Kattunayakan (Kattunaika, Kattunaicken)

“We are nothing without the forest, and the forest is nothing without us”: Kattunayakans in the Nilgiris, one of the last few remaining honey gathering communities of the world – Tamil Nadu

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Living in the Nilgiris, the Kattunayakans are one of the last few remaining honey gathering communities of the world. Over many generations they have mastered the skills required to tap honey and they take great pride in their knowledge and expertise. For the tribal community, honey gathering is of social, cultural, economic and spiritual relevance. … Read more

“Rethinking tribals”: Articles on Adivasi culture in Folio Special issue

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Ever since the Portuguese travel writers and missionaries decided to describe the vast variety of ethnic and occupational groups and sects of the Indian subcontinent in terms of “caste” and “tribe”, the terms have stuck to society as long-worn masks that start becoming one’s real personality. The result is that today no Indian describes society … Read more

Scheduled Tribes – Kerala

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What we are telling to the outer world is that no conservation would be possible without cooperation of the local community, especially the aborigines [Adivasis]. Integrating their traditional wisdom with modern-day scientific approach would definitely yield results. Source: KH Amitha Bachan (researcher and consultant to Kerala Forest Department and the World Wildlife Fund-India Ecological Monitoring … Read more

Knowing their rights and making it known: The four indigenous communities in the Gudalur valley of the Nilgiris – Tamil Nadu

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The Gudalur valley in the Nilgiris is home to four distinct indigenous communities – Paniyas, Kattunayakans, Mullukurumbas and Bettakurumbas. Learn more: https://cultureandconservation.wordpress.com/test/ >> On 15th December, 2014, members from 31 Tribal Gram Sabhas of the Gudalur and Pandalur Taluks organized a protest to demand their rights in the forest. Learn more: https://cultureandconservation.wordpress.com/2014/12/ >> My name … Read more

eJournal | Human Elephant (no) Conflict: Tribal communities in the Nilgiri mountains – Tamil Nadu

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In Gudalur, a plantation landscape in South India, about 150 elephants share space with a quarter of a million people. Using a quantified survey coupled with ethnographic fieldwork, we aim to better understand human diversity and tolerance of elephants that allows for coexistence. We find a marked difference between communities, with ethnicity being a better predictor of tolerance than … Read more