NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE by the REV
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NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE by The REV. SAMUEL MATEER, F.L.S. Of the London Missionary Society VOLUME TWO The original book has been reformatted into 2 Volumes to facilitate ease of reading. With commentary by VED from VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS Aaradhana, DEVERKOVIL 673508 India www.victoriainstitutions.com admn@ victoriainstitutions.com Telegram: https://t.me/VICTORIA_INSTITUTIONS TelegramHomePage : https://t.me/VI_Home/8 NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE All rights reserved. This edition first published in October 2014. A reformatted edition published in March 2018. This printable version has been published in January 2020. There can be inadvertent errors in the text. No guarantee of absolute correctness can be given. The text has been taken from scanned versions of the original book, which are available online. However, to get them into a readabletext, a lot of work had to be done. PRINT You can print this book, for your own use or for selling to others. 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Please note that all books published by VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS in the digital format can contain various errors including spelling errors, wrong words, blurry text/images &c. and at times, even erroneous information. This book is offered to you on an As-is basis. Please note that for using this book as a digital book, it is better to download the digital book version from VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS’ Telegram pages. Or from any website this book is available for download. 2 NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE 15. MUHAMMADANS 5 16. THE SYRIAN CHRISTIANS 17 17. NEPOTISM 27 18. THE KUDUMI, OR HINDU TUFT OF HAIR 45 19. FEMALE LIFE 57 20. AGRICULTURE 71 21. COFFEE CULTIVATION 79 22. COTTON MANUFACTURE 93 23. COCOANUT FIBRE AND MANUFACTURES 97 24. BOATS AND FISHING 101 25. INDIAN MUSIC 109 26. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS 127 27. DISTILLATION AND EXCISE 133 28. POLITICAL AND SOCIAL CONDITION IN FORMER TIMES 141 29. SLAVERY 151 30. CHRISTIAN WORK AMONG THE SLAVE CASTES 167 31. SERPENT WORSHIP 173 32. HINDU CASTE AND POLLUTION 183 33. RECENT MEASURES OF REFORM 205 34. FURTHER REFORMS NEEDED 213 35. HISTORY OF TRAVANCORE 227 36. EDUCATED NATIVES 243 37. MISSION WORK 259 38. APPENDIX - INDIAN TUNES 269 39. GLOSSARY 273 Books by VED from VICTORIA INSTITUTIONS 283 3 NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE 4 NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE CHAPTER XV MUHAMMADANS The total population of this class numbers close upon 140,000, scattered all over the country, most thickly near the coast, but very few in Yettumanur and Cottayam districts, where they form less than one per cent, of the inhabitants. With few exceptions, they have no acquaintance with Hindustani, but speak the vernacular of the country in which they live. The Hindustani speaking families come from North India, and comprise, in all, 2,844 persons. Most of the men wear only the ordinary native waist-cloth; and for full-dress a cotton jacket or long coat. They are fond of coloured handkerchiefs and cloths, and often carry about with them a China paper umbrella. A skull-cap is to some extent a distinctive mark, as joining their religion is usually called “putting on the cap.” The beard is worn, not shaven like the Hindus. Women dress in the ordinary Malayalam cloth and jacket and upper-cloth, as is well shown in the accompanying copy of a native drawing. Foreign Muhammadans retain their own respective national costumes. The features of the latter are, of course, 5 NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE Arabic or Jewish, while those of most of the native Mussulmans are Indian. Islamites in creed, they are almost Hindus in person. In the census Muhammadans are divided into seven classes, of which three are insignificant in numbers in Travancore, viz. : — Two or three thousand MOGHULS, who should be descendants of the Tartar chiefs who followed Tamerlane into India; six or seven hundred Arabs, who came over as horsedealers, traders, &c.; and over eight hundred Sheiks (or Shaikhs), who profess to be the descendants of the immediate friends and followers of Muhammad, though the title (which means “an old man,” especially one who has authority and respect) is given to any one who is learned and clever. Besides these, there are some fifteen thousand persons belonging to