Beary
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The Beary (also known as Byari) (Kannada: ಬ್ಯಾರಿ) is a small, vibrant Muslim community concentrated mostly in coastal South Kanara (Dakshina Kannada) district of Karnataka state in India, having its own unique traditions, and distinct cultural identity. The Beary community holds a very important place among the other coastal Muslim communities like Nawayath's of North Kanara districts, Mappilas (Moplahs) of the Malabar coast and Labbay of the Coromandel coast.
Beary's are a distinct community which incorporates the Tulu culture of Dakshina Kannada and diverse traditions of the Moplahs of the Malabar coast. The Beary community are followers of the Sunni sect of Islam and belong to the Shafi'i school of Islamic jurisprudence, unlike North Indian Muslims who generally adhere to the Hanafi school. Because of the Sunni majority in Mangalore, Manglorean Muslims are usually referred to as Beary's or Byari's.
[edit] Etymology
The word 'Beary' is said to be derived from the Tulu word 'Byara' which means business. Thus Beary stands for businessman. Moreover, this community had adopted business as prime occupation for livelihood. Beedi industry, fishing industry, cattle, grocery and teashops were some the fields Beary men occupied with. Since the major portion of this community people were involved in business activities, the local Tulu speaking majority called them as Beary or Byari[1].
Another popular theory is that the word Beary comes from Arabic word Bahar (Arabic: بحر). Bahar means ocean and Bahri (Arabic: بحري) means sailor or seaman. It is said that Beary community had trade relations with Arab businessmen traveling to coastal South India, especially the coastline of Malabar.
Third theory says that the word Beary is derived from the root word Malabar. The great Islamic Da'ee, Malik bin Dinar had arrived in the coast of Malabar during 6th century A.D.
[edit] Geographic distribution
The Bearys constitute around 80 per cent of the Dakshina Kannada Muslims, others are scattered in the neighboring districts of Chikmagalur, Shimoga, Hassan and Uttara Kannada. Mumbai and Goa also have a considerable Beary population. Also, a good number of Bearys are in the Arab Gulf States of the Middle East doing a variety of jobs.
[edit] History
Beary community has a history of at least 1,200 years with an ethnic identity and its own dialect called Beary Baase or Nakknikk.
Bearys refer to the area south of Mangalore as Mykal or Mykala which is in fact their culture capital. According to historian B A Salettur, Mykal was an area in the southern part of Mangalore. It got its name through the Kadri Manjunath Temple, which earlier was a Buddhist temple. The Buddhist goddess Tara Bhagavathi was also known as Mayadevi. In course of time it came to be called Mikala, which later became Mykal.
The origin of the Beary community is still not much known; history reveals that there were many rich traders, from the Coastal belt dealing with the traders of the Middle East countries through the Arabian Sea. Following the advent of Islam in the early stage, it is said Arab Muslim traders attracted the people to Islam by their well behavior in their contact, honesty in trade, discipline in dealings and peaceful religious and pious life within the doctrines of Islam, and also by performing Da'wah.
First Muslim missionaries to Mangalore can be traced to Malik Bin Deenar, an Arab trader said to be the kith and kin of Sahaba (companions of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)). He is said to have visited Malabar and landed near Manjeshwar in Malabar. He constructed the first mosque in Manjeshwar, the Malik Dinar Mosque (where his shrine is still present). Also the Masjid Zeenath Baksh (Jumma Masjid), Bunder, Mangalore is said to have been established in Mangalore by Malik Bin Deenar in 644 A.D. and the first Qadhi (Qazi) appointed was Hazarath Moosa Bin Malik, son of Malik Bin Abdullah. This Mosque was inaugurated on Friday the 22nd of the month of Jumadil Avval (fifth month of Islamic Calander) in 22 of Hijri (644A.D.).
There are several documents available which prove that at least 90 years prior to Muhammad bin Qasim`s invasion of North India, Arab Muslim businessmen were thriving in the south. This proves Islam was prevalent in South India much before Muslim invaders came to North India. These facts are available in a research document Mykal, written by Ahmed Noori, who conducted a research on the Beary community way back in 1960.
