Havyaka Brahmins are a
HinduA Hindu is an adherent of Hinduism, a set of religious, philosophical and cultural systems that originated in the Indian subcontinent. The vast body of Hindu scriptures, divided into Śruti and Smriti , lay the foundation of Hindu beliefs which primarily include dhárma, kárma, ahimsa and saṃsāra...
BrahminBrahmins have historically been the class of educators, scholars and preachers in Hinduism. They are considered as belonging to the "forward castes" of the four varnas of Hinduism....
subsect primarily from the
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
n state of
KarnatakaKarnataka is a state in the southern part of India. It was created on November 1, 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act...
and Northern
KeralaKerala , is a state located in southwestern India. The state was created in 1956 on linguistc basis, bringing together those places where Malayalam formed the principal language...
. Havyakas mostly profess the
advaita philosophyAdvaita Vedanta is a sub-school of the Vedānta school of Hindu philosophy. Other major sub-schools of Vedānta are Dvaita and . Advaita is a monistic system of thought...
propounded by
Adi ShankaraAdi Shankara ; , also known as ' and ', was an Indian philosopher who consolidated the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta, a sub-school of Vedanta. His teachings are based on the unity of the soul and Brahman, in which Brahman is viewed as without attributes...
charya. Most Havyakas can trace their immediate ancestry to either Shivamogga,
Dakshina KannadaDakshina Kannada , , is a coastal Karnataka district in the state of Karnataka in India. It is bordered by Udupi District to the north, Chikkamagaluru district to the northeast, Hassan District to the east, Kodagu to the southeast, and Kasaragod District in Kerala to the south...
and
Uttara KannadaUttara Kannada , also known as North Canara or North Kanara, is a district in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is bordered by the state of Goa and Belgaum District to the north, Dharwad District and Haveri District to the east, Shimoga District and Udupi District to the south and the...
or districts of Karnataka and
Kasaragod districtKasaragod is one of the districts of the Indian state of Kerala.Kasaragod District was organised as a separate district on 24 May 1985. It is the northernmost district of Kerala.- Overview :...
of Kerala.
Etymology
The word Havyaka was transcended from words Havyaga or Haveega which means the one who performs Havana (Havya) and
HomaHoma is a Sanskrit word which refers to any ritual in which making offerings into a consecrated fire is the primary action...
(Gavya), since the very purpose of Havyaka Brahmins was to perform the royal
ritualA ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value, which is prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. The term usually excludes actions which are arbitrarily chosen by the performers, or dictated purely by logic, chance, necessity, etc..A ritual may be...
s and the related functions of the empirical government. In ancient times the region of today's
Uttara KannadaUttara Kannada , also known as North Canara or North Kanara, is a district in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is bordered by the state of Goa and Belgaum District to the north, Dharwad District and Haveri District to the east, Shimoga District and Udupi District to the south and the...
between
KonkanThe Konkan , also called the Konkan Coast or Karavali, is a rugged section of the western coastline of India from Raigad to Mangalore...
in the north &
TuluvaThe Tuluvas are an linguistic ethnic group native to the Tulu Nadu region of India, presently divided amongst the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, the Udupi district of Karnataka and the Kasaragod Taluk of Kerala. They are the native speakers of the Tulu Dravidian language...
in the south was known by the name of Haiva. This could be the possible source of the term 'Haiga' as Havyakas are also referred to. In fact, the name "Haiga" persists in Havyaka
lexiconIn linguistics, the lexicon of a language is its vocabulary, including its words and expressions. More formally, it is a language's inventory of lexemes....
.
The word Havyaka might also be derived from the place named Haigunda. That region of Karnataka which has been inhabited by Havyakas from ancient times is also called
ParashuramaParashurama , a Brahmin, the sixth avatar of Vishnu, belongs to the Treta yuga, and is the son of Jamadagni and Renuka. Parashu means axe, hence his name literally means Rama-of-the-axe...
kshethra, Gorastradesha,
GokarnaGokarna is a village in the Uttara Kannada district of the Karnataka state, India. It is a Hindu pilgrimage centre as well as a tourist destination in India. Gokarna is a temple town and is referred to in a number of Hindu historical literature pieces...
mandala.
