as Taccha (carpenter) Karaiyans.

Pattanavan means literally a dweller in a town or pattanam, which word occurs in the names of various towns on the sea-coast, e.g., Nagapattanam (Negapatam), Chennapattanam (Madras). The Pattanavans have two main divisions, Periya (big) and Chinna (small), and, in some places, for example, at Nadukuppam in the Nellore district, exogamous septs, e.g., Gengananga, Peyananga, Kathananga (children of Ganga, Peyan, and Kathanar), and Kullananga (children of dwarfs). In the Telugu country, they go by the name of Pattapu or Tulivandlu.