Irula people

Irula
A group of Irula men photographed (1871-72).
Total population
203,382[1] (2011 census)
Regions with significant populations
 India
Tamil Nadu 189,621
Kerala 23,721
Languages
Irula language
Related ethnic groups
Soliga, Tamil, Yerukala

Irula are an Adivasi group inhabiting the area of the Nilgiri mountains, in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, India.[2] A scheduled tribe, their population in this region is estimated at 25,000 people.[3][4] People of Irula ethnicity are called Irular, and speak Irula, which belongs to the Dravidian family.[5]

Etymology

Irular means "dark people" in Tamil and Malayalam, from the root word irul, meaning "darkness", in reference to their dark skin complexion.[6]

The tribe numbers 189,621 in significant region of Tamil Nadu and 23,721 in Kerala.

Anthropology

An Irula girl.

Early 20th century anthropological literature classified the Irular under the Negrito ethnic group. They belong to the Australoid race but are influenced from Caucasoids.[4][7]

Culture

Unlike the Negrito tribes in the Andaman Islands who have retained their language, Irular speak the Irula language, a Dravidian language that is closely related to Tamil, Yerukala, Sholaga and other Tamil languages.[8]

Distribution

Irular live in two south Indian states – Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In Tamil Nadu they live in the Nilgiris, Coimbatore and Erode districts. In Kerala they live in the Palakkad district and Attapady and Walayar panchayats.

They live in four taluks in Coimbatore district, namely Coimbatore South, Coimbatore North, Avinashi and Madathukulam. The Coimbatore district houses 4254 Irulas in 40 settlements comprising 139 villages. Nearly 100 Vettakada Irula settlements are found in the forest areas or in the deep mountainous jungles. There are 4 tribal settlements in the Siruvani Hills comprising 14 villages.[9]

The Census of Kerala identified 756 Irulan individuals from 189 families, who lived in 9 settlements covering .23 km² in the state.[10]

Economy

Irula man and woman tilling the soil.

Traditionally, the main occupation of the Irulas has been snake and rat catching. They also work as labourers (coolies) in the fields of the landlords during the sowing and harvesting seasons or in the rice mills. Fishing is also a major occupation.

Rats destroy a quarter of the grain grown on Tamil Nadu-area farms annually. To combat this pest, Irula men use a traditional earthen pot fumigation method. Smoke is blown through their mouths, which leads to severe respiratory and heart problems.[3]

In January 2017, Masi Sadaiyan and Vadivel Gopal from the Irula tribe of Tamil Nadu were brought in, along with two translators, to work with detection dogs to track down and capture invasive Burmese pythons in Key Largo, Florida.[11] The Irula men and their translators were paid $70,000 by the State of Florida, and captured 14 pythons in less than two weeks.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "A-11 Individual Scheduled Tribe Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix". censusindia.gov.in. Government of India. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  2. ↑ Perialwar, R. (1979), Phonology of Irula with Vocabulary, Annamalai University
  3. 1 2 World Bank grant to improve standard of living for rat-catchers
  4. 1 2 Irula Project Proposal and site report
  5. ↑ President gives nod to add Puducherry's Irular community in the Scheduled Tribes list
  6. ↑ "Irular in India". Joshua Project. Frontier Ventures. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
  7. ↑ Giving Irulas their due
  8. ↑ Keystone Foundation (2006) "People of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve" retrieved 3/26/2007(NBR)"People of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve" Archived 29 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ Dr. Pauline Das, The Irula Language and Literature
  10. ↑ "Tribal Settlements in the Forests of Kerala". Kerala Department of Forests and Wildlife. 2009-09-18. Retrieved 2016-06-19.
  11. ↑ Snake hunters from India are the latest weapons in Florida’s war on pythons
  12. ↑ One Florida agency put out a want ad for python killers
  • Wikisource "Irulas". Encyclopædia Britannica. 14 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 853.
  • "fwc news: Irula tribesmen and detector dogs help UF/IFAS and FWC remove pythons in Florida". Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. 23 January 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  • "One Florida agency put out a want ad for python killers". msn.com. 15 March 2017. Archived from the original on 15 March 2017.
  • "Building a better Rat Trap: Technological Innovation, Human Capital and the Irular" - Economic Research Paper about the Irula
  • "Irular: The Seekers of light" - Article by G. S. Unnikrishnan Nair in Kerala Calling March 2014
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