Haddi.—The Haddis are a low class of Oriyas, corresponding to the Telugu Malas and Madigas, and the Tamil Paraiyans. It has been suggested that the name is derived from haddi, a latrine, or hada, bones, as members of the caste collect all sorts of bones, and trade in them. The Haddis play on drums for all Oriya castes, except Khondras, Tiyoros, Tulabinas, and Sanis. They consider the Khondras as a very low class, and will not purchase boiled rice sold in the bazaar, if it has been touched by them. Castes lower than the Haddis are the Khondras and Jaggalis of whom the latter are Telugu Madigas, who have settled in the southern part of Ganjam, and learnt the Oriya language.

The Haddis may be divided into Haddis proper, Rellis, and Chachadis, which are endogamous divisions. The Haddis proper never do sweeping or scavenging work, which are, in some places, done by Rellis. The Relli scavengers are often called Bhatta or Karuva Haddis. The Haddis proper go by various names, e.g., Sudha Haddi, Godomalia Haddi, etc., in different localities. The Haddis work as coolies and field labourers, and the selling of fruits, such as mango, tamarind, Zizyphus Jujuba, etc., is a favourite occupation. In some places, the selling of dried fish is a monopoly of the Rellis. Sometimes Haddis, especially the Karuva Haddis, sell human or yak hair for the purpose of female toilette. The Haddis have numerous septs or bamsams, one of which, hathi (elephant) is of special interest, because members of this sept, when they see the foot-prints of an elephant, take some dust from the spot, and make a mark on the forehead with it. They also draw the figure of an elephant, and worship it when they perform sradh (memorial service for the dead) and other ceremonies.

There are, among the Haddi communities, two caste officers entitled Behara and Nayako, and difficult questions which arise are settled at a meeting of the officers of several villages. It is said that sometimes, if a member of the caste is known to have committed an offence, the officers select some members of the caste from his village to attend the meeting, and borrow money from them. This is spent on drink, and, after the meeting, the amount is recovered from the offender. If he does not plead guilty at once, a quarrel ensues, and more money is borrowed, so as to increase the debt. In addition to the Behara and Nayako, there are, in some places, other officials called Adhikari or Chowdri, or Bodoporicha and Bhollobhaya. The caste title is Nayako. Members of higher castes are sometimes, especially if they have committed adultery with Haddi women, received into the caste.

Girls are married after puberty. Though contrary to the usual Oriya custom, the practice of menarikam, or marriage with the maternal uncle’s daughter, is permitted. When the marriage of a young man is contemplated, his father, accompanied by members of his caste, proceeds to the home of the intended bride. If her parents are in favour of the match, a small space is cleared in front of the house, and cow-dung water smeared over it. On this spot the young man’s party deposit a pot of toddy, over which women throw Zizyphus Jujuba leaves and rice, crying at the same time Ulu-ula. The village officials, and a few respected members of the caste, assemble in the house, and, after the engagement has been announced, indulge in a drink. On an auspicious day, the bridegroom’s party go to the home of the bride, and place, on a new cloth spread on the floor, the bride-price (usually twenty rupees), and seven betel leaves, myrabolams (Terminalia fruits), areca nuts, and cakes. Two or three of the nuts are then removed from the cloth, cut up, and distributed among the leading men. After the wedding day has been fixed, an adjournment is made to the toddy shop. In some cases, the marriage ceremony is very simple, the bride being conducted to the home of the bridegroom, where a feast is held. In the more elaborate form of ceremonial, the contracting couple are seated on a dais, and the Behara or Nayako, who officiates as priest, makes fire (homam) before them, which he feeds with twigs of Zizyphus Jujuba and Eugenia Jambolana. Mokuttos (forehead chaplets) and wrist-threads are tied on the couple, and their hands are connected by the priest by means of a turmeric-dyed thread, and then disconnected by an unmarried girl. The bride’s brother arrives on the scene, dressed up as a woman, and strikes the bridegroom. This is called solabidha, and is practiced by many Oriya castes. The ends of the cloths of the bride and bridegroom are tied together, and they are conducted inside the house, the mother-in-law throwing Zizyphus leaves and rice over them.

Like other Oriya castes, the Haddis observe pollution for seven days on the occasion of the first menstrual period. On the first day, the girl is seated, and, after she has been smeared with oil and turmeric paste, seven women throw Zizyphus leaves and rice over her. She is kept either in a corner of the house, or in a separate hut, and has by her a piece of iron and a grinding-stone wrapped up in a cloth. If available, twigs of Strychnos Nux-vomica are placed in a corner. Within the room or hut, a small framework, made of broom-sticks and pieces of palmyra palm leaf, or a bow, is placed, and worshipped daily. If the girl is engaged to be married, her future father-in-law is expected to give her a new cloth on the seventh day.

The Haddis are worshippers of various Takuranis (village deities), e.g., Kalumuki, Sathabavuni, and Baidaro. Cremation of the dead is more common than burial. Food is offered to the deceased on the day after death, and also on the tenth and eleventh days. Some Haddis proceed, on the tenth day, to the spot where the corpse was cremated or buried, and, after making an effigy on the ground, offer food. Towards night, they proceed to some distance from the house, and place food and fruits on a cloth spread on the ground. They then call the dead man by his name, and eagerly wait till some insect settles on the cloth. As soon as this happens, the cloth is folded up, carried home, and shaken over the floor close to the spot where the household gods are kept, so that the insect falls on sand spread on the floor. A light is then placed on the sanded floor, and covered with a new pot. After some time, the pot is removed, and the sand examined for any marks which may be left on it. This ceremony seems to correspond to the jola jola handi (pierced pot) ceremony of other castes (see Bhondari).

“The Rellis,” Mr. H. A. Stuart writes,1 “are a caste of gardeners and labourers, found chiefly in the districts of Ganjam and Vizagapatam. In Telugu the word relli or rellis means grass, but whether there is any connection between this and the caste name I cannot say. They generally live at the foot of the hills, and sell vegetables, mostly of hill production.”

For the following note on the Rellis of Vizagapatam, I am indebted to Mr. C. Hayavadana Rao. The Rellis are also known as Sachchari, and they further call themselves Sapiri. The caste recognises the custom of menarikam, by which a man marries his maternal uncle’s daughter. A girl is usually married after puberty. The bride-price is paid sometime before the day fixed for the marriage. On that day, the bride goes, with her parents, to the house of the bridegroom. The caste deities Odda Polamma (commonly known as Sapiri Daivam) and Kanaka Durgalamma are invoked by the elders, and a pig and sheep are sacrificed to them. A string of black beads is tied by the bridegroom round the bride’s neck, and a feast is held, at which the sacrificed animals are eaten, and much liquor is imbibed. On the following morning, a new cloth, kunkumam (red powder), and a few pieces of turmeric are placed in a small basket or winnow, and carried in procession, to the accompaniment of music, through the streets by the bride, with whom is the bridegroom. The ceremony is repeated on the third day, when the marriage festivities come to an end. In a note on the Rellis of Ganjam, Mr. S. P. Rice writes2 that “the bridegroom, with the permission of the Village Magistrate, marches straight into the bride’s house, and ties a wedding necklace round her neck. A gift of seven and a half rupees and a pig to the castemen, and of five rupees to the bride’s father, completes this very primitive ceremony.” Widows are allowed to remarry, but the string of beads is not tied round the neck. The caste deities are usually represented by crude wooden dolls, and an annual festival in their honour, with the sacrifice of pigs and sheep, is held in March. The dead are usually buried, and, as a rule, pollution is not observed. Some Rellis have, however, begun to observe the chinnarozu (little day) death ceremony, which corresponds to the chinnadinamu ceremony of the Telugus. The main occupation of the caste is gardening, and selling fruits and vegetables. The famine of 1875–76 reduced a large number of Rellis to the verge of starvation, and they took to scavenging as a means of earning a living. At the present day, the gardeners look down on the scavengers, but a prosperous scavenger can be admitted into their society by paying a sum of money, or giving a feast. Pollution attaches only to the scavengers, and not to the gardening section. In the Census Report, 1901, the Pakais or sweepers in the Godavari district, who have, it is said, gone thither from Vizagapatam, are returned as a sub-caste of Relli. The usual title of the Rellis is Gadu.

