2.3 Mannan
2.3.1 Geography
The Mannan are found in Udumpanchola, Devikulam and Pirmed tahsils of Idukki district. Their settlements are scattered throughout this area. A few settlements can also be found in Madurai district of
Tamil Nadu. There are many hills and streams in the area and most of the settlements are within forest areas. The Mannan are dependent upon the forests for their livelihood throughout the year. At one time,
the settlements were completely remote and had no contact with outsiders, but that has now changed. Many of their villages are located at around 1,000 meters above sea level. The southwest monsoon
commences in their area by the end of May, with maximum precipitation falling in June and July. The northeast monsoon arrives in September. Average yearly rainfall is about 250 centimetres Menon
1996:254. Table 3 shows the number of settlements in each tahsil.
Table 3. Distributions of Mannan settlements in Idukki district
Tahsil Block
Panchayat Number of settlements
Devikulam Adimali
Adimali 12
Vellathuvel 1
Devikulam Munnar
2
Udumpanchola Nedumkandam
Senapathi 2
Udumpanchola 6
Nedumkandam 1
Pampadumpara 1
Kattappana Kanchiyar
4 Kattappana
2 Irattayar
1 Idukki
Vazhathoppu 4
Vathikudi 3
Kanjikuzhi 3
Pirmed Azhutha
Kumily 1
Total 43
2.3.2 History
According to Thurston 1909:452–455, Mannan is a hill tribe of Travancore. The Mannan are reported to be the descendents of the kings of Madurai, whom they accompanied to Neriya Mangalam. According
to the myths and legends prevalent among the Mannan, they have migrated to their present region from Madurai in Tamil Nadu. The hills in the Travancore region abounded with vegetation, wild animals and
birds when compared to their original Madurai home. It was the quest for food that led them to migrate to the Cardamom Hills. In Menon 1996:254, Iyer reports that based on one story popular among them,
“They were formerly the dependants of the kings of Madurai. They entered the Cardamom Hills through Cumbum Mettu and settled there.”
2.3.3 People
The Mannan have distinguished features and cultural background. Various explanations have been proposed for the origin of the name ‘Mannan’. Singh 1994:753 states that ‘Mannan’ means ‘king’ in the
Tamil language. According to Luiz sited by Singh 1994:753, ‘Mannan’ originates from ‘mannu’ which
means ‘earth’ in Malayalam and ‘manushian’ which means ‘man’ in Malayalam: ‘sons of the soil’. According to people’s perception, the term ‘mannan’ means ‘the leaders of the hill’. In physical
appearance, most Mannan people are short statured, have short noses, thick lips and black eyes Menon 1996:254.
Mannan [m ʌnnan] is classified as a scheduled tribe of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. They should not be
confused with Mannan [m ʌɳɳan], a scheduled caste that lives in Trivandrum and other adjoining
districts of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. 2.3.3.1
Population According to the Census Bureau of India, the population of Mannan in Kerala has increased from 1,172
people in 1901 to 7,085 in 1991 see table 4. The 1991 census also reports that in 1991 there were 204 Mannan living in Tamil Nadu.
Table 4. Population of Mannan throughout the decades
State Year
Population Total
Males Females
Kerala 1901 1,172
Not Available 1961 3,555
1971 4,221 1981 5,812
2,907 2,905
1991 7,085 3,565
3,520 Tamil Nadu
1981 40
18 22
1991 204
100 104
2.3.3.2 Education
Some of the Mannan boys study up to tenth class, whereas many girls only study up to fourth class. Many of the children discontinue their studies due to the lack of secondary schools in their locality and
due to economic problems Singh 1994:755. The children of interior settlements can make use of tribal hostels in their area, but many do not do so. There have recently been some graduates among them. The
literacy rate of Mannan is 35 according to the 1991 census 41 among men and 30 among women.
2.3.3.3 Settlements
There are 46 settlements of Mannan in Idukki district. The Mannan live in small groups of families called kudi village. Level space at high elevation is preferred as the sites for their hamlets. The size of the
village depends on the availability of the food supply Shashi 1994:290. In Menon 1996:255 Iyer reported that they were once nomadic agriculturalists. Some settlements consist of 50 to 60 huts in a
cluster; others may have as few as 10 to 15.
2.3.3.4 Social life
The traditional occupations of the Mannan are shifting cultivation, trapping, hunting and gathering. At present, their occupations are agricultural labour, settled cultivation, animal husbandry and weaving
mats. They also fish and collect different forest products such as saffron, dammer, honey, wax and wild cardamoms. Now many young people work for daily wages for outsiders. Some educated among them
work as forest guards and in the tribal development offices and other institutions.
They eat buffalo meat, but not beef. Their staple foods are ragi, rice, roots and tubers. Pulses like gram, tur, peas and beans are also part of their diet. They consume alcohol, but avoid cow’s milk.
Mannan women participate in social, ritual and religious activities along with the men. They also contribute to the family income. Although inter-caste marriage now occurs, the couples are restricted to
living inside their settlement. The Mannan have modified their animistic practices towards those of orthodox Hinduism. The
Mannan mother goddess ‘Kanchiyar Mutthi’ is their most important deity. She is now believed to be the younger sister of the popular Hindu goddess Madura Meenakshi. Pongal, Makaravilakku and Kanjiveppu
are the major festivals for the Mannan. The Raja Mannan is their ruler. He is assisted by a traditional council of ministers. Each settlement
has a kani, or kanikaran headman. The Integrated Tribal Development Programme ITDP and ‘Akhila Kerala Mannan Samudaya Sangam’ an association of Mannan headed by Raja Mannan are involved in
various development programmes in the community.
2.3.4 Language
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