Udayar (caste)

This article is about the Indian caste. For other uses, see Udayar.

The Udayar are a caste found in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. They are sometimes referred to as the Parkavakulam.

According to Selva Raj, the Udayar are "socially humbler" than the Vellalar community[1] and, together with the Pallar and Kallar, are a "dominant caste" in the region variously known as Ramnad and the Maravar country.[2]

At least some are Roman Catholic Christians.[3][4] In Ramnad and the nearby areas of Madurai, Pudukottai, Tanjore and Trichy they and their two fellow Maravar caste groups are prominent in their cult worship of the shrine at Oriyur that commemorates John de Britto, the 17th-century Portuguese Jesuit missionary and martyr. Raj says that, "A notable feature of the Britto cult is that it is centered around caste identities rather than religious affiliation", and thus Hindus also observe it.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Raj, Selva J. (2010). "Serious Levity at the Shrine of St. Anne in South India". In Raj, Selva J.; Dempsey, Corinne G. Sacred Play: Ritual Levity and Humor in South Asian Religions. SUNY Press. p. 23. ISBN 9781438429793. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
  2. ↑ Raj, Selva J. (2002). "Transgressing Boundaries, Transcending Turner: The Pilgrimage Tradition at the Shrine of St. John de Britto". In Raj, Selva J.; Dempsey, Corinne G. Popular Christianity in India: Riting Between the Lines. SUNY Press. p. 86. ISBN 9780791455197. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
  3. ↑ Palanithurai, Ganapathy; Ragupathy, Varadarajan (2008). Communities Panchayats and Governance at Grassroots. Concept Publishing Company. p. 138. ISBN 9788180695636. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
  4. 1 2 Raj, Selva J. (2002). "Transgressing Boundaries, Transcending Turner: The Pilgrimage Tradition at the Shrine of St. John de Britto". In Raj, Selva J.; Dempsey, Corinne G. Popular Christianity in India: Riting Between the Lines. SUNY Press. p. 87. ISBN 9780791455197. Retrieved 2012-05-01.

Further reading

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