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{{Short description|Brahmin Subcaste}}
{{more citations needed|date=September 2011}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=May 2019}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
|image =
|group = Kerala Iyers
|pop =
|popplace = {{citations needed|date=May 2021}} [[Palakkad district]], [[Kerala]] [[Travancore|Travancore Region]] ([[Trivandrum district]], [[Alappuzha district]]), Kerala [[Thrissur district]], Kerala [[Ernakulam district]], Kerala [[Kozhikode district]], Kerala{{cn|date=May 2021}}
|languages = [[Brahmin Tamil|Tamil]]
|religions = [[Hinduism]]
|related = [[Iyers]], [[Tamil Brahmin]]
}}

'''Kerala Iyers''' or '''Bhattars''', are [[Tamil people|Tamil]] [[Brahmins]] of the Indian state of [[Kerala]] — people who were residents in the Kerala region, and also people who migrated from present day [[Tamil Nadu]] in different waves from the time of the [[Chera dynasty]]. They are Hindus. The community consists of two groups - the [[Palakkad district|Palakkad]] Iyers and Iyers of the [[Cochin]] and [[Travancore]] regions.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Zamorins and the political culture of medieval Kerala|last=Haridas|first=V. V.|publisher=Orient Blackswan|year=2016|isbn=9788125061281|location=Hyderabad|page=36}}</ref>

Kerala Iyers, like the Iyers of Tamil Nadu and the [[Nambudiri]]s of Kerala, belonged to the [[Pancha-Dravida]] classification of India's Brahmin community. They mostly belonged to the [[Vadama]] and [[Brahacharanam]] sub-sects. Iyers were usually not recruited as the priest (shanthi) in Kerala temples which followed [[Tantra|Tantric]] rituals. So Iyers being Vedic scholars built their own temples in their [[Agraharams]] to conduct pooja, since they followed different rituals and not the Tantric rituals of the Nambudiris.<ref>[http://www.hindupedia.com/en/Temples_of_Kerala Temples of Kerala]</ref>

== Brahmana Samooham ==
Where ever they settled, the Kerala Iyers lived together in communities. The settlement consisting of array of houses and other amenities developed by Tamil Brahmins in Kerala came to be known as [[Agraharam]] as in other parts of South India. Each Agraharam consist of two rows of houses facing each other. There is no courtyard but only common street. Several such Agraharams together form an organization called "Samooham".<ref>{{Cite book|title=People of India: Kerala, Volume-27, Part-3|last=Menon|first=T. Madhava|last2=Tyagi|first2=Deepak|last3=Kulirani|first3=B. Francis|publisher=Affiliated East-West Press Pvt. Ltd.|year=2002|isbn=8185938997|location=New Delhi|pages=1396–97}}</ref> There existed 95 Agraharams in Kerala where Brahmins lived in peace, with unity, equality and simplicity.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=January 2014|title=Brahmins and Agraharams|url=http://www.brahmintoday.org/issues/2014/bt201401_front.php|journal=Brahmin Today|location=Chennai|publisher=Vacha Publication|volume=10|issue=11|access-date=23 October 2016}}</ref>

== Palakkad Iyers ==
The Palakkad Iyers were greatly affected by the [[Kerala Agrarian Relations Bill, 1957]] (repealed in 1961 and substituted by [[The Kerala Land Reforms Act, 1963]]) which abolished the [[tenancy]] system.<ref name="keralagovt_legislations">{{Cite web|url=http://niyamasabha.org/codes/bus_1_1.htm|title=Landmark Legislations - Land Reforms|access-date=2008-08-27|publisher=Kerala Legislative Assembly}}</ref>

== Travancore Iyers ==
During the rule of Travancore kings, many Iyers (Tamil Brahmins) were invited to [[Thiruvananthapuram]] for administrative requirements of Travancore kingdom and for participating in rituals related to [[Padmanabhaswamy Temple]]. Some [[Padamangalam Nair]]s involved in temple service are thought to be descendants of Travancore Iyers. The migration continued for decades, and thus Iyer population is concentrated around this temple in Trivandrum.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/homes-and-gardens/agraharams-on-the-way-out/article2305300.ece | location=Chennai, India | work=The Hindu | first=T. | last=Nandakumar | title=Agraharams on the way out?}}</ref>

== Notable people ==


* [[Vidya Balan]]
* [[Palghat Mani Iyer]]
* [[M.D.Ramanathan]]
* [[K.V.Narayanaswamy]]
* [[Shankar Mahadevan]], a popular National Award-winning musician who has sung many songs in [[Tamil language|Tamil]], [[Hindi]], [[Malayalam language|Malayalam]], [[Kannada language|Kannada]] and [[Telugu language|Telugu]]<ref>{{cite interview |last=Mahadevan |first=Shankar |interviewer=John Brittas |title=I am a Malayali grew up in Mumbai: Shankar Mahadevan |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPcyXZgW8EA |publisher=Kairali TV |date=8 September 2013 |at=0:38 |access-date=4 January 2010 |quote=Interviewer: You have some connection with Kerala in fact, your family migrated from Palakkad or something like that. Shankar Mahadevan: Yes, I am an Iyer from Palakkad actually |via=Kairali Archive on YouTube}}</ref>
* [[Trisha Krishnan]]
* [[Divya S. Iyer]]
* [[Nandalal Krishnamoorthy]]
* [[Shreyas Iyer]]
* [[Priyamani]]
* [[TN Seshan]]

== Organization ==
The [[Kerala Brahmana Sabha]] is the apex organization of Kerala Iyers.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
*[http://www.keralaiyers.com Kerala Iyers Website]

[[Category:Tamil society]]
[[Category:Tamil Brahmins]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Kerala]]

Kerala Iyers - Revision history

imported>Rdp060707 at 07:39, 17 July 2021