The Haddis who inhabit the southern part of Ganjam are known as Ghasis by other castes, especially Telugu people, though they call themselves Haddis. The name Ghasi has reference to the occupation of cutting grass, especially for horses. The occupational title of grass-cutter is said by Yule and Burnell3 to be “probably a corruption representing the Hindustani ghaskoda or ghaskata, the digger or cutter of grass, the title of a servant employed to collect grass for horses, one such being usually attached to each horse, besides the syce or horsekeeper (groom). In the north, the grass-cutter is a man; in the south the office is filled by the horsekeeper’s wife.” It is noted in ‘Letters from Madras’4 that “every horse has a man and a maid to himself; the maid cuts grass for him; and every dog has a boy. I inquired whether the cat had any servants, but I found he was allowed to wait upon himself.” In addition to collecting and selling grass, the Ghasis are employed at scavenging work. Outsiders, even Jaggalis (Madigas), Paidis, and Panos, are admitted into the Ghasi community.

The headman of the Ghasis is called Bissoyi, and he is assisted by a Behara and Gonjari. The Gonjari is the caste servant, one of whose duties is said to be the application of a tamarind switch to the back of delinquents.

Various exogamous septs or bamsams occur among the Ghasis, of which naga (cobra), asvo (horse), chintala (tamarind), and liari (parched rice) may be noted. Adult marriage is the rule. The betrothal ceremony, at which the kanyo mulo, or bride-price, is paid, is the occasion of a feast, at which pork must be served, and the Bissoyi of the future bride’s village ties a konti (gold or silver bead) on her neck. The marriage ceremonial corresponds in the main with that of the Haddis elsewhere, but has been to some extent modified by the Telugu environment. The custom, referred to by Mr. S. P. Rice, of suspending an earthen pot filled with water from the marriage booth is a very general one, and not peculiar to the Ghasis. It is an imitation of a custom observed by the higher Oriya castes. The striking of the bridegroom on the back by the bride’s brother is the solabidha of other castes, and the mock anger (rusyano) in which the latter goes away corresponds to the alagi povadam of Telugu castes.

At the first menstrual ceremony of a Ghasi girl, she sits in a space enclosed by four arrows, round which a thread is passed seven times.

The name Odiya Toti (Oriya scavenger) occurs as a Tamil synonym for Haddis employed as scavengers in Municipalities in the Tamil country.

Hajam.—The Hindustani name for a barber, and used as a general professional title by barbers of various classes. It is noted, in the Census Reports, that only fifteen out of more than two thousand individuals returned as Hajam were Muhammadans, and that, in South Canara, Hajams are Konkani Kelasis, and of Marathi descent.

Halaba.—See Pentiya.

Halavakki.—A Canarese synonym for Budubudukala.

Halepaik.—The Halepaiks are Canarese toddy-drawers, who are found in the northern taluks of the South Canara district. The name is commonly derived from hale, old, and paika, a soldier, and it is said that they were formerly employed as soldiers. There is a legend that one of their ancestors became commander of the Vijayanagar army, was made ruler of a State, and given a village named Halepaikas as a jaghir (hereditary assignment of land). Some Halepaiks say that they belong to the Tengina (cocoanut palm) section, because they are engaged in tapping that palm for toddy.

There is intermarriage between the Canarese-speaking Halepaiks and the Tulu-speaking Billava toddy-drawers, and, in some places, the Billavas also call themselves Halepaiks. The Halepaiks have exogamous septs or balis, which run in the female line. As examples of these, the following may be noted:—

Chendi (Cerbera Odollum), Honne (Calophyllum inophyllum), Tolar (wolf), Devana (god) and Ganga. It is recorded5 of the Halepaiks of the Canara district in the Bombay Presidency that “each exogamous section, known as a bali (literally a creeper), is named after some animal or tree, which is held sacred by the members of the same. This animal, tree or flower, etc., seems to have been once considered the common ancestor of the members of the bali, and to the present day it is both worshipped by them, and held sacred in the sense that they will not injure it. Thus the members of the nagbali, named apparently after the nagchampa flower, will not wear this flower in their hair, as this would involve injury to the plant. The Kadavebali will not kill the sambhar (deer: kadave), from which they take their name.” The Halepaiks of South Canara seem to attach no such importance to the sept names. Some, however, avoid eating a fish called Srinivasa, because they fancy that the streaks on the body have a resemblance to the Vaishnavite sectarian mark (namam).

All the Halepaiks of the Kundapur taluk profess to be Vaishnavites, and have become the disciples of a Vaishnava Brahman settled in the village of Sankarappakodlu near Wondse in that taluk. Though Venkataramana is regarded as their chief deity, they worship Baiderkulu, Panjurli, and other bhuthas (devils). The Pujaris (priests) avoid eating new grain, new areca nuts, new sugarcane, cucumbers and pumpkins, until a feast, called kaidha puja, has been held. This is usually celebrated in November-December, and consists in offering food, etc., to Baiderkulu. Somebody gets possessed by the bhutha, and pierces his abdomen with an arrow.

In their caste organisation, marriage and death ceremonies, the Halepaiks closely follow the Billavas. They do not, however, construct a car for the final death ceremonies. As they are Vaishnavites, after purification from death pollution by their own caste barber, a Vaishnavite mendicant, called Dassaya, is called in, and purifies them by sprinkling holy water and putting the namam on their foreheads.

There are said to be some differences between the Halepaiks and Billavas in the method of carrying out the process of drawing toddy. For example, the Halepaiks generally grasp the knife with the fingers directed upwards and the thumb to the right, while the Billavas hold the knife with the fingers directed downwards and the thumb to the left. For crushing the flower-buds within the spathe of the palm, Billavas generally use a stone, and the Halepaiks a bone. There is a belief that, if the spathe is beaten with the bone of a buffalo which has been killed by a tiger, the yield of toddy will, if the bone has not touched the ground, be greater than if an ordinary bone is used. The Billavas generally carry a long gourd, and the Halepaiks a pot, for collecting the toddy in.

Halige (plank).—A gotra of Kurni.

Hallikara (village man).—Recorded, in the Mysore Census Report, 1901, as a division of Vakkaliga.

