Origins and History

When by the historiographer, Nairs are non the caste, however race using its many sub-castes & cognomen. Several customs & traditions distinguished the babies from either more Keralites. A select few examples come their have form of inheritance (Marumakkathaayam), Tharavadu family system & Karanavar, various dance and musical forms such as Kathakali, Mohiniyaatam etc, warfare (Kalarippayattu), Gods and Goddesses (Nagas or even serpents, & Bhadhrakali), architectural style of Naalukettu and Ettukettu.

However recent familial studies indicate close affinity of Nairs by having more Indian groups. The recent microsatellite marker transmissible learn showed that it cluster together by having Ezhava, Malayalee muslim, Konkanasta Brahmin and Maratha.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12943158&query_hl=4

Based on data from Chattambi Swamigal, who interpreted ancient Tamil texts, Nairs were the Dravidian nobility called a "Naka Lords". Ancient South Indian history refers to the Nairs as a martial nobility, eminent historiographer, & foreign traveller.

A origin of the Nair caste/race is uncertain. Virtually all anthropologists come of a look at that the Nairs caste is an merger of various warrior classes when you took a post-Sangam era, which is considered when a virtually all politically unstable period of time around Kerala history. All the Cheras were Nairs & Kerala history is around attached to Nair caste.

From either V Nagam Aiya "Travancore State Manual", Asian Training Services, Madras (We saloon 1906);

"Greek ambassador in the court of Chandra Gupta, Megasthenes refers in around 300 BC about the Nairs and the kingdom of Cheras, where there were female sovereigns, in his account of ancient India."

"Tolkapium refers to 12 ‘nadus’ where Tamil was spoken (in the south)... this includes Venadu, Kuttanad etc (ie. Kerala). …The ‘nadu’ was the territorial organisation (under the Nayar chieftains). ‘Malabar’ included Venad, Eranad, Valluanad etc. ‘Taras’ had a ‘Karanavan’ and there were 600 ‘Karanavans’ who were the protectors of the land.

One recent theory proposed by Dr. Thundy is that Nairs are the descendants of the Newars of Nepal, who migrated to Kerala. There are two major facts to support this view. The first is the lighter complexion, and sharper features of Nairs. The second is the distinct pagoda-like architectural style of Nair Tharavaadus and Temples. Finally, there is the Marumakkathaayam system of inheritance. This system is a matrilineal system which is also practiced by the Newars of Nepal. Southern Indian warrior class names like Naik, Naidu etc are closely connected to Kerala Nairs, eventhough the anthropological links are not yet established.

One finds mention of the Nairs during the reign of the King Rama Varma Kulashekhara (1020-1102) of second Chera dynasty, when the Chera Kingdom was attacked by the Cholas. The Nairs fought by forming suicide squads (Chavers) against the invading force. It is not clear whether the Cheras themselves were Nairs, or if the Cheras employed the Nairs as a warrior class.

The Nairs gradually lost their supremacy over the land after the collapse of the second Chera kingdom. By this time, the Namboothiris replaced the Nairs as the seniormost class in the social hierarchy of Kerala.

From Ward and Conner ‘ Memoir of the Survey of Travancore and Cochin States – 1863’ Vol. I;

"A Nairs can be considered when constituting a soul of the (Travancore – Cochin china) people. It is split inside to various classes. A Velloyma hang on to a foremost rank, seen in the additional northern area. Illakure & a trine future ranks predominate throughout Travancore, a term denotes of these belonging to the home of the Namboori a….there are ... (different communities of Nairs prefer) Shroobacurre, feudatory of chiefs .... , Shacoular, oil bargainer .... Vellakathura, washermen world health organization just run a job for Brahmins & Nairs .... Yedacherry, cowboy ..... Oodatu nair, boatmen ... Attychorchy, world health organization perorm a necessary denominate .. (then in)."

"A higher a correct sequence of the Nairs come known under the collective term of Maudumby, or even Prubhookanmar. Designations under which are then comprised various others. A usual come Kurtaos, Elluidam, Kymalla, Kurupu, Mainewen, Pulle etc. (them latter come besides utilized when agent officers) where there is a nice gradation of pre-eminence ....."

" A superior orders of Nairs, including a Kshetries, descendent of petty chiefs etc. be something to a higher degree a for (of a number people), however adding the inferior ranks of the class of Shuders the whole Nair people can be considered when composing super about 1 third of the number people.

...Mahomedans of each denomination come in the proportion of about the twentieth... Christians of each description an eighth.... etc."

From William Logan "Malabar" (Manual) 1887;

"These are unknown how else quick a soldier of this united states is at his weapon...it is everthing gentlemen & come termed Nayars ... it send their babies to (Kalaris) after seven years old & their immune system becomes thus nimble & bends when whenever it experienced there is no bones .."

"I personally would signalize to a central point (astir Malabar – Kerala), the positiin occupied for centuries on centuries per Nayar caste in the civil & military organisation of the province ... thus lasting that there seems there are no cause how came it should non own continued for centuries to come however for the foreign intervention... this decentralised administration, using fairly independent chieftains world health organization acted rather the parliament, gave Malabar its inherent nature and severity. "

Sonnerat, quoted ".... Nayars come a warriors, their arms, which it carry sustaining the children, distinguishes the two from either others ... it is known for their insolent arrogance..."

Those who migrate to Malabar (Kerala) assume the proud title of Nayars, many chettys of Coimbatore are now calling themselves Nayars ...’ N Subrahmanya Aiyer quoted "And then crucial was this (bestowment of Nair title by kings) that Sanku annavi, a Brahmin found it at the hand of the Dalawa."