Origin of Havyakas
Exact facts about Havyaka's origin are hard to come by since there is very little research available. Historically, it is believed that Havyakas are the first of the Brahmin kind to descend to the present day Karnataka around 3rd century ACE, followed by other sects like
ShivalliThe brahmins who follow Dvaita philosophy founded by Vaishnava saint Sri Madhvacharya of Udupi are known as Shivalli Madhwa Brahmins. Not all follow Madhwa's philosophy. Some Shivalli Brahmins follow Advaita philosophy of Adi Sankaracharya and are known as Shivalli Smartha Brahmins...
,
SmarthaSmartism is a denomination of the Hindu religion. The term Smarta refers to adherents who follow the Vedas and Shastras. They mainly follow the Advaita Vedanta philosophy of Adi Shankara...
etc., who arrived much later, around 7th century ACE. However, the scientific school of thought places the date of Havyaka's immigration back to about 1300 years ago. The Brahmin king
MayooravarmaMayurasharma , a Brahmin scholar and a native of Talagunda , was the founder of the Kadamba Kingdom of Banavasi, the earliest native kingdom to rule over what is today the modern state of Karnataka, India. He took the name of Mayuravarma to emphasise his change from the Brahmin to the Kshatriya...
was instrumental in bringing the first Havyaka families. It is believed that
KadambasThe Kadamba Dynasty was an ancient royal family of Karnataka that ruled from Banavasi in present day Uttara Kannada district. The dynasty later continued to rule as a feudatory of larger Kannada empires, the Chalukya and the Rashtrakuta empires for over five hundred years during which time they...
brought many Havyakas in to perform the royal rituals and the related functions of the empirical government from a place called
AhichchathraThis article is about the kingdom of Panchala during the epic-ages. For the historical kingdom, see Panchala.Panchala Kingdom extended from Himalayas in the north to river Charmanwati in the south during the period of Mahabharata. It had Kuru, Surasena and Matsya kingdoms to the west and the forest...
in the state of
Uttar PradeshUttar Pradesh , [often referred to as U.P.] is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 190 million people,...
. There is a suggestion that this is somewhere in the
NainitalNainital is a town in the Indian state of Uttarakhand and headquarters of Nainital district in the Kumaon foothills of the outer Himalayas...
district of
UttarakhandUttarakhand , is a state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out of Himalayan and adjoining districts of Uttar Pradesh on 9 November 2000, becoming the 27th state of the Republic of India...
. Thus the first few families were settled in
BanavasiBanavasi is an ancient temple town in Uttara Kannada District bordering Shivamogga district in the south Indian state of Karnataka.-History:Banavasi is one of the oldest towns in the Karnataka state...
, the capital of the Kadambas and the place adored by
PampaPampa , also known as Adikavi Pampa , is one of the greatest Kannada poets of all time. He was born either in Annigeri or Banavasi, in modern Karnataka state, or in Vemulavada, Karimnagar District in modern Andhra Pradesh, and was the court poet of Chalukya King Arikesari, a Rashtrakuta feudatory...
. King
Mayooravarma'sMayurasharma , a Brahmin scholar and a native of Talagunda , was the founder of the Kadamba Kingdom of Banavasi, the earliest native kingdom to rule over what is today the modern state of Karnataka, India. He took the name of Mayuravarma to emphasise his change from the Brahmin to the Kshatriya...
act of inviting Havyakas to Banavasi has been inscribed on a stone slab (
ShilashasanaAn epitaph is a short text honoring a deceased person, strictly speaking that inscribed on their tombstone or plaque, but also used figuratively. Some are specified by the dead person beforehand, others chosen by those responsible for the burial...
