Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 3 of 7

by Edgar Thurston

Kakkē (Indian laburnum: Cassia fistula).—A gōtra of Kurni.

Kala.—Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, 1901, as a sub-division of Nāyar.

Kalaikūttādi (pole-dancer).—A Tamil synonym of Dommara.

Kalāl.—A Hindustani synonym of Gamalla.

Kalamkotti (potter).—An occupational title of Nāyar.

Kalāsi.—A name given to Vāda fishermen by Oriya people.

Kālava (channel or ditch).—An exogamous sept of Padma Sālē.

Kalavant.—The Kalavants are dancers and singers, who, like other dancing-girls, are courtesans. The name occurs not only in South Canara, but also in the Telugu country.

Kalinga.—A sub-division of Kōmatis, who “were formerly the inhabitants of the ancient Kalinga country. They are considered inferior to the other sub-divisions, on account of their eating flesh. Their titles are Subaddhi, Pātro, and Chaudari.”[29] In the Ganjam Manual, they are described as “traders and shopkeepers, principally prevalent in the Chicacole division. The name Kling or Kaling is applied, in the Malay countries, including the Straits Settlements, to the people of peninsular India, who trade thither, or are settled in those regions.” It is recorded by Dr. N. Annandale that the phrase Orang Kling Islam (i.e., a Muhammadan from the Madras coast) occurs in Patani Malay.

Kālingi and Kālinji.—There has been some confusion, in recorded accounts, between these two classes. In the Ganjam Manual, the Kālinjis are described as agriculturists in that district, and, in the Vizagapatam Manual, the Kālingas or Kālingulu are stated to be cultivators in the Vizagapatam district, and a caste of Paiks or fighting men in Jeypore. In the Census Report, 1891, the Kālingis are said to be “most numerous in Ganjam, but there is a considerable number of them in Vizagapatam also. The word means a native of Kālinga, the name of the sea-board of the Telugu country; the word Telugu itself is supposed by Dr. Caldwell to be a corruption of Tri-Kalinga. The three large sub-divisions of the caste are Buragam, Kintala, and Odiya. In the Kintala sub-division, a widow may remarry if she has no male issue, but the remarriage of widows is not allowed in other sub-divisions. The use of flesh and alcoholic liquor is permitted. Naidu and Chaudari are their titles.” Further, in the Census Report, 1901, the Kālingis are described as follows: “A caste of temple priests and cultivators, found mainly in Ganjam and Vizagapatam, whither they are supposed to have been brought by the Kalinga kings to do service in the Hindu temples, before the advent of the Brāhmans. They speak either Oriya or Telugu. They have two sub-divisions, the Kintali Kālingas, who live south of the Langulya river, and the Buragam Kālingis, who reside to the north of it, and the customs of the two differ a great deal. There is also a third section, called Pandiri or Bevarani, which is composed of outcastes from the other two. Except the Kālingis of Mokhalingam in Vizagapatam,[30] they have headmen called Nayakabalis or Sāntos. They also have priests called Kularazus, each of whom sees to the spiritual needs of a definite group of villages. They are divided into several exogamous gōtras, each comprising a number of families or vamsas, some of which, such as Arudra, a lady-bird, and Revi-chettu, the Ficus religiosa tree, are of totemistic origin. Each section is said to worship its totem. Marriage before puberty is the rule, and the caste is remarkable for the proportion of its girls under twelve years of age who are married or widowed. Widow marriage is not recognised by the Buragam Kālingis, but the Kintalis freely allow it. As usual, the ceremonies at the wedding of a widow differ from those at the marriage of a maid. Some turmeric paste is placed on a new cloth, which is then put over a pot of water, and the ceremony takes place near this. The binding portion of it is the tying of a saffron-coloured string to the woman’s wrist. The Kālingis pay special reverence to Sri Radha Krishna and Chaitanya. Some of the caste officiate in temples, wear the sacred thread, and call themselves Brāhmans, but they are not received on terms of equality by other Brāhmans. All Kālingis bury their dead, but srāddhas (memorial services) are performed only by the Kintali sub-division. The Buragam Kālingis do not shave their heads in front. Kālingi women wear heavy bangles of brass, silver bell-metal and glass, extending from the wrist to the elbow. The titles of the castes are Naidu, Nayarlu, Chowdari, Bissōyi, Podhāno, Jenna, Swayi, and Naiko.”