Hyder Ali by a solemn edict declared ‘the Nayars deprived of all their privileges and ordered that their caste which was first after the Brahmins should hereafter be the lowest ... others could carry arms but not the Nayars .. any Nayar carrying arms was to be killed ...’

In the first attack of Tippu 1000 of his men perished and 200 men on the Travancore side, Tippu fell and became lame for life. At Kuttipuram Tippu surrounded 2000 Nairs with their families who resisted for long. Later on surrender they were asked to embrace Islam or face deportation with forcible conversion. Many male members were circumcised and forced to eat beef.

Kshatriyas or Sudras?

There is considerable controversy regarding the actual place of Nairs in the caste system. It is understandably, a very touchy subject. One of the main reasons is that the caste system in Kerala is very different from the caste system elsewhere in India. According to the caste system followed in the rest of India, only the lowest class, the sudras, were considered to be "harijan". However, in the case of Kerala, anyone who was not a Namboothiri, was treated by the Namboothiris as an untouchable. The Namboothiris had different rules regarding the degrees of pollution for the different classes. A Namboothiri could only be "contaminated" by the touch of a Nair, whereas the other classes had different distances after which they could be considered polluting. For example, if an Ezhava got within 24 feet of a Namboothiri, the Namboothiri was considered to be polluted. In this regard, it would seem that the Nairs were like the sudras in the rest of India.

However, the sudras in the rest of India were never a martial class, since warfare was the profession of the Ksyathriyas. According to this interpretation, Nairs would seem to be more like Kshatriyas since they were a martial class as well. Similar to Kshatriyas, they were only second to the Brahmins (Namboothiris). Furthermore, many Nair families were aristocratic. They owned large feudal estates and in some cases, even took part in the ruling of Kerala. An example is the Paliam family from Chendamangalam. The oldest male of the family, the Paliath Achan, served as the Prime Minister to the Raja of Cochin.

Some Nair Customs and Traditions

Nairs have customs that are different from the rest of Kerala. The first of these is the Marumakkathaayam system of inheritance. This system is a matrilineal system of inheritance. It is exceptional in the sense that it was one of the few traditional systems that gave women liberty, and right to property. Under this system, women enjoyed respect, prestige and power. An exception is the community of Mannadiars of Palakkad, because they follow patrilineal system. Some historians believe that the Marumakkathaayam system started after the Chera-Chola wars during the second Chera empire, as Nairs lost most of their men during the war.

In the Marumakkathyam system, the family lived together in a tharavaadu which comprised of a mother, her brothers and younger sisters, and her children. The oldest brother was known as the karanavar and was the head of the household and managed the family estate. Lineage was traced through the mother, and the children "belonged" to the mother's family. All family property was jointly owned. In the event of a partition, the shares of the children were clubbed with that of the mother.

The Marumakkathyam system is not very common in Kerala these days for many reasons. Kerala society has become much more cosmopolitan and modern. Nair men seek jobs away from their hometown and take their wives and children along with them. In this scenario, a joint-family system is not viable. However, there are still a few tharawads that pay homage to this system. In some Nair families, the children carry the last name of their mother instead of the father, and are considered part of the mother's family, and not the father's. Nairs connect to and trace their lineage to a tharavadu - not to a member of the family. Tharavadu names are quite an important element of social reckoning - though decreasing in importance these days.

A curious practice called Sambandham evolved after the arrival of the Brahmins (Namboothiris). In a Namboothiri family, only the oldest brother was allowed to marry; he could marry up to four Namboothiri women. The younger brothers were allowed to enter into relationships with Nair women. The Nair woman would then have two husbands (a Nair and a Namboothiri) and in essence, a system of polyandry came into being. However, as a consequence of this practice, the number of Namboothiris declined and the number of Nairs increased because the children born in a Nair-Namboothiri marriage would belong to the Nair woman's family. The Sambandham practice was marginal and existed only for a short period of time. It does not exist today.

The martial art known as Kalaripayattu is believed by some to be created by the Nairs, and is also thought to be the oldest form of martial arts in the world. Those who hold this point of view think that all other forms of martial arts are descended from it. They reason that this is because Kerala had intense contacts with Buddhist monks, and Kung Fu, popularized by monks of the Shaoling Temple, traces its ancestry to Bodhidharma - a semi-legendary Chinese Buddhist monk who in some versions of his legend, came from Kerala, but who in the earliest known written version was said to have come from Central Asia.

Quote from an undelete.org document: "One of the most brilliant modern examples of the Matriarchate was found in Malabar at the time of its discovery by the Portuguese in the XV century. the Nairs were detected to possess a ticket civilization, totally under the control of women, at a time period while woman's position within Engl& & on the Continent of Europe, was that of the house and political slave.

Cleanliness, peace, a arts, a simply form of government, the recognition of the feminine each around humanity & inside the divinity were observed in Malabar. To the wonder of the Danish missionary on their opinion of the Supreme Existence, this beautiful guide was given.

Under a Missionaries sent by Engl& to introduce her have barbaric ideas of God & human, this beautiful Matriarchal civilization of Malabar shortly retrograded and was misplaced."

Nairs today
Today, Nairs can be found in all walks of life. They are still aware of their cultural traditions and history and still form an integral and active part of Kerala society. The Nair Service Society (NSS) champions the interests of the Nair community in Kerala. The NSS has chapters all around the world and helps Nairs stay in touch with their traditions and culture, and with each other.

Famous Nairs
The List of Famous Nairs gives the names of several Nairs, born in India and abroad, who have become renowned figures in their lifetimes.