Which is the highest caste in Nair?
The Kiryathil Nair is the highest class among Nairs. In the caste hierarchy, they were considered superior to Illathu Nairs, but inferior to Samanthan Nairs.
What are the 5 levels of the caste system in order?
Terms in this set (5)
- Braham. single spiritual power that Hindus believe lives in everything.
- Kshatriya. second level of the varnas in the Hindu caste system; WARRIORS.
- Vaishyas. 3rd class of the caste system (worker class, the legs of purusha-sakta.)
- Shudra.
- Untouchable/Harijan/Dalit.
How many types of Nairs are there?
But In general, they can be categorized in to four main divisions – Nair Superior, Nair Proper, nair auxillary and Nair Inferior.
What are the 4 levels of the caste system?
The caste system divides Hindus into four main categories – Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and the Shudras.
Is Pillai and Nair same?
No. They are not Brahmins. Pillai can be considered as an honorific surname conferred to some subsects among Nairs, a forward caste. In Kerala, Pillais are a subset of Nairs just like Unnithan, Valiyathan, Kaimal, Thampi, Kartha, Menoki, Menon, Panickar, Kurup, Nambiar etc.
What is OBC in Kerala?
List of Kerala OBC (Other Backward Classes)
Which is the lowest caste in Kerala?
The Nambudhri Brahmins were top of the caste hierarchy and the Pulayar were at the lowest. According to most travelers, the Nairs were placed below the kings and the Brahmins in Caste hierarchy.
Is Nair a royal family?
Nair Superior clans composed the Royal or ruling dynasties of Kerala. Out of the 161 Royal houses of Kerala, 157 were Nair, 3 were Nambudiri and One was Muslim. Broadly, the ruling clans can be divided in to two – koil thampurans and samantan nairs. Royal families of Travancore, chirakkal, Calicut.
Can I change my caste from SC to general?
Originally Answered: Can someone change his/her caste from SC to general? Caste cannot be changed. Caste is determined by birth. One inherits his/her father’s caste.
Which caste is high in Kerala?
The Nambudiri Brahmins were at the top of the ritual caste hierarchy, outranking even the kings.
Are Kerala Pillai Brahmins?
The oldest lineages of Pillais include not only Kshatriyas but also brahmins who took up the sword. From the early modern period, the title also came to be bestowed upon Savarna subjects by the King of Travancore for services military or political, most of whom were of Nair origin.
What are the sub-castes of Nairs in Kerala?
Besides, there were a number of sub castes among Nairs like Idachery Nairs, Maranmar, Athikurichikal, Chembukottikal, Odat nair, Chalia Nairs, Kalamkotti Nair, Pallichal Nairs, Veluthedathu Nairs, Vilakkithala Nairs etc. “The Nairs may be considered as constituting the soul of the (Travancore – Cochin) population.
How many social classifications are there in the Nair society?
It is believed that there were 64 classifications in Nair society. Sri.K.P.Padmanabha Menon who wrote Kerala Charithram (History of Kerala) has recorded that Nairs who were grouped as Sudras were turned into three main groups called Illam, Swaroopam and Padamangalam .
Are Nairs more like Kshatriyas or Sudras?
However, the sudras in the rest of India were never a martial class, since warfare was the profession of the Ksyathriyas. According to this interpretation, Nairs would seem to be more like Kshatriyas since they were a martial class as well. Similar to Kshatriyas, they were second to the Brahmins (Namboothiris).
What is the origin of the Nair caste?
By the time of European arrival, the title Nair was used to refer to all military castes. The Portuguese used the term Nair for all soldiers, and prior to 1498 the military or retainer Nairs are believed to have been called ‘Lokar’.