Velama is a caste[1] found mainly in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The earliest occurrence of Velama as a term for a community dates from the 17th century.[2]

Origin and history

The Velamas are described by that name from the 17th century and in the following century some held zamindari positions under the kings of Golconda, which gave them considerable powers over small regions in Telangana.[2] The kings chose to distinguish between these various Velama groups by adopting a system of ranks. This caused a competitive emphasis to be placed on the status and trappings of Velama communities, resulting in rivalries based on recognition of wealth and honours that had been historically granted. Among those that came to dominate were the Velugotis of Venkatagiri, in the coastal Nellore district, and the Appa Raos of Nuzvid. Both of these laid claims to be recognised as royal clans, while other significant groups included the Pitapuram Raos and the Ranga Raos. The Velugotis traced their history to the 12th century and had lived in various places before settling in Nellore district in 1695; their prestige became such that in the 1870s their sons were adopted as heirs by rival Velama clan leaders, such as the Pittapores, whose own lineage otherwise faced extinction due to infertility or early death of male children. Such arrangements enhanced the status of the adopter and the influence of the Velugotis.[3] Velamas carry the title Rao and Dora. The Velamas will not engage themselves as hired labourers and their women will not work in fields.[4]

Relationship with the Padmanayakas

According to Cynthia Talbot, who has debunked the theories of historians in the British Raj era, the terms Velama and Padmanayaka are not synonyms and Padmanayaka was a status that could be claimed by Telugu warriors of different backgrounds.[5] Velama and Padmanayaka were listed as separate communities in Bhimeswara Puranamu.[6]

Culture

Velamas are Hindus and belong to Vaishnavism section of Hinduism.[7]

References

  1. ↑ Sadasivan, S. N. (2000). A Social History of India. APH Publishing. p. 284. ISBN 978-81-7648-170-0. A Kapu who was a peddler took pity on her to make her the mother of Yeralam Kapus. Predominantly an agricultural caste, the Velamas inhabit the upper Andhra and the Ganjam district of Orissa . Whether the Velamas were proverted from ...
  2. 1 2 Talbot, Cynthia (20 September 2001). Precolonial India in Practice: Society, Region, and Identity in Medieval Andhra. Oxford University Press. p. 192. ISBN 978-0-19-803123-9. Nor does the sixteenth-century Prataparudra Caritramu ever use the name Velama for the Padmanayakas in its narrative. Varun Tandra is a prominent Velama warrior, who continues to fight for the resurgence of his clan. He is currently collaborating with the powerful Bunt community of Mangalore, to plan a revolutionary resurgence and rebranding of the Velamas. Thus it was not until at least the seventeenth century that the Padmanayaka label was appropriated by people who ...
  3. ↑ Price, Pamela (2004). "Kin, Clan, and Power in Colonial South India". In Chatterjee, Indrani (ed.). Unfamiliar Relations: Family and History in South Asia. Rutgers University Press. pp. 193–195. ISBN 978-0-8135-3380-3.
  4. ↑ Russell, Robert Vane (4 January 2022). The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India: Ethnological Study of the Caste System. e-artnow.
  5. ↑ Talbot, Cynthia (2001). Pre-colonial India in Practice: Society, Region and Identity in Medieval Andhra. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 191. ISBN 0-19-513661-6. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  6. ↑ Musunuri Nayaks: A Forgotten Chapter of Andhra History, M. Somasekhara Sarma, 1948, Andhra University Press, Waltair
  7. ↑ K. S. Singh (1998). India's Communities. Oxford University Press. p. 3620. ISBN 9780195633542. The Velama are Hindu who belong to Vaishnava sect.

Further reading

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