Halu (milk).—An exogamous sept of Holeya and Kurni, a sub-division of Kuruba, and a name for Vakkaligas who keep cattle and sell milk. Halu mata (milk caste) has been given as a synonym for Kuruba. In the Mysore Census Report, 1901, Halu Vakkal-Makkalu, or children of the milk caste, occurs as a synonym for Halu Vakkaliga, and, in the South Canara Manual, Halvaklumakkalu is given as a synonym for Gauda. The Madigas call the intoxicant toddy halu. (See Pal.)

Hanbali.—A sect of Muhammadans, who are followers of the Imam Abu ’Abdi ’llah Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, the founder of the fourth orthodox sect of the Sunnis, who was born at Baghdad A.H. 164 (A.D. 780). “His fame began to spread just at the time when disputes ran highest concerning the nature of the Qur’an, which some held to have existed from eternity, whilst others maintained it to be created. Unfortunately for Ibn Hanbal, the Khalifah-at-Muttasim was of the latter opinion, to which this doctor refusing to subscribe, he was imprisoned, and severely scourged by the Khalifah’s order.”6

Handa.—A title of Canarese Kumbaras.

Handichikka.—The Handichikkas are stated7 to be “also generally known as Handi Jogis. This caste is traced to the Pakanati sub-section of the Jogis, which name it bore some five generations back when the traditional calling was buffalo-breeding. But, as they subsequently degenerated to pig-rearing, they came to be known as Handi Jogi or Handichikka, handi being the Canarese for pig.

Hanifi.—A sect of Muhammadans, named after Abu Hanifah Anhufman, the great Sunni Imam and jurisconsult, and the founder of the Hanifi sect, who was born A.H. 80 (A.D. 700).

Hanuman.—Hanuman, or Hanumanta, the monkey god, has been recorded as a sept of Domb, and gotra of Medara.

Hari Shetti.—A name for Konkani-speaking Vanis (traders).

Haruvar.—A sub-division of the Badagas of the Nilgiri hills.

Hasala.—Concerning the Hasalas or Hasulas, Mr. Lewis Rice writes that “this tribe resembles the Soliga (or Sholagas). They are met with along the ghÂts on the north-western frontier of Mysore. They are a short, thick-set race, very dark in colour, and with curled hair. Their chief employment is felling timber, but they sometimes work in areca nut gardens and gather wild cardamoms, pepper, etc. They speak a dialect of Canarese.”

In the Mysore Census Report, 1891, it is stated that “the Hasalaru and Maleru are confined to the wild regions of the Western Malnad. In the caste generation, they are said to rank above the Halepaikas, but above the Holeyas and Madigas. They are a diminutive but muscular race, with curly hair and dolichocephalous head. Their mother-tongue is Tulu. Their numbers are so insignificantly small as not to be separately defined. They are immigrants from South Canara, and lead a life little elevated above that of primordial barbarism. They live in small isolated huts, which are, however, in the case of the Hasalas, provided not only with the usual principal entrance, through which one has to crawl in, but also with a half-concealed hole in the rear, a kind of postern, through which the shy inmates steal out into the jungle at the merest suspicion of danger, or the approach of a stranger. They collect the wild jungle produce, such as cardamoms, etc., for their customary employers, whose agrestic slaves they have virtually become. Their huts are annually or periodically shifted from place to place, usually the most inaccessible and thickest parts of the wilderness. They are said to be very partial to toddy and arrack (alcoholic liquor). It is expected that these savages smuggle across the frontier large quantities of wild pepper and cardamoms from the ghat forests of the province. Their marriage customs are characterised by the utmost simplicity, and the part played therein by the astrologer is not very edifying. Their religion does not seem to transcend devil worship. They bury the dead. A very curious obsequial custom prevails among the Hasalas. When any one among them dies, somebody’s devil is credited with the mishap, and the astrologer is consulted to ascertain its identity. The latter throws cowries (shells of Cyproea moneta) for divination, and mentions some neighbour as the owner of the devil thief. Thereupon, the spirit of the dead is redeemed by the heir or relative by means of a pig, fowl, or other guerdon. The spirit is then considered released, and is thence forward domiciled in a pot, which is supplied periodically with water and nourishment. This may be looked upon as the elementary germ of the posthumous care-taking, which finds articulation under the name of sradh in multifarious forms, accompanied more or less with much display in the more civilised sections of the Hindu community. The Hasalaru are confined to Tirthahalli and Mudigere.”

It is further recorded in the Mysore Census Report, 1891, that “in most of the purely Malnad or hilly taluks, each vargdar, or proprietor of landed estate, owns a set of servants styled Huttalu or Huttu-alu and Mannalu or Mannu-alu. The former is the hereditary servitor of the family, born in servitude, and performing agricultural work for the landholder from father to son. The Mannalu is a serf attached to the soil, and changes hands with it. They are usually of the Holaya class, but, in some places, the Hasalar race have been entertained.” (See Holeya.)

Concerning the Hasalaru, Mr. H. V. Nanjundayya writes to me that “their marriages take place at night, a pujari of their caste ties the tali, a golden disc, round the bride’s neck. Being influenced by the surrounding castes, they have taken of late to the practice of inviting the astrologer to be present. In the social scale they are a little superior to Madigas and Holeyas, and, like them, live outside the village, but they do not eat beef. Their approach is considered to defile a Brahman, and they do not enter the houses of non-Brahmans such as Vakkaligas and Kurubas. They have their own caste barbers and washermen, and have separate wells to draw water from.”

Hasbe.—Hasbe or Hasubu, meaning a double pony pack-sack, has been recorded as an exogamous sept of Holeya and Vakkaliga.

Hastham (hand).—An exogamous sept of Boya.

Hatagar.—A sub-division of Devangas, who are also called Kodekal Hatagaru.

Hathi (elephant).—A sept of the Oriya Haddis. When members of this sept see the foot-prints of an elephant, they take some dust from the spot, and make a mark on the forehead with it. They also draw the figure of an elephant, and worship it, when they perform sradh (memorial service for the dead) and other ceremonies.

Hathinentu Manayavaru (eighteen house).—A sub-division of Devanga.

Hatti (hut or hamlet).—An exogamous sept of Kappilliyan and Kuruba.

Hattikankana (cotton wrist-thread).—A sub-division of Kurubas, who tie a cotton thread round the wrist at the marriage ceremony.

Heggade.—The Heggades are summed up, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as being a class of Canarese cultivators and cattle-breeders. Concerning the Heggades of South Canara, Mr. H. A. Stuart writes8 that they “are classified as shepherds, but the present occupation of the majority of them is cultivation. Their social position is said to be somewhat inferior to that of the Bants. They employ Brahmins as their priests. In their ceremonies, the rich follow closely the Brahminical customs. On the second day of their marriage, a pretence of stealing a jewel from the person of the bride is made. The bridegroom makes away with the jewel before dawn, and in the evening the bride’s party proceeds to the house where the bridegroom is to be found. The owner of the house is told that a theft has occurred in the bride’s house and is asked whether the thief has taken shelter in his house. A negative answer is given, but the bride’s party conducts a regular search. In the meanwhile a boy is dressed to represent the bridegroom. The searching party mistake this boy for the bridegroom, arrest him, and produce him before the audience as the culprit. This disguised bridegroom, who is proclaimed to be the thief, throws his mask at the bride, when it is found to the amusement of all present that he is not the bridegroom. The bride’s party then, confessing their inability to find the bridegroom, request the owner of the house to produce him. He is then produced, and conducted in procession to the bride’s house.”

