article
Cults of the dead among the Nayars
Journal of American Folklore • 71 • Published In 1958 • Pages: 446-478
By: Gough, Kathleen.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
The author presents a socio-psychological analysis of Nayar cults of the dead in relation to economic and legal institutions, and in regard to their emotional content. The focus is on two cults: one associated with lineage ghosts and the other with alien ghosts (of those who died prematurely or by violence). The former models respect for authority and enhances group unity. The latter serves, through the threat of witchcraft and sorcery, as a check on the abuse of authority and inter-caste exploitation. The work concludes with a discussion of various changes taking place in cults of the dead.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Castes
- Lineages
- Provinces
- Polygamy
- Residence
- Nuclear family
- Social placement
- Regulation of marriage
- Cult of the dead
- Status, role, and prestige
- Sacred objects and places
- Prayers and sacrifices
- Gender status
- Family relationships
- Sex and marital offenses
- Extended families
- Cultural participation
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Kerala
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2017
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Asia
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- South Asia
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Ethnologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- John Beierle; 1966-1968
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- 1947-1949, 1952
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1792-1952
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- northern and central Kerala, India
- NotesAdditional notes
- E. Kathleen Gough
- Footnotes appearing in the text will be found in categories 113 and 116, pp. 477-478.
- Includes bibliographical references
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 17028737
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Kerala (India)