Social change and the development of "modern" politics in Travancore: From the late nineteenth century to 1938.

Chiriyankandath, James

doi:10.25501/soas.00029030

Cited by 1 publication

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“…Syrian Christians emerged as a vital community that purchased large parcels of land from these traditional tenure holders in Travancore (Menon, 1993;Tharamangalam, 1984;Thomas, 2018: 30). Further, the rapid growth of the spice trade in the beginning of the twentieth century meant that a section of Syrian Christians, under the patronage of the British, consolidated themselves as native planters and traders, while ex-slave castes were transformed into plantation labourers (Chiriyankandath, 1985). This boom in cash-crop trade led to the monetisation of the economy and the arrival of commercial banks (Oommen, 1976).…”

Section: Historical Emergence Of Kudumbayogamsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unlike the rest of the population, Syrian Christians were co-religionists of the British, often framed as a reformable sanctuary in the midst of the heathens (Richards, 1908). Anglican Protestantism convinced Syrian Christians to reform their self, community and the church, often against the predilections of their caste-Hindu neighbours (Chiriyankandath, 1985). Most denominations started their evangelical missions during this period.…”

Section: Historical Emergence Of Kudumbayogamsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mobilising Kinship as a Modern Network: Syrian Christian Family Associations

Donald

2024

South Asia Research

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This article analyses the meanings, practices and socio-historical contexts of kudumbayogams (family associations) among the large, relatively prosperous, multi-denominational community of Syrian Christians in Kerala, who are today spread across the globe. Kudumbayogams present new ways of mobilising and displaying family, kinship and community ties. The article argues that while earlier socio-economic shifts inaugurated the spatial dispersal and reconstitution of Syrian Christian patrilineal families and households, they also led to the formation of family associations, alongside other modern associational forms. Based on a detailed analysis of printed family histories, and allied documents, this study conceptualises kudumbayogam as a modern fortification of attempts to resolve the ambiguities of changing times by tethering a Christian brand of upper-caste social conservatism with ‘neoliberal’ individualism. This modern fortification mobilises households and families through an array of structures and activities that seek to foster cultural continuity, communication, conflict resolution and charity among its members. In the process, kudumbayogams actively blunt intra-group contradictions and highlight inter-group differences.

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Section: Historical Emergence Of Kudumbayogamsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Historical Emergence Of Kudumbayogamsmentioning

confidence: 99%