article
Caste council among the Namputiri Brahmans of Kerala
Eastern anthropologist • 22 • Published In 1969 • Pages: 207-224
By: Mathur, P. R. G..
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This article discusses the role and status of Namputiri Brahman caste elders. While recognizing the continued importance of caste leaders, especially in influencing the inner workings of the caste assembly, it focuses on changes that occurred, mostly after India's independence. The most important change concerns the participation of caste elders in partisan politics, including within the Communist Party. The new, politically-charged role of these elders is at odds with their traditional status as leaders of the priestly caste known for its orthodox adherence to law embodied in Hindu sacred books. The discussion draws on data obtained from historical documents and interviews with caste elders and assembly officials.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Castes
- Classes
- Community structure
- Inter-community relations
- Community councils
- Legal norms
- Litigation
- Initiation of judicial proceedings
- Trial procedure
- Execution of justice
- Special courts
- Acculturation and culture contact
- 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.
- Anthropologist
- 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.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Teferi Abate Adem ; 2016
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- no date given
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1905-1969
- 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
- P. R. G. Mathur
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 223-224)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 59030548
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Kerala (India)