Kolam are a designated Scheduled Tribe in the Indian states of

Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...

Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh (; ) is a landlocked States and union territories of India, state in Central India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the List ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

and

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

. They belong to the sub-category

Particularly vulnerable tribal group A particularly vulnerable tribal group or PVTG (previously known as a primitive tribal group), in the context of India, is a sub-classification of Scheduled Tribe or section of a Scheduled Tribe, that is considered more vulnerable than a regular ...

, one of the three belonging to this sub-category, the others being Katkari and

Madia Gond Madia Gonds or Madia or Maria are one of the endogamous Gond tribes living in Chandrapur District and Gadchiroli District of Maharashtra State, and Bastar division of Chhattisgarh State India. They have been granted the status of a Particularl ...

. They are common in the

Yavatmal Yavatmal ( is a city and municipal council in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Yavatmal District. Yavatmal is around 90 km away from divisional headquarters Amravati while it is away from the st ...

Chandrapur Chandrapur (earlier known as ''Chanda'', the official name until 1964) is a city and a municipal corporation in Chandrapur district, Maharashtra state, India. It is the district headquarters of Chandrapur district. Chandrapur is a fort city ...

and

Nanded Nanded is a city in Maharashtra state, India. It is the List of cities in Maharashtra, tenth largest city in the state and the List of cities in India by population, seventy-ninth most populated city in India. It is the second largest city in ...

districts of Maharashtra and live in hamlets called . They speak the

Kolami language Kolami (Northwestern Kolami/Southeastern Kolami) is a tribal Central Dravidian language spoken in Maharashtra and Telangana states of India. It falls under the Kolami–Naiki group of languages. It is the most widely spoken Central Dravidian l ...

, which is a

Dravidian language The Dravidian languages are a family of languages spoken by 250 million people, primarily in South India, north-east Sri Lanka, and south-west Pakistan, with pockets elsewhere in South Asia. The most commonly spoken Dravidian languages are (i ...

. They are an agricultural community. They have a high rate of returning positive to the ''Naked eye single tube red cell osmotic fragility test'' (NESTROFT) test, making them prone to high incidence of

Thalassaemia Thalassemias are a group of inherited blood disorders that manifest as the production of reduced hemoglobin. Symptoms depend on the type of thalassemia and can vary from none to severe, including death. Often there is mild to severe anemia (lo ...

Society

The Kolam are an

endogamous Endogamy is the cultural practice of marrying within a specific social group, religious denomination, caste, or ethnic group, rejecting any from outside of the group or belief structure as unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relatio ...

group and are divided into twelve exogamous clans, called : , , , , , , , , , , , . One clan name () is shared with the Gonds, while the others come from Marathi. Kolam society was formerly made up of joint families, collectively responsible for farming. Today, however, most Kolams have nuclear families, called . , respect, is to be given to the (husband's elder brother), (husband's father), (husband's mother), (grandfather of husband), and (grandmother of husband). Similar respect is given to the corresponding relations on the wife's side of the family. Respect is also given from (son-in-law) and (wife's mother). Other types of relations exist between brothers and sisters-in-law and grandchildren and grandparents, each with their own name. In rural Maharashtra, Kolam ''pods'' still have their own panchayats who arbitrate disputes. Office-bearers are the Naik (the leader), Mahajan (Naik's second-in-command), Karbhari (treasurer), Ghatya (peon) and Tarma (cook/messenger). These posts are reserved for men only. The Naik and other officers are responsible for the smooth conducting of business but the decision is actually reached by the elders. The Naik is selected by the men of the village by consensus choice. Although nowadays, the influence of government courts is increasing nearly all the time disputes between Kolam tribespeople are settled in panchayat and usually it is only when the other party is a non-Kolam that the case is taken to the government court.

Marriage

Kolams practice monogamous marriage, . Cross-cousin marriage is permitted. Marriageable age is 18–20 years. Marriage of a widow to their brother is forbidden, but marriage of a man to his wife's sister is permitted after the death of his first wife. Married women wear Mangalsutra, (earring), (finger-ring), (nose stud), (bichia) and (bangles). They have no dowry. Most marriages are arranged, but marriage by capture is sometimes allowed. However, most instances of marriage by capture are prearranged by the two parties.

References

{{reflist Scheduled Tribes of Andhra Pradesh Scheduled Tribes of Madhya Pradesh Scheduled Tribes of Maharashtra Scheduled Tribes of Chhattisgarh