Noori disputes the claim that the first Muslims came to India along with Alauddin Khilji between 1296-1316 AD and points out that according to renowned historian, H.M. Elliot, (The History of India as told by its own Historians, Part I) the first ship bearing Muslim travelers was seen on the Indian coast as early as 630 AD. According to H.G. Rawlinson, the first Arab Muslims settled on the Indian coast in the last part of the 7th century AD. Barthlomew also has similar things to say about the early Muslim settlers in India. J. Sturrock in his South Kanara and Madras Districts Manuals, says that Parsi and Arab businessmen settled in different places of the Malabar coast during the 7th century. Ahmed Noori has quoted these and other sources to validate his argument that the Muslim settlers came to India much before the invaders came to North India.
[edit] Participation in the freedom struggle
The Bearys of the coast actively participated in the Indian freedom struggle against Portugal and British colonialism. There were a number of Beary men in the army of Chowta dynasty queen, Rani Abbakka (Kannada: ರಾಣಿ ಅಬ್ಬಕ್ಕ) of Moodabidri. The Bearys had also joined the army of Nawab Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan of Mysore. Historians and researchers have enlisted famous Beary personalities who participated in the freedom struggle of India. Many such freedom fighters were imprisoned by British and few died during imprisonment.
One of the descendants of Malik Bin Deenar, Zainuddin Makhdum II had compiled a book Tuhfah al Mujahideen in Arabic language motivating the Muslims of coastal Malabar to fight the enemies. The Bearys seem to have largely motivated by such work and actively participated in the freedom struggle against Portugal and British rule.
[edit] Language
Beary Palka, like Kodava Takk and Are Bashe, has no script of its own. It is a combination of Arabic, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam and Tulu for some extent. The Kodava dialect and the Byari dialect have approximately 60% words in common. The vocabulary and speed of the speech proves masculinity in the dialect. This living dialect is also known as Beary bashe OR Nakk-Nikk.
[edit] Beary Sahitya (Byary literature)
The Bearys of the coast have produced rich literary work using both Beary dialect and Kannada language. The literature comprises Beary poetry, research articles on Bearys, historical analysis of Dakshina Kannada Muslims, essays, stories and other fields of literature. "English-Kannada-Beary" dictionary is also available in the market produced by Dr. A. Wahhab Doddamane. A number of notable Beary literary persons have contributed to enrich the Beary literature. Dr. Susheela P. Upadhyaya, an eminent scholar has made a comprehenive study in finding the roots of beary literature. Dr. A. Wahhab Doddamane has produced a book viz. The Muslims of Dakshina Kannada, which is a useful documentary work.
The Bearys have also produced a number of magazines and periodicals from Mangalore and other cities of the district. Some periodicals have became very popular and a few of them have become a part of Beary history.
[edit] Folk Songs
The Beary folk songs were rendered during marriage parties and at the time of births and other auspicious occasions. Songs bore resemblance to Moplah Patts (Mappila Songs). Unfortunately modern day Bearys are illiterate of the folk songs sang by their ancestors. Several Beary folk games have also vanished.
One of the famous folk songs sung by beary women during marriage occasions is "appa chudu chudu patima". Elderly ladies of the neighborhood gather around the bride on the day of mangila (wedding day) to sing those melodious songs. First few lines are:
- appa chudu chudu patima,
- ippa baru baru mapule;
- chutte appa karinhi poyi,
- banne mapule madangi poyi ....
[edit] Sahitya Sammelana (Literary Summit)
There are four Beary Sahitya Sammelanas (The Beary Literature Summit) have been taken place so far. Cultural activities, exhibition related to Beary culture and soceity, talks on Beary society by Beary scholars, publications and Beary literature stalls are the centre of attraction during any Beary Sahitya Sammelana.
The first Beary Sahitya Sammelana was presided by B.M. Iddinabba, Member of Legislative Assembly, Ullal constituency, Karnataka State. The second Beary Sahitya Sammelana was presided by Goltha Majalu Abdul Khader Haji. The third Beary Sahitya Sammelana was presided by Beary research scholar Prof. B.M. Ichlangod. The Fourth Beary Sahitya Sammelana was presided by novelist Pakeer Mohammed Katpady.