) from the period of the Kadambas, which now lies near the village of Varadahalli in
Sagar TalukSagara is a town located in the district of Shimoga of the Indian state of Karnataka. Located within the Western Ghats range, it is known for its proximity to Jog Falls and to the historical places of Ikkeri and Keladi. Varadamoola, the origin of the river Varada, is also near...
of Shimoga district. The descendants and associates of Parshuram are called
Tyagi BrahminsTyagi is a Brahmin community and surname from the northern part of the Indian subcontinent. Tyagis are Hindus.The word 'Tyagi' is derived from the Sanskrit 'tyag', meaning "to sacrifice" or, "one who has renounced"...
in Western
U.PUttar Pradesh , [often referred to as U.P.] is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 190 million people,...
.,
Bhumihar BrahminsBhumihar or Babhan or Bhuin-har is a upper caste mainly found in the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh. The Bhumihars are classified in the Brahmin varna of Hinduism but this claim has been contested by some...
in eastern U.P. and
BiharBihar is a state in eastern India. Bihar is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at 38,202 sq mi , and 3rd largest by population. Close to 85 percent of the population lives in villages...
, Havyaka Brahmins in Karnataka and Brahmins in Kerala. They have same
AryanAryan is an English language loanword denoting variously*in historical or dated usage,**the Indo-Iranian languages and their speakers, viz. the Iranian and Indo-Aryan peoples**the Indo-European languages more generally and their speakers,...
looks, customs and practices.
Havyakas today
Most of the Havyakas of today follow
Ramachandrapura Math"Sri Sri Jagadguru Shankaracharya Mahasamstanam SriSamstana Gokarna Shree Ramachandrapura Matha" is a Hindu religious establishment that was established in Gokarna by Shree Shankaracharya for the propagation of Sanathana Dharma...
or
Swarnavalli MuttAdi Shankaracharya established 4 Maths in the four cardinal directions of Bharat Varsha. Those are Sri Dwaraka Peetham, Sri Sharada Peetham at Sringeri Karnataka, Sri Jyotirmatha Peetham at Badarikashram in North and Sri Govardhan Peetham in Jagannatha Puri at East...
and are guided by advaita philosophy of Shankaracharya, however the community contains non-believers as well, and respects their rights also. Till recently Havyakas were primarily engaged in
agricultureAgriculture is the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of human civilization, with the husbandry of domesticated animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more densely populated and...
especially growing
betel nutThe Areca nut is the seed of the Areca palm , which grows in much of the tropical Pacific, Asia, and parts of east Africa.-Description:...
,
paddyA paddy field is a flooded parcel of arable land used for growing rice and other semiaquatic crops. Rice can also be grown in dry-fields, but from the twentieth century paddy field agriculture became the dominant form of growing rice...
,
bananaBanana is the common name for a herbaceous plants of the genus Musa, and the commonly eaten fruit it produces. They are native to the tropical region of Southeast Asia, and are likely to have been first domesticated in Papua New Guinea. Today, they are cultivated throughout the tropics.Banana...
,
coconutThe Coconut Palm is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only species in the genus Cocos, and is a large palm, growing to 30 m tall, with pinnate leaves 4–6 m long, pinnae 60–90 cm long; old leaves break away cleanly leaving the trunk smooth. The term coconut refers to the seed of the...
etc., while some practiced
vedicThe Vedas are a large body of texts originating in Ancient India. The texts are composed in Vedic Sanskrit and form the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature, and the oldest sacred texts of Hinduism....
professions like
priestA priest or priestess is a person having the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities. Their office or position is the priesthood, a term which may also apply to such persons collectively.Priests and priestesses...
s. A few decades back they also started entering into other vocations like business,
educationEducation in its broadest sense is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability of an individual...
