Tamil Brahmins are an ethnoreligious community of Tamil-speaking Hindu Brahmins, predominantly living in Tamil Nadu, though they number significantly in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, in addition to other regions of India. They can be broadly divided into two denominations: Iyengars, who are adherents of Sri Vaishnavism, and Iyers, who follow the Srauta and Smarta traditions.
Regions with significant populations | |
---|---|
Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh | |
Languages | |
Tamil, Sanskrit | |
Religion | |
Hinduism | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Tamil people |
They also constitute nowadays an important portion of the South Indian Tamil diaspora worldwide. A tiny community of Tamil Brahmins from the Iyer caste is also historically settled in Sri Lanka.[1]
Tamil Brahmins are divided into two major denominations: Iyers, who follow the Smarta tradition, and Iyengars, who adhere to the tradition of Sri Vaishnavism.
Iyers are Shrauta-Smarta Brahmins, whose members follow the Advaita philosophy propounded by Adi Shankara. They are concentrated mainly along the Cauvery Delta districts of Nagapattinam, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur and Tiruchirapalli where they form almost 10% of the total population. However the largest population reside in Nagercoil, making up to 13% of the city's population.[2][3][4] They are also found in significant numbers in Chennai,[5] Coimbatore, Madurai, Thiruchirappalli, Thanjavur, Palakkad, Alappuzha, Kozhikode, Ernakulam, Kannur, and Thiruvananthapuram.[6]
The Iyengars subscribe to the Visishtadvaita philosophy propounded by Ramanuja. They are divided into two denominations: Vadakalai (Northern art) and Tenkalai (Southern art), each with minor differences in religious rites and traditions. They adhere to the tradition of Sri Vaishnavism.[7]
Brahmins who serve as priests in temples following the Vaishnavite and Shaivite tradition and perform pujas are offered a distinct category classified outside the community by the Government of Tamil Nadu as '703.Adi Saivar' and '754.Saiva Sivachariyar' as distinct from the '713.Brahmanar' (Brahmin) in the list of forward castes. These priests are called "Bhattar" in the Vaishnavite tradition and in the Pandya regions of Tamil Nadu, and "Ayyan" or "Gurukkal" in the shaivite tradition and in northern ones. In Kongu Nadu, they are called Adi Saivas (among other spellings Asishaivas, Adi-Shaivas, etc.; from Sanskrit Ādiśaiva, आदिशैव), or the Sivacharyas. They follow the Agamas and the Vedas.[8]
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Ms. Harris's mother also figures in another tale told less often: of India's small and successful Tamil Brahmin diaspora
The Ramaswamy family belongs to India's elite Brahmin caste, a fact he mentions several times in his book. 'Kings were below us,' he wrote
We are a Shree Vaishnavite Brahmin family
I came from a Brahmin community, viewed by the government as privileged, and there was reverse discrimination