The Fourth Beary Sahitya Sammelana (The Fourth Beary Literature Summit) was held in Vakkaligara Kalyana Mandira in city of Chikmagalur on the 27th February 2007 which demanded the state government for the establishment of a Beary Sahitya Academy. Chikmagalur is the district that harbors second largest number of Beary population next to Dakshina Kannada.
[edit] Culture
The Bearys have a distinct culture difference from other Muslim communities. The marriage customs of the Bearys seem to be a mix of the Tulu and Moplah customs along with some distinct customs of their own. Bearys do not follow the matrilineal tradition, unlike the Moplahs. Curiously, the Bearys until recently followed a custom known as the Gotra or illam, which resembles the Bunt bali custom. Though Islam is basically patriarchal, illam, influenced by the Tulu culture, has matriarchal tendencies. Marriage between people belonging to the same illam (comparable to the gotra) was not encouraged. People identified with an illam were known as talakkar. And people of low castes who converted to Islam were identified as tala illatavaru.
The marriage of the Bearys is considered to be a pointer to their prosperity. Marriage celebration is normally spread over 3 days starting with Moilanji (henna tattooing) at the brides house a day before the marriage (close relatives and friends are invited) and an Islamic style Nikah known as Kayeen is performed at the groom’s place on the day of the marriage. A garland exchange between Bride and groom is also part of Beary marriage which is an adoption from Tulu culture. The dowry system is still quite prevalent among most Bearys.
Modern marriages of most of the families are arranged in community halls with large number of invitees including relatives and community members.
[edit] Madrasah education system
Although this community is backward in modern education, still has successfully achieved 100% literacy rate in the area. All the Beary children are sent to Madrasah (Arabic: مدرسة) which is managed and run by the community that imparts religious education. All such Madrasahs are affiliated to Samastha Board which conducts well organized public examination for 5th, 7th and 10 grade students. Visiting inspectors called Mufattish are appointed to inspect the quality of education in Madrasahs. For administrative purposes divisions have been made as range, area, taluq and district. The teachers are qualified in Arabic language and religious education are known as Mu’allim and students as Muta’allim. The Madrasas do use a centralized syllabus prepared by the Samstha Board and media of instruction is now shifted to Kannada from traditional Arabic based Malayalam called Arabi-Malayalam – a special language that uses Arabic script and Malayalam phonetics. Mundu, Chatte and Toppi is the preferred uniform for boys in Madrasas. Girls do wear a long gown with a head-dress known as yalasara.
Apart from Samstha Board many other education institutions have also sufaced. Salafi group has established their own Madrasahs through out Dakshina Kannada. Salafis also have started separate religious schools exclusively for girls in Ullal. Jamat-e-Islami is now running an exclusive college for girls in Deralakatte province. There are several other schools managed by Bearys which is aimed at providing both modern and religious education to the children.
[edit] Attire
The Beary attire is different from that of other south Indian community. Men wear a traditional white muslin turban and a Rani-mark belt (wide, green in colour) at the waist, with long full sleeve white shirts (known as Chatte) and bleached mundu. Today due to a cultural shift young Bearys have adopted shirt-trouser pattern.
Beary women are traditionally claded in three pieces of clothes, viz, tuni, kuppaya and yalasara. While going out the Beary women took a long rectangle blanket, known as valli, a sort of veil to cover entire body. If two women wants to go out together they would use a joduvalli (double veil). Today, different varieties of burqa or Abaya have replaced the traditional valli.
[edit] Ornaments
The beary women has excessive love for ornaments and uses it on every possible occasion such as Mangila, Sunnat Mangila, Appate Mangila, Birnd, Moilanji and other social gatherings. There were different types of ornaments used by beary community in past which is at the verge of vanishing today due to the cultural invasion and urbanization. These ornaments are made out of mainly gold and sliver and used for the ornamentation of head, ears, neck, waist, wrist, fingers and feet. Beary research scholars are of the opinion that Beary ornaments were largely influenced by Jain ornament patterns. The ornament storage box used by Bearys was made out of brass and other metals was also used by Jain community and was called Kharjana by both Bearys and Jains [2].