,
employmentEmployment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. An employee may be defined as: "A person in the service of another under any contract of hire, express or implied, oral or written, where the employer has the power or right to control and direct...
etc. During Indian freedom struggle, Havyaka community played a prominent part. Men and women took leading role in
Salt SatyagrahaThe Salt Satyagraha was a campaign of nonviolent protest against the British salt tax in colonial India which began with the Salt March to Dandi on March 12, 1930. It was the first act of organized opposition to British rule after Purna Swaraj, the declaration of independence by the Indian National...
and No-Tax Campaign. Dodmane Hegdes of
SiddapurSiddapur is a panchayat town in Uttara Kannada district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located near the town of Sirsi.-Geography:Siddapur is located at . It has an average elevation of 564 metres ....
had an important role in freedom movement at all stages.
Geographic distribution
Havyakas are mainly concentrated in the state of Karnataka. Dakshina Kannada,
UdupiUdupi district in the Karnataka state of India was created in August 1997. The three northern taluks, Udupi, Kundapur and Karkal, were separated from Dakshina Kannada District to form Udupi district. Udupi is famous for Ashta Matha, i.e. eight Matts and Sri Krishna Temple. Udupi is also one of...
, Uttara Kannada, Shimoga,
ChikmagalurChikkamagaluru is a district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Chikkamagaluru is where coffee was first cultivated in India. The mountains here which are a part of the Western Ghats are the source of rivers like Tunga and Bhadra. Chikkamagaluru district also contains Mullayanagiri; which is the...
and
KodaguKodagu is a district of Karnataka State in southern India. It is also known by its anglicised name of Coorg. It occupies about 4,100 square kilometers of land in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 5,48,561, with some 13.74% of the population residing in...
districts in Karnataka and Kasaragod and
PalakkadPalakkad District or Palghat is one of the 14 districts of Kerala state in South India. The city of Palakkad is the district headquarters. Palakkad is bordered on the northwest by the Malappuram District and on the southwest by the Thrissur District. The district is 13.62% urbanised...
districts in Kerala are the districts where Havyakas have lived for centuries. They are now spread all over India, especially in metropolitan cities of
BangaloreBangalore , also known as Bengaḷūru , is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and fifth-most populous urban agglomeration.Though historical references to the city predate 900...
,
MumbaiMumbai, formerly Bombay, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. The city proper is the most-populous in the world, with approximately 14 million inhabitants. Along with the neighbouring suburbs of Navi Mumbai and Thane, it forms the world's 4th largest urban agglomeration, with around...
,
New DelhiNew Delhi is the capital of India. It is situated within the metropolis of Delhi and serves as the seat of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi....
and other industrial and business centres. Havyakas are also in large numbers in countries like United States of America,
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
and other places outside India.
Unlike the
ShivalliThe brahmins who follow Dvaita philosophy founded by Vaishnava saint Sri Madhvacharya of Udupi are known as Shivalli Madhwa Brahmins. Not all follow Madhwa's philosophy. Some Shivalli Brahmins follow Advaita philosophy of Adi Sankaracharya and are known as Shivalli Smartha Brahmins...
or
Kota BrahminsKota Brahmins hail from the Kundapur and surrounding areas of Udupi district in Karnataka. Originally, thought to have been brought to these places from northern India by Parashurama, they speak a Kannada different from the other dialects spoken in that region.Kota Brahmins are more specifically...
of the same locality (who mostly got into the hotel business and moved into various parts of India), the initial migration of the Havyakas was quite limited - to the cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru,
PunePune , formerly known as Punawadi or Punya-Nagari or Poona, is the eighth largest city in India, and the second largest in the state of Maharashtra, after Mumbai...
,
ChennaiChennai , formerly known as , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the fifth most populous city in India. Located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, Chennai city had a population of 4.34 million in the 2001...
, Delhi only - and to some extent, to the towns in the neighbouring Deccan areas (e.g., Hubli,
KolhapurKolhapur is a city situated in the south west corner of Maharashtra, India. The population of Kolhapur city was 4,93,167, as per the 2001 census. Kolhapaur also serves as the headquarters of the Kolhapur District. As is the case in most of the Maharashtra cities, the main language spoken here is...