Some Bants who use the title Heggade wear the sacred thread, follow the hereditary profession of temple functionaries, and are keepers of the demon shrines which are dotted all over South Canara.

Of the Heggades who have settled in the Coorg country, the Rev. G. Richter states9 that “they conform, in superstitions and festivals, to Coorg custom, but are excluded from the community of the Coorgs, in whose presence they are allowed to sit only on the floor, whilst the former occupy a chair, or, if they are seated on a mat, the Heggades must not touch it.” In the Mysore and Coorg Gazetteer, Heggade is defined by Mr. L. Rice as the headman of a village, the head of the village police, to whom, in some parts of the Province, rent-free lands are assigned for his support.

Heggade is sometimes used as a caste name by Kurubas, and occurs as an exogamous sept of Stanikas.

Hegganiga.—A sub-division of Ganigas, who use two oxen for their oil-pressing mills.

Helava.—Helava, meaning lame person, is the name of a class of mendicants, who, in Bellary, Mysore, and other localities, are the custodians of village histories. They generally arrive at the villages mounted on a bullock, and with their legs concealed by woollen blankets. They go from house to house, giving the history of the different families, the names of heroes who died in war, and so forth.

Hijra (eunuchs).—See Khoja.

Hire (big).—A sub-division of Kurni.

Hittu (flour).—A gotra of Kurni.

Holadava.—A synonym of Gatti.

Holeya.—The bulk of the Holeyas are, in the Madras Presidency, found in South Canara, but there are a considerable number in Coimbatore and on the Nilgiris (working on cinchona, tea, and coffee estates). In the Manual of the South Canara district it is noted that “Holeyas are the field labourers, and former agrestic serfs of South Canara, Pulayan being the Malayalam and Paraiyan the Tamil form of the same word. The name is derived by Brahmins from hole, pollution, and by others from hola, land or soil, in recognition of the fact that, as in the case of the Paraiyan, there are customs remaining which seem to indicate that the Holeyas were once masters of the land; but, whatever the derivation may be, it is no doubt the same as that of Paraiyan and Pulayan. The Holeyas are divided into many sub-divisions, but the most important are Mari, Mera, and Mundala or Bakuda. The Mera Holeyas are the most numerous, and they follow the ordinary law of inheritance through males, as far as that can be said to be possible with a class of people who have absolutely nothing to inherit. Of course, demon propitiation (bhuta worship) is practically the exclusive idea of the Holeyas, and every one of the above sub-divisions has four or five demons to which fowls, beaten rice, cocoanuts and toddy, are offered monthly and annually. The Holeyas have, like other classes of South Canara, a number of balis (exogamous septs), and persons of the same bali cannot intermarry. Though the marriage tie is as loose as is usual among the depressed and low castes of Southern India, their marriage ceremony is somewhat elaborate. The bridegroom’s party goes to the bride’s house on a fixed day with rice, betel leaf and a few areca nuts, and waits the whole night outside the bride’s hut, the bridegroom being seated on a mat specially made by the bride. On the next morning the bride is made to sit opposite the bridegroom, with a winnowing fan between them filled with betel leaf, etc. Meanwhile the men and women present throw rice over the heads of the couple. The bride then accompanies the bridegroom to his hut, carrying the mat with her. On the last day the couple take the mat to a river or tank where fish may be found, dip the mat into the water, and catch some fish, which they let go after kissing them. A grand feast completes the marriage. Divorce is easy, and widow marriage is freely practiced. Holeyas will eat flesh including beef, and have no caste scruples regarding the consumption of spirituous liquor. Both men and women wear a small cap made of the leaf of the areca palm.” The Holeyas who were interviewed by us all said that they do not go through the ceremony of catching fish, which is performed by Shivalli Brahmans and Akkasales.

“All Tulu Brahmin chronicles,” Mr. H. A. Stuart writes10 “agree in ascribing the creation of Malabar and Canara, or Kerala, Tuluva, and Haiga to Parasu Rama, who reclaimed from the sea as much land as he could cover by hurling his battle-axe from the top of the Western Ghauts. A modified form of the tradition states that Parasu Rama gave the newly reclaimed land to Naga and Machi Brahmins, who were not true Brahmins, and were turned out or destroyed by fishermen and Holeyas, who held the country till the Tulu Brahmins were introduced by Mayur Varma (of the Kadamba dynasty). All traditions unite in attributing the introduction of the Tulu Brahmins of the present day to Mayur Varma, but they vary in details connected with the manner in which they obtained a firm footing in the land. One account says that Habashika, chief of the Koragas, drove out Mayur Varma, but was in turn expelled by Mayur Varma’s son, or son-in-law, Lokaditya of Gokarnam, who brought Brahmins from Ahi-Kshetra, and settled them in thirty-two villages. Another makes Mayur Varma himself the invader of the country, which till then had remained in the possession of the Holeyas and fishermen who had turned out Parasu Rama’s Brahmins. Mayur Varma and the Brahmins whom he had brought from Ahi-Kshetra were again driven out by Nanda, a Holeya chief, whose son Chandra Sayana had, however, learned respect for Brahmins from his mother, who had been a dancing-girl in a temple. His admiration for them became so great that he not only brought back the Brahmins, but actually made over all his authority to them, and reduced his people to the position of slaves. A third account makes Chandra Sayana, not a son of a Holeya king, but a descendant of Mayur Varma and a conqueror of the Holeya king.”

In Coorg, the Rev. G. Richter writes,11 “the Holeyas are found in the Coorg houses all over the country, and do all the menial work for the Coorgs, by whom, though theoretically freemen under the British Government, they were held as gleboe adscripti in a state of abject servitude until lately, when, with the advent of European planters, the slave question was freely discussed, and the ‘domestic institution’ practically abolished. The Holeyas dress indifferently, are of dirty habits, and eat whatever they can get, beef included. Their worship is addressed to Eiyappa Devaru and Chamundi, or Kali goddess once every month; and once every year they sacrifice a hog or a fowl.”