other minor sub-divisions. Of the four principal classes, the first are Pathans (Pattanis) or Afghans, adventurers and settlers of that nation, chiefly descendants of sepoys retained by the Rajahs of Travancore. They number over three thousand, and are generally poor and unimportant. Syeds are descendants of the prophet through Ali and Fatima his favourite daughter. Yet, mingled with other blood, they marry whatever women they choose, but do not give their females to others. Those who so classify themselves number over six thousand. LUBBAYS (Labi or Lebbe) are about 18,000 in number. The term is of doubtful origin. Some trace it to the Arabic labek “may it please you,” used by servants to their masters. Many of these reside in Trevandrum and on the coast southwards. They speak chiefly Tamil, and are of mercantile habits. They are of mixed parentage, being descendants of Arabs and natives. But the proportion of Arabic blood is exceedingly small; they are but a mongrel breed of circumcised Hindus. From various words in use amongst them, and ornaments worn in South Travancore, some suppose that a large proportion of them were formerly Shanars converted, not recently, but centuries ago. Bishop Caldwell says, “Muhammadan Arabs seem to have settled first on the Malabar Coast in the ninth century, and thence to have spread to the eastern coast and Ceylon. Their principal settlement on the eastern coast is Kayalpattanam in Tinnevelly. Heathen Arabs, that is, the Sabaeans of Southern Arabia, frequented the coasts of India long before, following the lead of the Greeks. The mixed race consisting of the descendants of those Arab merchants are called Mapillas on the western coast, Lebbies on the eastern. By the Tamil people they are generally styled Tulukkar (Turks) or Jonagar (Yavanas?). Their 6 NATIVE LIFE in TRAVANCORE ordinary title is Maraikan or Marakan, a word which means steersman, implying that they were first known as sailors, which doubtless is correct”* NOTEs: * “Political History of Tinnevelly,”p. 36 Mettan, a term of respect used to these people, appears to be the Mahratta “mehtar’ a common designation for a hereditary village officer, or the head of a business or a caste, who used to exercise considerable authority over the others. It was once a title of honour given by the Rajah to the chief Muhammadan at Powar and others : now every man is politely called Mettan. The TULUKKANS should scarcely be classed as distinct from the preceding, being also the descendants of Arab immigrants by the Indian women, but more closely connected with those on the East Coast. The great body of the Mussulmans of Travancore, say over 110,000, come under this head. Here, as in British India, the Muhammadans stand low in education and attainments. Of the two classes last-mentioned, about eight and a half per cent, of the males, but only eighty-four females in all, can read and write. They have little taste for education, scarcely a single school or publication of their own, and few who learn English. In this Hindu State there are no nobles amongst them. In Government service 384 persons are employed, chiefly Tulukkans and Pattanis, mostly in the humble position of peons or policemen. About a fifth of the whole body are cultivators; one- fifth traders; a tenth are labourers; a few are weavers, men of property, &c. Though rather stubborn and troublesome, they are persevering and industrious. Females are not allowed to enter a place of worship, of which restriction we have known some complain in view of the liberty of Christian women; but they are not secluded as in some parts of British India. The better class of Muhammadans are extremely polite and hospitable. In Alleppey the houses of the Cutchmen are large and roomy, but close and dirty. On entering the archway leading to the courtyard in order to pay a visit to such, the old and hale householder may generally be seen sitting tailor fashion, and propped up with pillows. If word is sent beforehand, the visitor is honourably received. Two men appear with bottles of rosewater who completely drench him, his hands are filled with cardamoms and cloves, and on rising to take leave, a bottle of otto of roses is put into his hand as a parting gift. They, of course, avoid pork and other forbidden food, but may eat beef if it be killed with the requisite ceremonies. They are very loose in their moral principles and in their attendance at mosques and observance of religious rites, yet superstitious and even heathenish in common life, and bigoted against all others, though they understand very little of their own religion and do not care to learn more.