Mannan people
The Mannan people are a scheduled tribe (ST) of Kerala, India. They are one of the Adivasi who live in Idukki District. The Mannan follow a matrilineal system of descent, and their ruler, the Raja Mannan, is elected by community headmen from among those eligible by heredity. They are traditional forest-dwellers, gaining their livelihood by collecting and utilising resources of the dense forest, and supplementing these with shifting agriculture. They are believed to be descendants of a Pandyan King and their mother tongue is Tamil. Changes since the mid-20th century, including an influx of settlers from the plains of Kerala, degradation of the forest environment, and exposure to modern economic and cultural systems have all posed challenges to their survival as a people continuing their customary way of life.
See also
- Kozhimala the Mannan settlement that is the community's "headquarters"
- The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006
References
Further reading
- NIE Staff Writers (16 May 2012). "The king who graduated from Maharaja's College". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
- Suresh, Lavanya; Suchitra, M. (2021). Suicidal resistance: Understanding the opposition against the Western Ghats conservation in Karunapuram, Idukki, Kerala (PDF). CDS Monograph Series: Ecological Challenges and Local Self-Government Response (First ed.). Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India: Centre for Development Studies Prasanth Naga. pp. 35–44. ISBN 978-81-948195-4-7. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
- Sebastian, Lijo; Peter, Jenee. Living on the Edge: Impact of Peasant Migration on the Mannan Tribe of Kerala (Report). Retrieved 28 November 2021.
- Surendranath, Nidhi (5 May 2013). "The King takes up the cause of the commoner". The Hindu. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
- Harikumar, A. (7 January 2012). "No kingdom, but kingship continues after 60 years of democracy". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
- Shahina KK (13 January 2012). "The King Who Was Not: The tragic life and death of a tribal monarch in Kerala". The Open Magazine.
- Saju, Sajin (29 April 2017). "A king and his tribe: How the Mannans of Kerala are struggling to preserve age-old tradition". The Indian Express. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
- Better India photographer; Better India Writer (13 April 2017). "In Photos: The Fascinating Story of Kerala's Forest King & His Tribe's 700-Year-Old Legacy". The Better India.