The important position occupied by the bride’s eldest brother and her maternal uncle are noticeable.
PARTICULARS OF MARRIAGE PRICE PAID BY A MARA FOR HIS BRIDE.[1]
| Name of Price. | Amount of Price.[2] | No. | To whom price is paid and other particulars in regardto the Marriage Customs of the Mara Tribes. | |||
| Common People. | Ruling Clan. | |||||
| O-Kia | Rs. 20/- Gong (7 spans). Gun. | Rs. 150/- One slave. Two Mithan. | 1 | When the whole family live in thesame house, none of the sons having their own houses, then thePrices Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and Nos. 9, 10, 11, have all to be paidto the father of the bride. | ||
| Sei-pi-hra | Rs. 20/- Gong (7 spans). Gun. | Rs. 50/- One Mithan (female). | 2 | If the family is divided and theeldest son has a house of his own, then the father has price No. 11 andthe eldest son must have price No 1, while the prices Nos. 2, 3, 4, 5,6, and Nos. 9, 10, are at the eldest son’s disposal and he may ormay not share with the youngest son as he pleases. | ||
| Chaw chyu | Rs. 20/- Gong (7 spans). Gun. | Rs. 50/- One Mithan. Gun (syulô). | 3 | |||
| Sei-chei-hra | Rs 20/- Gong (7 spans). Gun. | Rs 50/- One Mithan. Gun (syulô). | 4 | |||
| Nô-hla | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 10/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | 5 | |||
| Saw-hla | Rs. 1/- Full grown hen | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | 6 | |||
| Kei-ma | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 5/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | 7 | No. 7 has to be paid to the friend ofthe father of the bride if the sons and father live in the same house.But if the family is divided, the eldest son having his own house, thenthis must be paid to his friend instead of the father’s. | ||
| Lao-khyu | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 5/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | 8 | No. 8 has to be paid to thebride’s mother’s brother (bride’s uncle). | ||
| Rai-pi-hra | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 10/- Beer pot (Rai-pi). | 9 | |||
| Aw-rua-baw-na | Rs. 5/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | Rs. 50/- One Mithan. Gun. | 10 | |||
| Si-sa-zi or chhi-sa-zi. |  | a U-thei-pa | Rs. 10/- A “Sisa” bead. | Rs. 20/- A “Sisa” bead. | 11 | Note.—No. 11, divided into three sums, has to be given onengagement before marriage, and is kept by the father of thebride. |
| a Lia-pa | Rs. 5/- Brass pot (5 spans). | Rs. 10/- A “Sisa” bead. | ||||
| a Sei-hnai-pa | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 5/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | ||||
| PU-MA.[3] | ||||||
| A-ma-pi | Rs. 20/- Gong (7 spans). Gun. | Rs. 150/- One slave. Two Mithan. | 12 | Pu-ma has to be paid by the bridegroomto the bride’s “Pu-pa,” that is, the bride’smother’s brother (uncle). He therefore receives the prices Nos.12, 13, 14, 15 and 18. | ||
| Aw-rua-baw-na | Rs. 5/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | Rs. 50/- One Mithan. Gun. | 13 | |||
| Nô-hla | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 10/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | 14 | |||
| Saw-hla | Rs. 1/- Full grown hen. | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | 15 | |||
| Kei-ma | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 5/- Beer pot (Ra-cha). | 16 | No. 16 has to be paid to the friend ofthe “Pu-pa” (bride’s uncle). | ||
| Lao-khyu | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 5/- Beer pot. (Ra-cha). | 17 | No. 17 has to be paid to thebride’s grandmother’s brother on her mother’s side(bride’s great uncle), or it is sometimes paid the“Pu-pa’s” (bride’s uncles) wife’s father(father of aunt by marriage on the mother’s side). | ||
| Pha-vaw. | | a U-thei-pa | Rs. 7/- A “Sisa” bead. | Rs. 20/- A “Sisa” bead. | 18 | |
| a Lia-pa | Rs 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | Rs. 10/- A “Sisa” bead. | ||||
| a Sei-hnai-pa | Rs. 1/- A large fowl. | Rs. 2/- Brass pot (4 spans). | ||||
| DEATH DUE.[4] | ||||||
| Ru | Rs. 10/- or more. This price is often nearly as heavy as the“O-kia.” | Rs. 80/- or more. This price is often nearly as heavy as the“O-kia.” | 19 | At the death of a wife this price has to bepaid as a death due by the husband to the dead wife’s father oreldest brother as the case may be. At the death of a husband the eldest son of thedead man has to pay the price to his father’s mother’sbrother (the dead man’s uncle). If there is no son, the dead man’s brother willpay, and then the dead man’s daughters, when they marry, theirmarriage prices will go to this brother of the dead man (hisnieces’ marriage prices). If there are no daughters then he has his deadbrother’s possessions as a recompense, and he will also care forthe widow unless she prefers to go to her own family once again. | ||
One out of each of the above prices has to be paid by the bridegroom before he is out of debt for his bride, and it will be found that:—
- (1) An ordinary person has to give for his bride about Rs. 153/-, or £10 4s.
- (2) One of the ruling clan has to give for his bride about Rs. 671/-, or £44 14s. 8d.
| Then at death the death-due must be met, | for No. 1, from Rs. 10/- to 20/-, or 13/4 to £1 6s. 8d. |
| for No. 2, from Rs. 80/- to 150/-, or £5 6s. 8d. to £10. |
Needless to say, many of these prices are kept on credit, and often have to be met after death by the son or the son’s son, making it a terribly complicated matter on the whole.
Reginald A. Lorrain,
Pioneer Missionary to the Lakhers’ or Maras’.
May 4th, 1911.