Telugu

Asiaintensive agriculturalists
Map
expand_more Description

The Telugu people are found throughout southern peninsular India but are concentrated in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana states, where Telugu (a Dravidian language) is an official language, and in the border areas of neighboring states. Empires and kingdoms existed in the region since 250 BC, combined in part with British colonial rule beginning in the eighteenth century and replaced since Indian independence by the local government hierarchy of the democratic state. Villages range in size from several hundred to many thousand in population. Rice is the major crop and sugarcane, tobacco and cotton are important commercial crops. Local society is organized by patrilineal clans, patrilineages, and a Hindu caste system. Ritual and festivals help to mediate caste relations and maintain community cohesion.

Identifier
Region
  • Asia
Subregion
  • South Asia
Subsistence Type
  • intensive agriculturalists
Samples
Countries
  • India
External Links