Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 3 of 7Thurston, Edgar
History
Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 3 of 7
Thurston, Edgar
Caste -- India, South; Ethnology -- India, South; India, South -- Social life and customs; Tribes -- India, South
In connection with the foregoing account, I am informed that, among
the Nattar Kallans, the brother of a married woman must give her
annually at Pongal a present of rice, a goat, and a cloth until
her death. The custom of exchanging boomerangs appears to be fast
becoming a tradition. But, there is a common saying still current "Send
the valari tadi, and bring the bride." As regards the horse-hair,
which is mentioned as being tied round the bride's neck, I gather
that, as a rule, the tali is suspended from a cotton thread, and the
horse-hair necklet may be worn by girls prior to puberty and marriage,
and by widows. This form of necklet is also worn by females of other
castes, such as Maravans, Valaiyans, and Morasa Paraiyans. Puramalai
Kallan women can be distinguished by the triangular ornament, which
is attached to the tali string. It is stated, in the Gazetteer of
the Madura district, that "when a girl has attained maturity, she
puts away the necklace of coloured beads she wore as a child, and
dons the horse-hair necklet, which is characteristic of the Kallan
woman. This she retains till death, even if she becomes a widow. The
richer Kallans substitute for the horse-hair a necklace of many
strands of fine silver wire. In Tirumangalam, the women often hang
round their necks a most curious brass and silver pendant, six or
eight inches long, and elaborately worked."
It is noted in the Census Report, 1891, that as a token of divorce "a
Kallan gives his wife a piece of straw in the presence of his caste
people. In Tamil the expression 'to give a straw' means to divorce,
and 'to take a straw' means to accept divorce."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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