Kālingi (also Kalinga and Kālinji) is a Hindu caste residing in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.[1] In Andhra, they are primarily found in the erstwhile Srikakulam district with smaller numbers in neighbouring districts.[1] They are predominantly a caste of cultivators. Some of the community members also served as temple priests in the past.[2][3] They are categorized as an Other Backward Classes (OBC) by the Government of Andhra Pradesh.[4]

Demographics

Kālingis are one of the dominant castes of Srikakulam district along with Turpu Kapu and Polinati Velama.[5] Kālingis form around 10 percent of the total population of former Srikakulam district. They are heavily concentrated in the talukas of Sompeta, Tekkali and parts of Srikakulam and Palakonda in the district.[5]

Divisions

In the Telugu parts, the caste is called Kalinga or Kālingi and in the Oriya country they are known as Kālinji.[6][7]

There are four further diviisions among Kalingas like Buragam and Kinthali Kalingas. The other two unpopularly subgroups were Kalinga Brahmana with titles Panda, Patro, Sahoo, Panigrahi and Kalinga Raju.[6] Both Kinthala and Buragam Kalingas are categorized as Other Backward Classes (OBCs) by the Government of Andhra Pradesh.[4] Kinthala widows are permitted to remarry if they have no male heir, but Buragam widows are not.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 Naidu, D. Suran (1 January 1991). The Congress Party in Transition: A Study in Srikakulam District of Andhra Pradesh. National Book Organisation. pp. 68, 101, 229. ISBN 9788185135649. Archived from the original on 14 December 2018. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  2. ↑ Frazer, Sir James George (2013). Totemism and Exogamy, Vol. II (in Four Volumes). Cosimo, Inc. p. 231. ISBN 978-1-60520-979-1.
  3. ↑ Baines, Jervoise Athelstane (1912). Ethnography: Castes and Tribes. K. J. Trübner. p. 54.
  4. 1 2 "National Commission for Backward Classes". Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  5. 1 2 Suran Naidu, D. (1991). The Congress Party in Transition : A Study in Srikakulam District of Andhra Pradesh. National Book Organisation. pp. 26–27. ISBN 978-81-85135-64-9.
  6. 1 2 3 Thurston, Edgar (21 June 2013). Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 3 of 7. K. Rangachari.
  7. ↑ P., Dozier, Edward (1966). Mountain Arbiters: The Changing Life of a Philippine Hill People. University of Arizona Press. OCLC 297175.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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