Of the Holeyas of the Mysore province, the following account is given in the Mysore Census Reports, 1891 and 1901. “The Holeyas number 502,493 persons, being 10.53 per cent. of the total population. They constitute, as their name implies, the back-bone of cultivation in the country. Hola is the Kanarese name for a dry-crop field, and Holeya means the man of such field. The caste has numerous sub-divisions, among which are Kannada, Gangadikara, Maggada (loom), and Morasu. The Holeyas are chiefly employed as labourers in connection with agriculture, and manufacture with hand-looms various kinds of coarse cloth or home-spun, which are worn extensively by the poorer classes, notwithstanding that they are being fast supplanted by foreign cheap fabrics. In some parts of the Mysore district, considerable numbers of the Holeyas are specially engaged in betel-vine gardening. As labourers they are employed in innumerable pursuits, in which manual labour preponderates. The Aleman sub-division furnishes recruits as Barr sepoys. It may not be amiss to quote here some interesting facts denoting the measure of material well-being achieved by, and the religious recognition accorded to the outcastes at certain first-class shrines in Mysore. At Melkote in the Mysore district, the outcastes, i.e., the Holeyas and Madigs, are said to have been granted by the great Visishtadvaita reformer, Ramanujacharya, the privilege of entering the Vishnu temple up to the sanctum sanctorum, along with Brahmans and others, to perform worship there for three days during the annual car procession. The following anecdote, recorded by Buchanan,12 supplies the raison d’Être for the concession, which is said to have also been earned by their forebears having guarded the sacred murti or idol. On Ramanujacharya going to Melkota to perform his devotions at that celebrated shrine, he was informed that the place had been attacked by the Turk King of Delhi, who had carried away the idol. The Brahman immediately set out for that capital, and on arrival found that the King had made a present of the image to his daughter, for it is said to be very handsome, and she asked for it as a plaything. All day the princess played with the image, and at night the god assumed his own beautiful form, and enjoyed her bed, for Krishna is addicted to such forms of adventures. Ramanujacharya, by virtue of certain mantras, obtained possession of the image, and wished to carry it off. He asked the Brahmans to assist him, but they refused; on which the Holeyas volunteered, provided the right of entering the temple was granted to them. Ramanujacharya accepted their proposal, and the Holeyas, having posted themselves between Delhi and Melkota, the image of the god was carried down in twenty-four hours. The service also won for the outcastes the envied title of Tiru-kulam or the sacred race. In 1799, however, when the Dewan (prime minister) Purnaiya visited the holy place, the right of the outcastes to enter the temple was stopped at the dhvaja stambham, the consecrated monolithic column, from which point alone can they now obtain a view of the god. On the day of the car procession, the Tiru-kulam people, men, women and children, shave their heads and bathe with the higher castes in the kalyani or large reservoir, and carry on their head small earthen vessels filled with rice and oil, and enter the temple as far as the flagstaff referred to above, where they deliver their offerings, which are appropriated by the Dasayyas, who resort simultaneously as pilgrims to the shrine. Besides the privilege of entering the temple, the Tiru-kula Holeyas and Madigs have the right to drag the car, for which service they are requited by getting from the temple two hundred seers of ragi (grain), a quantity of jaggery (crude sugar), and few bits of the dyed cloth used for decorating the pandal (shed) which is erected for the procession. At the close of the procession, the representatives of the aforesaid classes receive each a flower garland at the hands of the Sthanik or chief worshipper, who manages to drop a garland synchronously into each plate held by the recipients, so as to avoid any suspicion of undue preference. In return for these privileges, the members of the Tiru-kulam used to render gratuitous services such as sweeping the streets round the temple daily, and in the night patrolling the whole place with drums during the continuance of the annual procession, etc. But these services are said to have become much abridged and nearly obsolete under the recent police and municipal rÉgime. The privilege of entering the temple during the annual car procession is enjoyed also by the outcastes in the Vishnu temple at Belur in the Hassan district. It is, however, significant that in both the shrines, as soon as the car festival is over, i.e., on the 10th day, the concession ceases, and the temples are ceremonially purified.

“In the pre-survey period, the Holeya or Madig Kulvadi, in the maidan or eastern division, was so closely identified with the soil that his oath, accompanied by certain formalities and awe-inspiring solemnities, was considered to give the coup de grÂce to long existing and vexatious boundary disputes. He had a potential voice in the internal economy of the village, and was often the fidus Achates of the patel (village official). In the malnad, however, the Holeya had degenerated into the agrestic slave, and till a few decades ago under the British rule, not only as regards his property, but also with regard to his body, he was not his own master. The vargdar or landholder owned him as a hereditary slave. The genius of British rule has emancipated him, and his enfranchisement has been emphasized by the allurements of the coffee industry with its free labour and higher wages. It is, however, said that the improvement so far of the status of the outcastes in the malnad has not been an unmixed good, inasmuch as it is likewise a measure of the decadence of the supari (betel) gardens. Be that as it may, the Holeya in the far west of the province still continues in many respects the bondsman of the local landholder of influence; and some of the social customs now prevailing among the Holeyas there, as described hereunder, fully bear out this fact.

“In most of the purely malnad or hilly taluks, each vargdar, or proprietor of landed estate, owns a set of servants called Huttalu or Huttu-Alu and Mannalu or Mannu-Alu. The former is the hereditary servitor of the family, born in servitude, and performing agricultural work for the landholder from father to son. The Mannalu is a serf attached to the soil, and changes with it. These are usually of the Holeya class, but in some places men of the Hasalar race have been entertained. To some estates or vargs only Huttu-alus are attached, while Mannu-alus work on others. Notwithstanding the measure of personal freedom enjoyed by all men at the present time, and the unification of the land tenures in the province under the revenue survey and settlement, the traditions of birth, immemorial custom, ignorance, and never-to-be-paid-off loads of debt, tend to preserve in greater or less integrity the conditions of semi-slavery under which these agrestic slaves live. It is locally considered the acme of unwisdom to loosen the immemorial relations between capital and labour, especially in the remote backwoods, in which free labour does not exist, and the rich supari cultivation whereof would be ruined otherwise. In order furthermore to rivet the ties which bind these hereditary labourers to the soil, it is alleged that the local capitalists have improvised a kind of Gretna Green marriage among them. A legal marriage of the orthodox type contains the risk of a female servant being lost to the family in case the husband happened not to be a Huttalu or Mannalu. So, in order to obviate the possible loss, a custom prevails according to which a female Huttalu or Mannalu is espoused in what is locally known as the manikattu form, which is neither more nor less than licensed concubinage. She may be given up after a time, subject to a small fine to the caste, and anybody else may then espouse her on like conditions. Not only does she then remain in the family, but her children will also become the landlord’s servants. These people are paid with a daily supply of paddy or cooked food, and a yearly present of clothing and blankets (kamblis). On special occasions, and at car feasts, they receive in addition small money allowances.

“In rural circles, in which the Holeyas and Madigs are kept at arm’s length by the Bramanical bodies, and are not allowed to approach the sacerdotal classes beyond a fixed limit, the outcastes maintain a strict semi-religious rule, whereby no Brahman can enter the Holeya’s quarters without necessitating a purification thereof. They believe that the direst calamities will befall them and theirs if otherwise. The ultraconservative spirit of Hindu priestcraft casts into the far distance the realization of the hope that the lower castes will become socially equal even with the classes usually termed Sudras. But the time is looming in the near distance, in which they will be on a level in temporal prosperity with the social organisms above them. Unlike the land tenures said to prevail in Chingleput or Madras, the Mysore system fully permits the Holeyas and Madigs to hold land in their own right, and as sub-tenants they are to be found almost everywhere. The highest amount of land assessment paid by a single Holeya is Rs. 279 in the Bangalore district, and the lowest six pies in the Kolar and Mysore districts. The quota paid by the outcastes towards the land revenue of the country aggregates no less than three lakhs of rupees, more than two-thirds being paid by the Holeyas, and the remainder by the Madigs. These facts speak for themselves, and afford a reliable index to the comparative well-being of these people. Instances may also be readily quoted, in which individual Holeyas, etc., have risen to be money-lenders, and enjoy comparative affluence. Coffee cultivation and allied industries have thrown much good fortune into their lap. Here and there they have also established bhajane or prayer houses, in which theistic prayers and psalms are recited by periodical congregation. A beginning has been made towards placing the facilities of education within easy reach of these depressed classes.”