- Head ornaments: Tale singara, Tirupi, Kedage, Jadepalle,Nera Nilaavu
- Ear ornaments: Alikat, Illi Alikat, Kuduki, Bendole, Lolak, Koppubalsara, Vale
- Neck ornaments: Misri male, Sara, Naklees, Bandi male, Minni male, Nalchuttu male
- Wrist ornaments: Bale, Alsande bale, Kett bale, Yeduru bale, Kadaga
- Waist ornaments: Aranjana, Arepatti
- Finger ornaments: Modara, Kallre modara
- Feet ornaments: Kunipu, Kal sarapali, Chein
[edit] Festivals
The traditional Islamic festivals of Eid ul-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha (also known as Bakrid) are celebrated. Special Eid prayer is offered during these two occasions. Mangalore city has a centralised Eidgah in Bavuta Gudda where congregational special prayers or Salat al Eid is held. The Eidgah of Mangalore city has a mosque which is said to have been built by then Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan towards the close of eighteenth century. Usually in the central Eidgah the Qadhi leads the Eid prayer and delivers Khutba. Colourful costumes, delicious food, exchanging the Eid greetings - Eid Mubarak (Arabic/Persian/Urdu: عید مبارک) and generous charity to the poor and needy are part of Eid celebration. Other occasions celebrated are 12th Rabi' al-awwal of the fifth month of Islamic calendar commemorating Meelad-al-Nabi - prophet Muhammad's birthday. Moon citation is an event of rejoice for Beary folk.
[edit] Cuisine
Beary cuisine is highly influenced by the South Indian Cuisine. Just like Mangalorean cuisine it uses a lot of coconut, curry leaves, ginger, chilli and spices like pepper and cardamom. Beary cuisine boasts of a special kind of biryani, which is very different from the other types made elsewhere. Rice preparations, both fresh and dry fish, meat and eggs enjoy top place in baery daily menu.
A few traditional dishes very popular amongst all the Mangalorean communities have unique names in Beary dialect. Pindi, pinde-basale, kunhi-pinde, bisali-appa, tondare-appa, guli-appa, syame, muttere-appa, pattir, poo-pole, pulche-pole, vodu-pole, uppu-molavu, kanhi, methe-kanhi, nei-kanhi, chekkere-appa etc. are to name a few.
[edit] Economic situation
The Bearys, who once enjoyed a high social status, slowly lost their position during the British and Portuguese rule. Their opposition to the English resulted in them being denied English education, which in course of time turned them into a socially backward community.
Today, hardly 5% of the community is engaged in trading and business, thanks to the modern education community offlate have been seeing professionally qualified members. Some Bearys are involved in the beedi industry and fishery, and a majority are farm laborers. A few Bearys have progressed even further in the past few years and have achieved tremendous development in the field of Education, Business & Politics. Bearys today own many Educational Institutions. Professional Colleges in Mangalore are mostly owned or partnered by Bearys. Bearys have also achieved high positions in Karnataka Politics and few have also attained positions in the Central Government. In spite of these achievements, majority of the people of the community are still economically backward. The recent job opportunities in Persian gulf countries have improved the standard of living to some extent. However, Bearys in rural areas are still extremely backward socially, economically and educationally.
Since Islam prohibits interest based financial dealings, Beary community is not seem to have taken benefits from interest based or conventional banking system. In the modern days they have embarked on establishing a small scale interest free banking systen namely Interest Free Loan and Welfare Soceity in Manngalore.
[edit] References
- ^ Ahmed Noori, Maikala p.17 (1960)
- ^ Ichlangod B.M., Tulunada Muslimaru - Byari Samskruti p.76 (1997)
[edit] Other sourses
- Bearys of the coast, Article in Deccan Herald December 12th 1997 by B.M Hanif.
- H.G. Rawlinson, Ancient and Medieval History of India
- Sturrock, J.,South Canara and Madras District Manual (2 vols., Madras, 1894-1895).
- Muslims in Dakshina Kannada: a historical study up to 1947 and survey of recent developments, Author Wahab Doddamane, A. Green Words publication. Mangalore, 1993 [2]
