Matriarchal System

Historians had called Kerala as Penn Malayalam, “the Malayala land of women” in the olden times. This was due to the Matriarchal system which was prevalent in those times in many divisions of Hindu society mainly the Nair community. Matriarchal system is nothing but the hereditary is maintained through the women members of the family and the properties are exchanged to only the daughters in the subsequent generations.

This practice was a rare in the whole world history. Here, mostly within the large and powerful Nair caste , it was the female head of the family who was ruling the house.. Not on royal thrones with big armies but as heads of giant households–positions often more powerful. Women were educated, respected, moved about without fear or censure, participated occupationally wherever they wished, and handled the entire property of the family.

After the wedding , the girl does not go to her husband’s home, as is the common practice among Hindus. Here the opposite occurs. It is the man who comes and lives with her and her family. In fact, only on very special occasions would she ever visit his family’s house.

The senior female member is the head of this tarwad, a sprawling matriarchic residential complex with its own temple, water-well, orchards, gardens, and a lot of agricultural land. The senior male member, called karanavan(the senior lady’s brother), looked after the basic affairs of the house and implemented decisions made in consultation with the senior lady.

This system really protected women, insured their welfare and nurtured their happiness as being central to society’s well-being. For example the birth of a girl was a cause for jubilation, in the family.

In the modern times, even though there are some changes, majority of the hindu households and families still keep the traditions and hence women get more prominence in the ancient heritage house, Tarawad.

An example of division of family property , which was practiced during the matriarchy is given in the below picture.