In connection with the Holeyas of South Canara, it is recorded13 that “the ordinary agricultural labourers of this district are Holeyas or Pariahs of two classes, known as Mulada Holeyas and Salada Holeyas, the former being the old hereditary serfs attached to Muli wargs (estates), and the latter labourers bound to their masters’ service by being in debt to them. Nowadays, however, there is a little difference between the two classes. Neither are much given to changing masters, and, though a Mulada Holeya is no longer a slave, he is usually as much in debt as a Salada Holeya, and can only change when his new master takes the debt over. To these labourers cash payments are unknown, except occasionally in the case of Salada Holeyas, where there is a nominal annual payment to be set off against interest on the debt. In other cases interest is foregone, one or other of the perquisites being sometimes docked as an equivalent. The grain wage consists of rice or paddy (unhusked rice), and the local seer is, on the average, as nearly as possible one of 80 tolas. The daily rice payments to men, women, and children vary as follows:—

“In addition to the daily wages, and the midday meal of boiled rice which is given in almost all parts, there are annual perquisites or privileges. Except on the coast of the Mangalore taluk and in the Coondapoor taluk, every Holeya is allowed rent free from ? to ? acre of land, and one or two cocoanut or palmyra trees, with sometimes a jack or mango tree in addition. The money-value of the produce of this little allotment is variously estimated at from 1 to 5 rupees per annum. Throughout the whole district, cloths are given every year to each labourer, the money value being estimated at 1 rupee per adult, and 6 annas for a child. It is also customary to give a cumbly (blanket) in the neighbourhood of the ghauts, where the damp and cold render a warm covering necessary. On three or four important festivals, presents of rice and other eatables, oil and salt are given to each labourer, or, in some cases, to each family. The average value of these may be taken at 1 rupee per labourer, or Rs. 4 per family. Presents are also made on the occasion of a birth, marriage, or funeral, the value of which varies very much in individual cases. Whole families of Holeyas are attached to the farms, but, when their master does not require their services, he expects them to go and work elsewhere in places where such work is to be got. In the interior, outside work is not to be had at many seasons, and the master has to pay them even if there is not much for them to do, but, one way or another, he usually manages to keep them pretty well employed all the year round.”

In a note on the Kulwadis, Kulvadis or Chalavadis of the Hassan district in Mysore, Captain J. S. F. Mackenzie writes14 that “every village has its Holigiri—as the quarter inhabited by the Holiars is called—outside the village boundary hedge. This, I thought, was because they are considered an impure race, whose touch carries defilement with it. Such is the reason generally given by the Brahman, who refuses to receive anything directly from the hands of a Holiar, and yet the Brahmans consider great luck will wait upon them if they can manage to pass through the Holigiri without being molested. To this the Holiars have a strong objection, and, should a Brahman attempt to enter their quarters, they turn out in a body and slipper him, in former times it is said to death. Members of the other castes may come as far as the door, but they must not enter the house, for that would bring the Holiar bad luck. If, by chance, a person happens to get in, the owner takes care to tear the intruder’s cloth, tie up some salt in one corner of it, and turn him out. This is supposed to neutralize all the good luck which might have accrued to the trespasser, and avert any evil which might have befallen the owner of the house. All the thousand-and-one castes, whose members find a home in the village, unhesitatingly admit that the Kulwadi is de jure the rightful owner of the village. He who was is still, in a limited sense, ‘lord of the village manor.’ If there is a dispute as to the village boundaries, the Kulwadi is the only one competent to take the oath as to how the boundary ought to run. The old custom for settling such disputes was as follows. The Kulwadi, carrying on his head a ball made of the village earth, in the centre of which is placed some water, passes along the boundary. If he has kept the proper line, everything goes well; but should he, by accident, even go beyond his own proper boundary, then the ball of earth, of its own accord, goes to pieces, the Kulwadi dies within fifteen days, and his house becomes a ruin. Such is the popular belief. Again, the skins of all animals dying within the village boundaries are the property of the Kulwadi, and a good income he makes from this source. To this day a village boundary dispute is often decided by this one fact. If the Kulwadis agree, the other inhabitants of the villages can say no more. When—in our forefathers’ days, as the natives say—a village was first established, a stone called ‘karu kallu’ is set up. To this stone the Patel once a year makes an offering. The Kulwadi, after the ceremony is over, is entitled to carry off the rice, etc., offered. In cases where there is no Patel, the Kulwadi goes through the yearly ceremony. But what I think proves strongly that the Holia was the first to take possession of the soil is that the Kulwadi receives, and is entitled to receive, from the friends of any person who dies in the village, a certain fee or as my informant forcibly put it, ‘They buy from him the ground for the dead.’ This fee is still called in Canarese nela haga, from nela earth, and haga, a coin worth 1 anna 2 pies. In Munzerabad the Kulwadi does not receive this fee from those ryots who are related to the headman. Here the Kulwadi occupies a higher position. He has, in fact, been adopted into the Patel’s family, for, on a death occurring in such family, the Kulwadi goes into mourning by shaving his head. He always receives from the friends the clothes the deceased wore, and a brass basin. The Kulwadi, however, owns a superior in the matter of burial fees. He pays yearly a fowl, one hana (4 annas 8 pies), and a handful of rice to the agent of the Sudgadu Siddha, or lord of the burning ground (q.v.).”

A Kulwadi, whom I came across, was carrying a brass ladle bearing the figure of a couchant bull (Basava) and a lingam under a many-headed cobra canopy. This ladle is carried round, and filled with rice, money, and betel, on the occasion of marriages in those castes, of which the insignia are engraved on the handle. These insignia were as follows:—

• Weavers—Shuttle and brush.
• Bestha—Fish.
• Uppara—Spade and basket for collecting salt.
• Korama—Baskets and knife for splitting canes and bamboos.
• Idiga—Knife, and apparatus for climbing palm-trees.
• Hajam—Barber’s scissors, razor, and sharpening stone.
• Ganiga—Oil-press.
• Madavali—Washerman’s pot, fire-place, mallet, and stone.
• Kumbara—Potter’s wheel, pots, and mallet.
• Vakkaliga—Plough.
• Chetti—Scales and basket.
• Kuruba—Sheep-shears.

A small whistle, called kola-singanatha, made of gold, silver, or copper, is tied round the neck of some Holeyas, Vakkaligas, Besthas, Agasas and Kurubas, by means of threads of sheep’s wool intertwined sixteen times. All these castes are supposed to belong to the family of the God Bhaira, in whose name the whistle is tied by a Bairagi at Chunchingiri near Nagamangala. It is usually tied in fulfilment of a vow taken by the parents, and the ceremony costs from a hundred to two hundred rupees. Until the vow is fulfilled, the person concerned cannot marry. At the ceremony, the Bairagi bores a hole in the right ear-lobe of the celebrant with a needle called diksha churi, and from the wound ten drops of blood fall to the ground (cf. Jogi Purusha). He is then bathed before the whistle is tied round his neck. As the result of wearing the whistle, the man attains to the rank of a priest in his caste, and is entitled to receive alms and meals on festive and ceremonial occasions. He blows his whistle, which emits a thin squeak, before partaking of food, or performing his daily worship.

