Irula people


Irula are a Dravidian ethnic group inhabiting the area of the Nilgiri mountains, in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, India. A scheduled tribe, their population in this region is estimated at 25,000 people. People of Irula ethnicity are called Irular, and speak Irula, which belongs to the Dravidian family.

Etymology

Irular means "dark people" in Tamil and Malayalam, from the root word irul, meaning "darkness", in reference to their dark skin complexion.
The tribe numbers 189,621 in significant region of Tamil Nadu and 23,721 in Kerala.

Anthropology

Early 20th century anthropological literature classified the Irula under the Negrito ethnic group. Other anthropologist suggested a proto-Caucasoid ancestry. Modern genetic studies suggest a relation to other South Asians but do not show any genetic relation to Negrito or Australoid populations.

Genetics

A study by Yelmen et al found that the Irula were the closest likely proxy for the 'AASI', or Ancient Anscestral South Indian, one of the presumed founder and autochthonous original Indian populations. They showed a closer fit when modelled than alternatives that have been suggested such as the Onge.

Language

The Irula speak the Irula language, a Dravidian language that is closely related to Tamil.

Distribution

Irular live in two south Indian states – Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In Tamil Nadu they live in the Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Erode, Namakkal, Salem and Dharmapuri. In Kerala they live in the Palakkad district and Attapady and Walayar panchayats.
They live in four taluks in Coimbatore district, namely Coimbatore South, Coimbatore North, Avinashi and Madathukulam. The Coimbatore district houses 4254 Irulas in 40 settlements comprising 139 villages. Nearly 100 Vettakada Irula settlements are found in the forest areas or in the deep mountainous jungles. There are 4 tribal settlements in the Siruvani Hills comprising 14 villages.
The Census of Kerala identified 756 Irulan individuals from 189 families, who lived in 9 settlements covering.23 km² in the state.

Economy

Traditionally, the main occupation of the Irulas has been snake, rat catching and honey collection. They also work as labourers in the fields of the landlords during the sowing and harvesting seasons or in the rice mills. Fishing and cattle farm is also a major occupation.
Rats destroy a quarter of the grain grown on Tamil Nadu-area farms annually. To combat this pest, Irula men use a traditional earthen pot fumigation method. Smoke is blown through their mouths, which leads to severe respiratory and heart problems.
In January 2017, Masi Sadaiyan and Vadivel Gopal from the Irula tribe of Tamil Nadu were brought in, along with two translators, to work with detection dogs to track down and capture invasive Burmese pythons in Key Largo, Florida. The Irula men and their translators were paid $70,000 by the State of Florida, and captured 14 pythons in less than two weeks.