Tribal history
Before you see a lot of ruins, however, here is a highly condensed history of the Badaga, Kota, Kurumba, and Irula tribes. The Todas have been discussed in detail in the chapter on Ooty. Except the Badagas, the other four are considered tribes native to the Nilgiris. The Badagas wre immigrants from Karnataka. The first census figures in 1871 showed that five tribes constituted 40 % of the Nilgiris population. By 1901 these figures were reduced to 17 %. The more you know about the tribes and their history, the more you will enjoy your visit
The tribal groups in the Nilgiris attract many research workers from all over the world for biological and anthropological studies. The Tamil University at Thanjavur has established a Tribal Research Centre at M. Pallada, about ten km. from Ooty on the way to Emerald Avananche and the Kundah dam. The centre does research in tribal culture and development, the expenses being shared equally between the central and state governments
The Nilgiris is home to the Badagas, who were and are the cultivators, the Kotas who were artists and musicians, the Todas who were graziers, the Irulas, a forest tribe well known for their snake catching abilities and the Kurumbas. In many villages the Irulas and Kurumbas live together in harmony and even inter- mary
The Badagas, meaning northerners, are no longer included in the category of ‘tribe’. Descendants of migrants from the Mysore region who left due to famine, political turmoil or local oppression, they came to the Nilgiris in the beginning of the 17th century. The largest group in the Nilgiris, their number has increased from 1.5 lakhs in 1988 to 2 lakhs today. Settled mostly in the eastern part of the Nilgiris, their villages are surrounded by fields of red soil with rows of tiled houses. Ten km. from Ooty as the crow flies in Tuneri, one of the oldest Badaga villages, which is still thriving today
The Badagas cultivate vegetables (especially potatoes) and tea. They speak Kannada with a slight mixture of Tamil. Among the three groups, the Lingayats worship the siva lingam and wear a miniature lingam around their necks. Traditionally, they dress in white unstitched clothes. Women of marriageable age were tattooed on the forehead and upper arm in dots and lines since the days of Tipu Sultan, so that their beauty would not attract Tipu’s men. The bridge and groom are never from the same village. Marriges with other castes are not allowed in their villages
There are 355 families of Kotas with about 1900 members. Lowest in the social scale, they were shunned as they used to eat the carrion of buffalo. According to legend, their God Kamatareya made the Todas, the Kurumbas and the Kotas from three drops of his perspiration. White he permitted the Todas, the highest in the social scale, to have the milk and butter, and the Kurumbas meat, all that was left for the Kotas was the carrion. The Kotas live scattered in seven villages in Kollimalai, Tulanad, Kundah, Kotagiri, Kil Kotagiri, Sholur Kokal and Gudalur. Most live in their own tiled houses. Though they keep cattle they never milk them. While Todas keep buffaloes, Kotas keep cows, which are sacred to them. The first son is called Komuttan after their God while the eldest girl is called Madi after the God’s wife
The Irulas, 5900 in number, probably derived their name from irul, meaning darkness in Tamil, as they live mostly in the dark forests. They live in small villages near Kotagiri , Coonoor, a few in Masiniguda, and in several villages on the way to Mettupalayam. One such Irula village is the Kaaka Koodu (kaaka- crow and koodu- nest), a pyramid shaped mountain, which can be seen from one of the hairpin bends on the way to Catherine Falls in Kotagiri. Their houses are made of plaited bamboos plastered with mud. The government helps them by giving land for cultivation of coffee, ragi, cholam etc. They speak a Tamil dialect. The men sometimes wear a kudumi (a top knot) with shaven heads. The women are tattooed on the forehead and wear brass bangles on their forearms and lots of string beads. Their dead are buried in a sitting posture, fully dresses
The Kurumba men have wiry and curly hair and the women wear just one unstitched garment tied under their arms and reaching to their knees. They live in wattle and mud houses and speak a mixture of Tamil and Malayam. One of their villages is Kulakombe (kula- tribe and kombe- hamlet.), which has a regulare bus service. The Jena Kurumbas of the western Nilgiris gather honey, soapnuts, tamarind, tree moss etc. from the reserved forests and sell it to the government society at Masiniguda. Collecting honey from sheer mountain slopes while hanging from knotted ropes, the two- member team consists of the brother and husband. One holds the rope below while the other gathers the honey above in the confidence that no deliberate ‘accident’ will happen as the sister’s welfare is at stake. The Alu Kurumbas live in the eastern part of the Nilgiris. Most of the 4900 Kurumbas are employed in the tea plantations and by the forest Department. The Kurumbas have an affinity for animals and can communicate with them. They are the ones who train the wild elephants at Theppakadu in the Mudumalai Sanctuary
Stories aboud of the Moola Kurumbas who wear no dress, are invisible and who cast spells on their enemies. The Badagas are so scared of them that whole villages have been known to desert their homes when it is whispered that the Moola Kurumbas are coming
The Paniyas and Kattunaickers are two other tribes settled in the Erumad village of Gudalur. This colony is called Paniya farm. Bonded labourers, they have been set free by the government and rehabilitated