It is noted in the Mysore Census Report, 1901, that the marriage of the Holeyas is “nothing but a feast, at which the bridegroom ties the bottu (marriage badge) round the bride’s neck. The wife cannot be divorced except for adultery. Widows are prohibited from remarrying, but the caste winks at a widow’s living with a man.” In an account given to me of marriage among the Gangadikara Holeyas, I was told that, if a girl reaches puberty without being married, she may live with any man whom she likes within the caste. If he pays later on the bride price of twelve rupees, the marriage ceremonies take place, and the issue becomes legitimate. On the first day of these ceremonies, the bride is taken to the house of her husband-elect. The parties of the bride and bridegroom go, accompanied by music, to a river or tank, each with four new earthen pots, rice, betel, and other things. The pots, which are decorated with flowers of the areca palm, are filled with water, and set apart in the houses of the contracting couple. This ceremonial is known as bringing the god. At night the wrist-threads (kankanam), made of black and white wool, with turmeric root and iron ring tied on them, are placed round the wrists of the bride and bridegroom. On the following day, cotton thread is passed round the necks of three brass vessels, and also round the head of the bridegroom, who sits before the vessels with hands folded, and betel leaves stuck between his fingers. Married women anoint him with oil and turmeric, and he is bathed. He is then made to stand beneath a tree, and a twig of the jambu (Eugenia Jambolana) tree is tied to the milk-post. A similar ceremony is performed by the bride. The bridegroom is conducted to the marriage booth, and he and the bride exchange garlands and put gingelly (Sesamum) and jirige (cummin) on each other’s heads. The bottu is passed round to be blessed, and tied by the bridegroom on the bride’s neck. This is followed by the pouring of milk over the hands of the contracting couple. On the third day, the wrist-threads are removed, and the pots thrown away.

The Holeyas have a large number of exogamous septs, of which the following are examples:—

Ane, elephant. Male, garland. Nerali, Eugenia Jambolana. Hutta, ant-hill. Halu, milk. Kavane, sling.

Hasubu, pack-sack. Malige, jasmine. Tene, Setaria italica. Chatri, umbrella. Mola, hare. Jenu, honey.

It is recorded in the Mysore Census Report, 1901, that “351 out of the entire population of 577,166 have returned gotras, the names thereof being Harichandra, Kali, Yekke, and Karadi. In thus doing, it is evident that they are learning to venerate themselves, like others in admittedly higher grades of society.”

Some Holeya families are called Hale Makkalu, or old children of the Gangadikara Vakkaligas, and have to do certain services for the latter, such as carrying the sandals of the bridegroom, acting as messenger in conveying news from place to place, carrying fire before corpses to the burning-ground, and watching over the burning body. It is said that, in the performance of these duties, the exogamous septs of the Holeya and Vakkaliga must coincide.

In the Census Report, 1901, Balagai, Bakuda, Begara or Byagara, Kusa (or Uppara) Maila, and Ranivaya (belonging to a queen) are recorded as sub-sects of the Holeyas. Of these, Balagai is a synonym, indicating that the Holeyas belong to the right-hand section. The Bakudas are said to resent the application of that name to them, and call themselves Aipattukuladavaru, or the people of fifty families, presumably from the fact that they are divided into fifty balis or families. These balis are said to be named after deceased female ancestors. Begara or Byagara is a synonym, applied to the Holeyas by Kanarese Lingayats. Maila means dirt, and probably refers to the washerman section, just as Mailari (washerman) occurs among the Malas.

The Tulu-speaking Holeyas must not be confounded with the Canarese-speaking Holeyas. In South Canara, Holeya is a general name applied to the polluting classes, Nalkes, Koragas, and the three divisions of Holeyas proper, which differ widely from each other in some respects. These divisions are—

• (1) Bakuda or Mundala—A stranger, asking a woman if her husband is at home, is expected to refer to him as her Bakuda, and not as her Mundala.
• (2) Mera or Mugayaru, which is also called Kaipuda.
• (3) Mari or Marimanisaru.

Of these, the first two sections abstain from beef, and consequently consider themselves superior to the Mari section.

The Bakudas follow the aliya santana law of succession (in the female line), and, if a man leaves any property, it goes to his nephew. They will not touch dead cows or calves, or remove the placenta when a cow calves. Nor will they touch leather, especially in the form of shoes. They will not carry cots on which rice sheaves are thrashed, chairs, etc., which have four legs, but, when ordered to do so, either break off one leg, or add an extra leg by tying a stick to the cot or chair. The women always wear their cloth in one piece, and are not allowed, like other Holeyas, to have it made of two pieces. The Bakudas will not eat food prepared or touched by Bilimaggas, Jadas, Paravas or Nalkes. The headman is called Mukhari. The office is hereditary, and, in some places, is, as with the Guttinaya of the Bants, connected with his house-site. This being fixed, he should remain at that house, or his appointment will lapse, except with the general consent of the community to his retaining it. In some places, the Mukhari has two assistants, called Jammana and Bondari, of whom the latter has to distribute toddy at assemblies of the caste. On all ceremonial occasions, the Mukhari has to be treated with great respect, and even an individual who gets possessed by the bhutha (devil) has to touch him with his kadasale (sword). In cases of adultery, a purificatory ceremony, called gudi suddha, is performed. The erring woman’s relations construct seven small huts, through which she has to pass, and they are burned down. The fact of this purificatory ceremony taking place is usually proclaimed by the Bondari, and the saying is that 280 people should assemble. They sprinkle water brought from a temple or sthana (devil shrine) and cow’s urine over the woman just before she passes through the huts. A small quantity of hair from her head, a few hairs from the eyelids, and nails from her fingers are thrown into the huts. In some places, the delinquent has to drink a considerable quantity of salt-water and cow-dung water.

Her relatives have to pay a small money fine to the village deity. The ordeal of passing through huts is also practiced by the Koragas of South Canara. “The suggestion,” Mr. R. E. Enthoven writes, “seems to be a rapid representation of seven existences, the outcaste regaining his (or her) status after seven generations have passed without further transgression. The parallel suggested is the law of Manu that seven generations are necessary to efface a lapse from the law of endogamous marriage.”

The special bhuthas of the Bakudas are Kodababbu and Kamberlu (or Kangilu), but Jumadi, Panjurli, and Tanimaniya are also occasionally worshipped. For the propitiation of Kodababbu, Nalkes are engaged to put on the disguise of this bhutha, whereas Bakudas themselves dress up for the propitiation of Kamberlu in cocoanut leaves tied round the head and waist. Thus disguised, they go about the streets periodically, collecting alms from door to door. Kamberlu is supposed to cause small-pox, cholera, and other epidemic diseases.

