Samantan Nair or more commonly Samantan (meaning "equal to" or "deemed to be"), was a generic term applied to dignify a group of sub-clans among the ruling elites and feudal lords of the
Nair community in
Kerala. The Samantan Nairs are members of the
Kiryathil,
Illathu and
Swaroopathil Nair communities whose ancestors performed various
Åšrauta rituals ''(
Hiranyagarbha)'' to achieve a higher status that enabled them to rule over the
Brahmins.
Robin Jeffrey, an
anthropologist
An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...
, described the Samantans as, "A
matrilineal caste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
ranking between Nayars and
Kshatriyas."
Dissent
Some Samantans have objected to their grouping with the Nairs, claiming that Samantans are a different caste from the Nairs. One of them, Nilambur Thachara Kovil Mana Vikrama (Elaya Thirumalpad), filed a complaint against the Collector of Malabar (
William Logan) on his refusal to enter the Samantan as a caste separate from the Nairs. Even after submitting evidence trying to prove that Samantans are a separate caste, the judge refused to act against Logan, stating that:
[Castes and Tribes of Southern India By Edgar Thurston p.283-284]
The judge ultimately ruled that all Samantan Nairs are merely extensions of the Kiryathil subcaste of the Nair community.
References
{{reflist
Social groups of India
Indian castes
Kerala society
Nair