kalinga

kalinga means name of sea board

 kAlingi and kalinji (ఆంధ్ర లో కాలింగ అంటారు, ఒరిస్సాలో కాలింజి అంటారు )

Kalinga.— A sub-division of Komatis, who "were 

formerly the inhabitants of the ancient Kalinga country. 

They are considered inferior to the other sub-divisions, 

on account of their eating flesh. Their titles are 

Subaddhi, Patro, and Chaudari." * In the Ganjam 

Manual, they are described as " traders and shopkeepers, 

principally prevalent in the Chicacole division. The 

name Kling or Kaling is applied, in the Malay countries, 

including the Straits Settlements, to the people of penin- 

sular India, who trade thither, or are settled in those 

regions." It is recorded by Dr. N. Annandale that the 

phrase Orang Kling Islam (i.e., a Muhammadan from 

the Madras coast) occurs in Patani Malay. 

Kalingi and Kalinji. — There has been some con- 

fusion, in recorded accounts, between these two classes. 

In the Ganjam Manual, the Kalinjis are described as 

agriculturists in that district, and, in the Vizagapatam 

Manual, the Kalingas or Kalingulu are stated to be 

cultivators in the Vizagapatam district, and a caste of 

Paiks or fighting men in Jeypore. In the Census 

Report, 1891, the Kalingis are said to be "most numer- 

ous in Ganjam, but there is a considerable number of 

* Madras Census Report, 1891. 

KALINGI AND KALINJI 48 

them in Vizagapatam also. The word means a native of 

KaHnga, the name of the sea-board of the Telugu country; 

the word Telugu itself is supposed by Dr. Caldwell to 

be a corruption of Tri-Kalinga. The three large sub- 

divisions of the caste are Buragam, Kintala, and Odiya. 

In the Kintala sub-division, a widow may remarry if she 

has no male issue, but the remarriage of widows is not 

allowed in other sub-divisions. The use of flesh and 

alcoholic liquor is permitted. Naidu and Chaudari are 

their titles." Further, in the Census Report, 1901, the 

Kalingis are described as follows : " A caste of temple 

priests and cultivators, found mainly in Ganjam and 

Vizagapatam, whither they are supposed to have been 

brought by the Kalinga kings to do service in the Hindu 

temples, before the advent of the Brahmans. They speak 

either Oriya or Telugu. They have two sub-divisions, 

the Kintali Kalingas, who live south of the Langulya 

river, and the Buragam Kalingis, who reside to the north 

of it, and the customs of the two differ a great deal. There 

is also a third section, called Pandiri or Bevarani, which 

is composed of outcastes from the other two. Except the 

Kalingis of Mokhalingam in Vizagapatam,* they have 

headmen called Nayakabalis or Santos. They also 

have priests called Kularazus, each of whom sees to the 

spiritual needs of a definite group of villages. They are 

divided into several exogamous gotras, each comprising 

a number of families or vamsas, some of which, such as 

Arudra, a lady-bird, and Revi-chettu, the Ficus religiosa 

tree, are of totemistic origin. Each section is said to 

worship its totem. Marriage before puberty is the rule, 

and the caste is remarkable for the proportion of its girls 

under twelve years of age who are married or widowed. 

• Mokhalingam is in Ganjam, not Vizagapatam. 

49 kAlingi and kAlinji 

Widow marriage is not recognised by the Buragam 

Kalingis, but the KintaHs freely allow it. As usual, the 

ceremonies at the wedding of a widow differ from those 

at the marriage of a maid. Some turmeric paste is 

placed on a new cloth, which is then put over a pot of 

water, and the ceremony takes place near this. The 

binding portion of it is the tying of a saffron-coloured 

string to the woman's wrist. The Kalingis pay special 

reverence to Sri Radha Krishna and Chaitanya. Some 

of the caste officiate in temples, wear the sacred thread, 

and call themselves Brahmans, but they are not received 

on terms of equality by other Brahmans. All Kalingis 

bury their dead, but sraddhas (memorial services) are 

performed only by the Kintali sub-division. The Bura- 

gam Kalingis do not shave their heads in front. Kalingi 

women wear heavy bangles of brass, silver bell-metal 

and glass, extending from the wrist to the elbow. The 

titles of the castes are Naidu, Nayarlu, Chowdari, Bissoyi, 

Podhano, Jenna, Swayi, and Naiko." 