On the day fixed for the betrothal ceremony, among the Bakudas, a few people assemble at the home of the bride-elect, and the Mukharis of both parties exchange betel or beat the palms of their hands, and proclaim that all quarrels must cease, and the marriage is to be celebrated. Toddy is distributed among those assembled. The bride’s party visit the parents of the bridegroom, and receive then or subsequently a white cloth, four rupees, and three bundles of rice. On the wedding day, those who are present seat themselves in front of the house where the ceremony is to take place, and are given betel to chew. A new mat is spread, and the bride and bridegroom stand thereon. If there is a Kodababbu sthana in the vicinity, the jewels belonging thereto are worn by the bridegroom, who also wears a red cap, which is usually kept in the sthana, and carries in his hand the sword (kadasale) belonging thereto. The Mukhari or Jammana asks if the five groups of people, from Barkur, Mangalore, Shivalli, Chithpadi, Mudanidambur, and Udayavara, are present. Five men come forward, and announce that this is so, and say “all relationship involving prohibited degrees may snap, and cease to exist.” A tray of rice and a lamp are placed before the contracting couple, and those present throw rice over their heads. All then go to the toddy shop, and have a drink. They then return to the house and partake of a meal, at which the bridegroom and his bestman (maternal uncle’s son) are seated apart. Cooked rice is heaped up on a leaf before the bridegroom, and five piles of fish curry are placed thereon. First the bridegroom eats a portion thereof, and the remainder is finished off by the bestman. The bridal couple then stand once more on the mat, and the Mukhari joins their hands, saying “No unlawful marriage should take place. Prohibited relationship must be avoided.” He sprinkles water from culms of Cynodon Dactylon over the united hands.

The body of a dead Bakuda is washed with hot water, in which mango (Mangifera indica) bark is steeped. The dead are buried. The day for the final death ceremonies (bojja) is usually fixed by the Mukhari or Jammana. On that day, cooked food is offered to the deceased, and all cry “muriyo, muriyo.” The son, after being shaved, and with his face veiled by a cloth, carries cooked rice on his head to a small hut erected for the occasion. The food is set down, and all present throw some of it into the hut.

The Mera or Mugayar Holeyas, like the Bakudas, abstain from eating beef, and refuse to touch leather in any form. They have no objection to carrying four-legged articles. Though their mother tongue is Tulu, they seem to follow the makkala santana law of inheritance (in the male line). Their headman is entitled Kuruneru, and he has, as the badge of office, a cane with a silver band. The office of headman passes to the son instead of to the nephew. Marriage is called Badathana, and the details of the ceremony are like those of the Mari Holeyas. The dead are buried, and the final death ceremonies (bojja or savu) are performed on the twelfth or sixteenth day. A feast is given to some members of the community, and cooked food offered to the deceased at the house and near the grave.

The Mari or Marimanisaru Holeyas are sometimes called Karadhi by the Bakudas. Like certain Malayalam castes, the Holeyas have distinct names for their homes according to the section. Thus, the huts of the Mari Holeyas are called kelu, and those of the Mera Holeyas patta. The headmen among the Mari Holeyas are called Mulia, Boltiyadi, and Kallali. The office of headman follows in the female line of succession. In addition to various bhuthas, such as Panjurli and Jumadi, the Mari Holeyas have two special bhuthas, named Kattadhe and Kanadhe, whom they regard as their ancestors. At times of festivals, these ancestors are supposed to descend on earth, and make their presence known by taking possession of some member of the community. Men who are liable to be so possessed are called Dharipuneyi, and have the privilege of taking up the sword and bell belonging to the bhuthasthana when under possession.

Marriage among the Mari Holeyas is called porathavu. At the betrothal ceremony, the headmen of the contracting parties exchange betel leaves and areca nuts. The bride-price usually consists of two bundles of rice and a bundle of paddy (unhusked rice). On the wedding day the bridegroom and his party go to the home of the bride, taking with them a basket containing five seers of rice, two metal bangles, one or two cocoanuts, a comb, and a white woman’s cloth, which are shown to the headman of the bride’s party. The two headmen order betel leaf and areca nuts to be distributed among those assembled. After a meal, a mat is spread in front of the hut, and the bride and bridegroom stand thereon. The bridegroom has in his hand a sword, and the bride holds some betel leaves and areca nuts. Rice is thrown over their heads, and presents of money are given to them. The two headmen lift up the hands of the contracting couple, and they are joined together. The bride is lifted up so as to be a little higher than the bridegroom, and is taken indoors. The bridegroom follows her, but is prevented from entering by his brother-in-law, to whom he gives betel leaves and areca nuts. He then makes a forcible entrance into the hut.

When a Mari Holeya girl reaches puberty, she is expected to remain within a hut for twelve days, at the end of which time the castemen are invited to a feast. The girl is seated on a pattern drawn on the floor. At the four corners thereof, vessels filled with water are placed. The girl’s mother holds over her head a plantain leaf, and four women belonging to different balis (septs) pour water thereon from the vessels. These women and the girl then sit down to a meal, and eat off the same leaf.

Among the Mari Holeyas, the dead are usually buried, and the final death ceremonies are performed on the twelfth day. A pit is dug near the grave, into which an image of the deceased, made of rice straw, is put. The image is set on fire by his son or nephew. The ashes are heaped up, and a rude hut is erected round them by fixing three sticks in the ground, and covering them with a cloth. Food is offered on a leaf, and the dead person is asked to eat it.

The Kusa Holeyas speak Canarese. They object to carrying articles with four legs, unless the legs are crossed. They do not eat beef, and will not touch leather. They consider themselves to be superior to the other sections of Holeyas, and use as an argument that their caste name is Uppara, and not Holeya. Why they are called Uppara is not clear, but some say that they are the same as the Upparas (salt workers) of Mysore, who, in South Canara, have descended in the social scale. The hereditary occupation of the Upparas is making salt from salt earth (ku, earth). The headman of the Kusa Holeyas is called Buddivant. As they are disciples of a Lingayat priest at the mutt at Kudli in Mysore, they are Saivites. Every family has to pay the priest a fee of eight annas on the occasion of his periodical visitations. The bhuthas specially worshipped by the Kusa Holeyas are Masti and Halemanedeyya, but Venkataramana of Tirupati is by some regarded as their family deity. Marriage is both infant and adult, and widows are permitted to remarry, if they have no children.

At Tumkur, in the Mysore Province, I came across a settlement of people called Tigala Holeya, who do not intermarry with other Holeyas, and have no exogamous septs or house-names. Their cranial measurements approach more nearly to those of the dolichocephalic Tamil Paraiyans than those of the sub-brachycephalic Holeyas; and it is possible that they are Tamil Paraiyans, who migrated, at some distant date, to Mysore.

Holodia Gudiya.—A name for the agricultural section of the Oriya Gudiyas.

Holuva (holo, plough).—A synonym of Pentiya, and the name of a section of Oriya Brahmans, who plough the land.

Hon.—Hon, Honnu, and Honne, meaning gold, have been recorded as gotras or exogamous septs of Kurni, Odde, and Kuruba.

Honne (Calophyllum inophyllum or Pterocarpus Marsupium).—An exogamous sept of Halepaik and Moger. The Halepaiks sometimes call the sept Sura Honne.

Honnungara (gold ring).—An exogamous sept of Kuruba.

Huli (tiger).—An exogamous sub-sept of Kappiliyan.

Hullu (grass).—A gotra of Kurni.

Hunise (tamarind).—An exogamous sub-sept of Kappiliyan.

Hutta (ant-hill).—An exogamous sept of Gangadikara Holeya.

Huvvina (flowers).—An exogamous sept of Odde and Vakkaliga.