Mannan Community

24.01.2025

Mannan Community

Why in the news?   

Raman Rajamannan, the king of the Mannan community and the only tribal king in Kerala, will participate in the Republic Day parade in Delhi.

About Mannan Community:

• The Mannan is a scheduled tribe (ST) of Kerala.
• It is the only adivasi tribal dynasty with a kingship currently existing in South India.
• The life of the Mannan Community is closely related to the Tamil
  • They speak a dialect similar to Tamil but without a script.
  • It is believed that they were originally from Tamil Nadu and later migrated to Idukki during the period of Poonjar Rajavamsham (kings).
• Nearly 97 percent of the Mannan community's population reside in Idukki District.
• Though they used to stay in remote forests, they were forced to migrate to plots allotted by the government at the outskirts of the Periyar Tiger Reserve, a few decades back, following a government ban on deforestation in the preserved area.
• They follow a matrilineal system of descent, and their ruler, the Raja Mannan, is elected by community headmen from among those eligible by heredity.
• Their primary occupation is agriculture, including coconut harvesting, cultivation of herbs, etc.
• They practice Hinduism.
• Their main celebrations include the Kalavoot, Meenoot and Mutthi Amman Festival.
• Mannan Koothu is a unique ritual art form performed by the Mannans. The art form is staged mainly during worship, harvest times and weddings.

                                                                  Source: The Hindu

What is unique about the Mannan community, recently seen in the news??

A.They are the only community in India that exclusively practices Buddhism.

B.They are the first tribal community to have a written constitution for self-governance.

C.They are an adivasi tribal dynasty with an existing kingship.

D.None of the above.

Answer C