Upputhara, Kanchiyar, Vannappuram, Velliyamattom and Ayyappankovil panchayats. According to the 1999 ITDP report, there are 1,295 Urali families in Idukki district.
Non-tribal people as well as tribal people, like Muthuvan and Mannan, have repeatedly exploited the Urali people for years. Even today, outsiders are cheating them by giving less money for their
agricultural goods and for the forest collections Shashi 1994:161; 176. Each settlement consists of a single clan with a kani headman.
Their religion is a mixture of animism, totemism, magic, sorcery and ancestor worship. They believe in an immortal soul and in a supreme god, Padachathampuran, who is the creator of the universe and is
formless and unknowable. They recently adopted Hindu gods, including Ayyappan and Kali. The 1981 census reported that 96 are Hindus and about 4 are Christians. They bury their dead. Betel leaves
and rice are put in the mouth of the dead in order to appease the soul.
According to the 1991 census, the literacy rate among the Urali in Kerala was 56 49 among males and 42 among females. Singh reports that Malayalam is their mother tongue and that they use
the Malayalam script 1994:1,162. Selvaraj 1999:7 reports that Urali Bhasha of Kerala appears to be dying out because of language shift towards Malayalam.
2.6 Ulladan
The Ulladan are a scheduled tribe found mainly in Kottayam, Idukki and Pathanamthitta districts of Kerala. South of the river Pamba, they are also known as Katan, Kattalan and Kochuvelan. In Menon
1996:221, Luiz reported that the Ulladan that live in interior forests are known as Mala Ulladan, while those that live in the plains are known as Nadu Ulladan. The former are listed as a scheduled tribe,
whereas the latter are listed as a scheduled caste. The 1991 census reports that the population of Ulladan is 14,846 in Kerala. According to the 1999 ITDP report, 1,020 Ulladan families live in Idukki and
Kattappana blocks of Idukki district.
Their tribal assembly consists of elderly members of the tribe. Their headman is called muppan. Their religion was once purely animistic, but they have recently adopted the Hindu pantheon.
Thalaparamalaswami, the deity of the temple peak Thalaparamala, is the most worshipped supernatural being. They also adore the deities Kappiri, Theekutty and Chathan Shashi 1994:12.
According to Singh 1994:1160 the mother tongue of Ulladan is Malayalam and Malayalam script is used by them. In Menon 1996:221, Nandi states the Ulladan speak Malayalam with some phonetic
shifts, but they do not have a different dialect or distinguishable vocabularies. The people reported that they use only Malayalam. The literacy rate of Ulladan is 67 70 among males and 64 among
females, according to the 1991 census.
2.7 Mala Pulayan
Mala Pulayan is a scheduled tribe found mainly in the Devikulam taluk of Idukki district. They are included on the scheduled tribe list under the name Hill Pulaya. The population of the Mala Pulayan in
Kerala, according to the 1991 census, is 2851 1463 males and 1388 females and their number in Idukki is 2106 1079 males and 1027 females. The 1999 ITDP report claims that there are 860 Mala Pulayan
families in Idukki district.
There are three divisions among them, the Kurumba Pulayan, Karavazhi Pulayan and Pambu Pulayan. The Kurumba Pulaya claim superiority because they do not eat the flesh of cattle. The Pambu
Pulayan are considered to be the lowest, because they eat snakes. There is not much contact between these groups. Differences are observed in the social practices and religious beliefs among these
subgroups.
The headman of the Kurumba Pulayan’s tribal council is known as the muppan. They bury their dead in a sitting position. They worship Kali, Mariyamma, Kottaparamma, Chaplamma and Aragalinachi.
Their main festivals are Pongal, Thai Pongal and Divali Menon 1996:220. Both Karavazhi and Kurumba, the subgroups of Mala Pulayan, speak in Tamil and write in the
Tamil script. The Malayalam language and Malayalam script are used for inter-group communication Singh 1994:397–399. Informal interviews with people report that the different subgroups speak the
same variety of Tamil language. In Menon 1996:218, Luiz reports that the Mala Pulayan speak a dialect of Tamil that is unintelligible to Tamil speakers, containing a large number of Malayalam words and
phrases. They are involved in agriculture and also collect minor forest produce.
2.8 Paliyan
The name Paliyan has been spelled numerous ways, including Paliyar, Palliyar, Palliyan and Palleyan. Most of the Paliyan in Kerala live in Kumily, Vandanmedu and Chakkupallam panchayats of Pirmed
tahsil of Idukki district. They also live in the neighbouring districts of Madurai and Ramanathapuram in Tamil Nadu and some parts of Karnataka state. It is believed that their original home was in Gudalur,
Madurai district. According to the 1991 census their population in Tamil Nadu was 4,322, while in Kerala their population was 1,442. According to the 1999 ITDP report, there are 383 Paliyan families in
Idukki district.
The Paliyan are primarily engaged in agriculture. They also collect forest produce, such as honey and dammar. They primarily marry members of their own people group. But intermarriage between
Paliyan women and men from other groups is tolerated. Each settlement has a headman, known as the kanikaran or vitu kani.
Paliyan religious beliefs are in a state of continuous change, including both traditional beliefs of their own and incorporating elements of Hinduism. Some believe that all souls go to heaven. Others
believe in reincarnation. Still others believe in both reincarnation and the goal of reaching heaven. Different Paliyan people believe very different things without seeing a difference in their religion. Priests
pujaris have a very influential role in Paliyan religious activities. The Paliyan worship various deities. Mariyamma is the most popular deity. Ancestral spirits are also worshipped. In Kerala, 80 of the
Paliyan are Hindus and 20 are Christians. They bury their dead along with betel leaves, areca nuts, beedi and the personal belongings of the deceased Menon 1996:301.
According to Singh 1994:963–965, in Tamil Nadu Paliyan speak Tamil and use the Tamil script for both inter-group and intra-group communication. In Kerala these people are bilingual, and use the
regional state language Malayalam apart from their mother tongue, Tamil. Both Malayalam and Tamil scripts are used by them. Menon 1996:297, however, reports that the Paliyan in Kerala speak a
“corrupted” dialect of Tamil with many Malayalam words and usages. The language variety of Paliyan in Idukki is also called Paliya Bhasha by outsiders, especially Malayalis and Mannan people.
2.9 Mala Vedan
