'Matriliny did not become patriliny!': The transformation of Thiyya 'tharavad' houses in 20th-century Kerala. (October 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Abraham, Janaki
• Is Part Of: Contributions to Indian sociology. Volume 51:Number 3(2017)
• Page Start: 287
• Page End: 312
• Publication Date: 2017-10
• Subjects: matriliny -- matrilineal kinship -- residence -- tharavad -- Kerala -- Thiyya; India -- Social conditions -- Periodicals; 301.095405
• DOI: 10.1177/0069966717720514
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0069-9667

Abstract

In contrast to a preoccupation with Nayar matriliny, in this article I look at the transformations of matrilineal tharavad houses among the Thiyyas who ranked below the Nayars in the caste hierarchy and were not generally large landowners. Moving away from the more exotic practices of matrilocality and duolocality, I look at matriliny coupled with a strong norm of virilocality in which a woman moved to her husband's house after marriage. This enables an exploration of the implications of this residence norm for women, and particularly its implications for our understanding of the transformation of matrilineal kinship in Kerala. Paying special attention to the experience of women in tharavad houses and the creation of new houses, coupled with the continuities in the right that a woman retains to residence in her natal house and a right to a share of the property, forces us to question the common sense understanding that matriliny has transformed to patriliny.