Boya (caste)

Boya (Naidu)
Boya (Naidu)
	Statue of a Boya chieftain
Location	Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu
Language	Telugu, Kannada, and Tamil
Religion	Hinduism

The Boya (also referred to as Naidu, Bedar)^[1] is a disparate Indian community found in the South Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. They are traditionally considered as "militant caste",^[2] who ruled most of South India and had served the ruling powers as administrators (Nayakas), raiders and had other martial pursuits.^[1]^[3]

In Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu they are classified as OBC.^[4]^[5]

History

The titles of the Bōyas are said to be Naidu or Nayudu, Dora, Dorabidda and Valmiki. They claim direct lineal descent from Valmiki, the author of the Rāmayana. At times of census in Mysore, some Bēdars have set themselves up as Valmiki Brāhmans.^[6] Sri Kambhampati Satyanarayana opined that the Boyas were "Bhogikulu" which means they used to occupy and enjoy lands with their bravery. Sri R. B. Kittura wrote in the Kannada publication "Valmiki Vamsadhara" that the Boyas are of royal descent. Kambhampati Satyanarayana said that Boya was a title that glorified courage and adventure in that period. Acharya Chattopadhyay, a history researcher at Jawaharlal University, believes that the Boyas were Kshatriyas. It is said that the word Boya was given as an honorific title and was given to those who had courage (history-culture of Andhra). It is noted in the Bellary Gazetteer that "the only caste which goes in for manly sports seems to be the Bōyas, or Bēdars, as they are called in Canarese. They organise drives for pig, hunt bears in some parts in a fearless manner, and are regular attendants at the village gymnasium (garidi mane) ^[7]

The British referred to the Boyas as "Warriors and Rulers." According to the "Raya Vachakam," King Krishnadevaraya of the Vijayanagara Empire, along with his minister Appaji, took the help of the incomparable Boya Doralu and 11 other princely states in archery to defeat the enemies. In the course of time, Boya Palegars became the rulers of the forts of Rayadurgam in Karnataka and Kalyandurg in Andhra Pradesh and made them vassals of the Vijayanagara Empire.

The earliest reference to "Boyas" is found in an inscription of the Eastern Chalukya ruler Vishnuvardhana II, where land grants are made to several people from a variety of different villages, all with Boya appended to their name. Earlier colonial scholars thought it simply meant an "inhabitant of," but more recent scholarship suggests otherwise, meaning the recipients could have been from the Boya community.^[1] The early Boyas were thought to have been a tribal community who were gradually acculturated into caste society. This is based on evidence from clan names in both inscriptions and in present-day, which seem to be occupational in nature.^[2] By the seventh century CE, grants of villages in the Nellore-Guntur region were being made to Boyas, and a chieftain described as Nishada (most likely Boya) was ruling the fringes of Nellore as a feudal lord of Vishnuvardhana II. Nandi speculated these land grants were given because of the Boyas' predominance in what is today Southern Andhra Pradesh, a frontier region vulnerable to Pallava attacks.

The earliest references to them in Karnataka, starting from 700 CE, portray them as looters and raiders of settled villages. These references continue throughout the Medieval period. Under the name parivaras, the Bedars are mentioned as troops in use by the Cholas during the Battle of Takkolam.^[8]

After the death of Vishnuvardhana V, the Boyas rose up against the Chalukyas and quickly captured Vengi, in modern-day Coastal Andhra Pradesh. The new king sent Pandranga, a general, to defeat the Boyas. Pandranga successfully retook Vengi and conquered 12 Boya estates, and to prevent a recurrence, was made governor of the whole region.

In Kannada areas in the Medieval period, the Bedars had some power, enough to give land grants. Others had titles such as arasa and nayaka, indicating they were part of the ruling class. To further their interests, inscriptions also reveal Bedars formed associations to promote their welfare and glorify themselves. Many others were often glorified in viragallu.^[8]

It is stated in the Manual of the Bellary district that "of the various Hindu castes in Bellary, the Bōyas (called in Canarese Bēdars, Byēdas, or Byādās) are far the strongest numerically. Many of the Poligars whom Sir Thomas Munro found in virtual possession of the country when it was added to the Company belonged to this caste, and their irregular levies, and also a large proportion of Haidar's formidable force, were of the same breed. Harpanahalli was the seat of one of the most powerful Poligars in the district in the eighteenth century. The founder of the family was a Bōya taliāri, who, on the subversion of the Vijayanagar dynasty, seized on two small districts near Harpanahalli. ^[6]

In some districts, there are still Boya Poligars, but, as a rule, they are poor, and unable to maintain any position. ^[7]

At the fall of the Vijayanagara empire, the power vacuum that ensued allowed many communities to come forward. Many Bedar chieftains, who had previously been suboordinate now began to control territory more openly. Many of these polygars began to amass large forces of Boya troops. The entirety of Bellary was under their control at the time of its accession to the East India Company. The Bedars were heavily recruited into the armies of Mysore during the reigns of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan.^[6]

Status

The early status of the Boyas is hard to pin down. As they most likely originated as a tribe, they were outside the caste system and within the same community its members could pursue different occupations. However different sections of the community who were pursuing different occupations would identify themselves with their occupation in Brahminical society, such as Boya-Brahmanas, who were generally accepted. However, they did not accept all the claims of the varnas they were in.^[9]

The Bedars worked in a variety of fields. Although some remained raiders and huntsmen, many others were granted high administrative positions such as collection of revenue.^[8]

Dynasties

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Nandi, R. N. (1968). "The Boyas—Transformation of a Tribe into Caste". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 30: 94–103. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44141458."Boya, in Telugu, means a savage, barbarian, inhabitant of the forest, huntsman, fisherman, etc., but it is never used in the sense of inhabitant."
^ ^a ^b Nandi, R. N. (1968). "The Boyas—Transformation of a Tribe into Caste". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 30: 94–103. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44141458. Similarly, the Pulavanaboyas meaning flower-men and Minalavaru meaning fishermen were florists and fishermen catering to the needs of rural or urban population.
^ Satyamurthy, K. (1991). Medieval Indian culture and political geography. ISBN 9788170244424.
^ "List of Backward Classes approved by Government of Tamil Nadu". Department of Backward Classes Most Backward Classes and Minorities Welfare (Tamil Nadu). Retrieved 10 January 2023.
^ "List of Telugu castes", Wikipedia, 30 August 2024, retrieved 25 October 2024
^ ^a ^b ^c Thurston, Edgar. Castes and Tribes of Southern India.
^ ^a ^b "Castes and Tribes of Southern India/Bēdar - Wikisource, the free online library". en.wikisource.org. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c Nayaka, Hanuma (2010). "Situating Tribals in the Early History of Karnataka". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 71: 97–109. JSTOR 44147477. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
^ Nandi, R. N. (1968). "The Boyas—Transformation of a Tribe into Caste". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 30: 94–103. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44141458. But more striking is tke absence of any gotra-name in the case of a majority of boya brāhmaņas.

Boya (caste)

History

Status

Dynasties

References

Further reading