,
Hospet----Hosapete, formerly Hospet is a city in Bellary District in northern Karnataka, India. Hosapete is on the Tungabhadra River, 12 km from Hampi, the site of the ruins of the medieval city of Vijayanagara, former capital of the Vijayanagar Empire. The Tungabhadra Dam is here and was built in the...
etc). Mostly they established themselves into the betel nut trading business there. During the second half of the 20th century, the younger generation of the Havyakas got educated and moved into all parts of India - and also abroad - mostly to USA, UK and to the Gulf countries. Now there is a significant level of Havyaka community in Mumbai and Bengaluru. Even then, the migration of the Havyakas is on a much smaller scale in comparison to the other communities like Saraswat Brahmin (of the same locality) and the
IyersIyer is the name given to Hindu Brahmins of Tamil or Telugu origin who are followers of the Advaita philosophy propounded by Adi Shankara...
(of
Tamil NaduTamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai . Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by Puducherry , Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh...
). Most of such migrated Havyakas still have roots in their original homeland.
Population
Population of Havyakas all around the world is estimated to be about 6,00,000. Similar to the other contemporary communities, the Havyakas too have been found migrating from villages to the cities constantly. Urbanization has been the root cause of several social problems and irregularities in the original rural locations (e.g., increase in the average age of the population, scarcity of skilled & able-bodied manpower, imbalance of male-female ratio etc).
Surnames
Havyakas derive their last names from the jobs that they perform rather than by their origin. Names include Bhat, Hegde, Hebbar, Rao, Shastri, Sharma, Pandit, Sabhahit, Joisa etc. and some surnames are derived from the name of the town/village.
Language
The Havyakas are united by their unique language. They speak a
dialectThe term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by scholars of language. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other...
of
KannadaKannada is one of the major Dravidian languages of India, spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka. Kannada, whose native speakers are called Kannadigas , number roughly 38 million, making it the 27th most spoken language in the world...
known as
HavigannadaHavigannada or Havyaka Bhaashe or Havyaka Kannada is the native language of Havyakas. It is a dialect of Kannada. Although it is similar to the mainstream Kannada, it is closer to ancient Kannada and hence, many Kannadigas are not able to fully comprehend it.- Usage :Havigannada is used only by...
(Havyaka+Kannada). It is 60-70% similar to mainstream Kannada but draws more words from
ancient KannadaHalegannada is the Kannada language which has transformed from the fifth century CE during the reign of the Kadambas of Banavasi .The Modern Kannada language has evolved in four phases over the years...
. However, most mainstream Kannada speakers find it difficult to understand Havyaka Kannada. The Havyaka dialect is supposed to be quite old. Its origins, like many other things in India, are shrouded in mystery. Notably certain
HavigannadaHavigannada or Havyaka Bhaashe or Havyaka Kannada is the native language of Havyakas. It is a dialect of Kannada. Although it is similar to the mainstream Kannada, it is closer to ancient Kannada and hence, many Kannadigas are not able to fully comprehend it.- Usage :Havigannada is used only by...
speakers, uses
neutral genderIn linguistics, grammatical genders, sometimes also called noun classes, are classes of nouns reflected in the behavior of associated words; every noun must belong to one of the classes and there should be very few which belong to several classes at once....
in place of feminine gender while addressing females. But Havyaks in certain part of Karnataka, like Kundapur, Thirthahalli, Kodagu do not speak Havigannada. Havyakas love Yakshagana. Their contribution to Yakshagana literature is immense.
Caste
Havyakas are the subsect of the Brahmin caste of
HinduismHinduism is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as ', a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal law", by its adherents. Generic "types" of Hinduism that attempt to accommodate a variety of complex views span folk and Vedic Hinduism to bhakti tradition, as...
, followers of Sri Adi Shankaracharya's Advaitha philosophy.
Havyaka festivals
Havyakas celebrate almost all festivals celebrated in Hinduism based on the region they settled.