In the foregoing account, the Oriya-speaking Kalinjis, 

and Telugu-speaking Kalingis, are both referred to. 

The confusion seems to have arisen from the fact that 

the Kalinjis are sometimes called Kalingis by other 

castes. The Kalingis are essentially Telugus, and are 

found mainly on the borderland between the districts 

of Ganjam and Vizagapatam. The Kalinjis are, on 

the other hand, Oriyas, and seem to be closely allied 

to the agricultural castes, Doluva, Alia, Bosantiya, 

etc., like which they are mainly agriculturists. The 

Kalinjis can be easily distinguished from the Kalingis, 

as the latter wear the sacred thread. The following 

story is told in connection with the origin of the 

Kalinji caste. A band of robbers was once upon a 

time staying in a fort near Bhattu Kunnarade, and 

1 1 1-4 

KALINGI AND KALINJI 50 

molesting the people, who invited the king of Puri to 

come and drive the robbers away. Among the warriors 

who were recruited for this purpose, was a member 

of the Khondaito caste, who, with the permission of 

the king, succeeded in expelling the robbers. He 

was named by the people Bodo-Kalinja, or one having 

a stout heart. He and his followers remained in the 

Ganjam country, and the Kalinjis are their descend- 

ants. The caste is widespread in the northern part 

thereof. 

There do not seem to be any sub-divisions among the 

Kalinjis, but there is a small endogamous group, called 

Mohiri Kalinji. Mohiri is a well-known division in 

Ganjam, and Kalinjis who dwell therein intermarry with 

others, and do not form a separate community. It has 

been suggested that the Mohiri Kalinjis are Telugu 

Kalingis, who have settled in the Oriya country. Like 

other Oriya castes, the Kalinjis have gotras, e.g., banc 

(sun), sukro (star), sanko (conch-shell), bhago (tiger) 

and nago (cobra). There is a good deal of confusion 

regarding the gotras in their connection with marriage. 

The same gotra, e.g., sukro, is exogamous in some places, 

and not so in others. Many titles occur among the 

Kalinjis, e.g., Borado, Bissoyi, Bariko, Behara, Dolei, 

Gaudo, Jenna, Moliko, Naiko, Patro, Podhano, Pulleyi, 

Ravuto, Santo, Savu, Swayi, Guru. In some places, the 

titles are taken as representing bamsams (or vamsams), 

and, as such, are exogamous. Families as a rule refrain 

from marrying into families bearing the same title. For 

example, a Dolei man will not marry a Dolei girl, 

especially if their gotras are the same. But a Dolei may 

marry a Pullei, even if they have the same gotra. 

The headman of the Kalinjis is styled Santo, and he 

is assisted by a Patro. There is also a caste messenger. 

51 KALINGI AND KALINJI 

called Bhollobhaya. For the whole community there 

are said to be four Santos and four Patros, residing at 

Attagada, Chinna Kimedi, Pedda Kimedi, and Mohiri. 

A man who is suffering from a wound or sore infested by 

maggots is said to be excommunicated, and, when he has 

recovered, to submit himself before the caste-council 

before he is received back into the community. 

Girls are generally married before puberty, and, if 

a real husband is not forthcoming, a maid goes through a 

mock marriage ceremony with her elder sister's husband, 

or some elder of the community. A bachelor must 

be married to the sado {^Strebhts asper) tree before 

he can marry a widow. The remarriage of widows 

(thuvathuvvi) is freely allowed. A widow, who has a 

brother-in-law, may not marry anyone else, until she has 

obtained a deed of separation (tsado patro) from him. 

The marriage ceremonies conform to the standard Oriya 

type. In some places, the little fingers of the contract- 

ing couple are linked, instead of their hands being tied 

together with thread. On the fourth day, a Bhondari 

(barber) places on the marriage dais some beaten rice 

and sugar-candy, which the bride and bridegroom sell 

to relations for money and grain. The proceeds of 

the sale are the perquisite of the Bhondari. On the 

seventh day, the bridegroom breaks a pot on the dais, 

and, as he and the bride go away, the brother of 

the latter throws brinjal {^Solmitmt Melongena) fruits 

at him. 

The dead are as a rule cremated. On the day 

after death, food, made bitter by the addition of mar- 

gosa {Melia Azadirachta) leaves, is offered. A piece 

of bone is carried away from the burning-ground, and 

buried under a pipal {Ficus religiosa) tree. Daily, until 

the tenth day, water is poured seven times over the spot 

ni-4 B