Ethnographic Description

on
TODA COMMUNITY’s MARRIAGE SYSTEM

BY:
MERAM AKHIL
MA Anthropology
1st Year
ETHNOGRAPHIC DATA OF THIS WORK:

• This ethnographic data is a secondary data

obtained through various sources like internet,
ethnographic researches and journals.
 ETHNOGRAPHY
Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of
individual  cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the
point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type
of social research that involves examining the behavior of the
participants in a given social situation and understanding the
interpretation of such behavior. As a form of inquiry, ethnography relies
heavily on participant observation of the researcher participating in the
setting or with the people being studied, at least in some marginal role,
and seeking to know in detail about the patterns of social interaction
and the perspectives of participants, and to understand these in their
local contexts.  Traditionally, ethnography has relied on the secondary
data, however now physical presence of the researcher in a setting is
needed. The research has relied on interviews or documents, field notes
and surveys. There is also a new variant of virtual or online
ethnography, sometimes called as netnography or cyber-ethnography {in
these pandemic times where participant observation is not possible}.
INTRODUCTION to TODA COMMUNITY:
• Toda people are a Dravidian ethnic group who live in
the Nilagiri Mountains of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
• Since the early 19th century the Toda have attracted "a most
disproportionate amount of attention because of their
ethnological aberrancy" and "their unlikeness to their
neighbours in appearance, manners, and customs".
• Primarily, they are a pastoral community. The forced
interaction with other peoples with technology has caused a
lot of changes in the lifestyle of the Toda’s.
• Now, they are increasingly venturing into agriculture and
other occupations. They used to be strict vegetarians but now,
some of their own community people eat meat.
INTRODUCTION to TODA COMMUNITY:
• They are a matrimonial community and a classical example of
fraternal polyandry {In this a woman is married to a group of
brothers. The children are treated as the offspring of the
eldest brother regardless of who the biological father is}.
• The Toda’s are pastoral community, so males engage in
herding, milking while females perform domestic chores and
thus males have superior status.
• The inferior status of females is directly proportional to their
negligible role in the economy.
• Their most popular form of the marriage is fraternal
polyandry.
MARRIAGE:
• “Marriage is a union between a man and a woman
such that the children born to the woman are
recognized as legitimate offspring of both partners”.
• Marriage is universal in every society. However each
society has their unique type of marriages.
• There are many types of marriages in every society.
• In this presentation we are focusing on the
“MARRIAGE SYSTEM OF TODA COMMUNITY”
 MARRIAGE SYSTEM OF TODA’s:
• Toda’s are matrimonial and practice fraternal
polyandry.
• It is the eldest who marries and the rest of the
brothers become husbands by force of custom. Even,
if the brothers want to marry another, the actual
bridegroom remains the same. Even if the husbands
are not brothers, the common wife adopts the role of
‘visiting wife’ and visits them once a month. Thus,
the conflict of jealousy will not arise.
 MARRIAGE SYSTEM OF TODA’s:
• The Toda’s practice child marriage. Sometimes, their marriage is
performed at the age of two or three. In these circumstances the parents
of the nascent bride and bridegroom settle the marriage and the bride
remains at her parents' house till she attains puberty. A custom reported
by earlier researchers but not easily verifiable today is quite important in
this context especially when we analyse the status of women in the Toda
society. It pertains to the initiation of the bride into sex life before she
actually attains puberty and sent to her husband's house. It has been
reported that just before, the bride attains puberty a ceremony is held in
which a young man of some other clan is invited to violate the 'chastity'
of the bride. Now sometime later her groom comes with clothes and
jewellery and takes away the bride to his house. Such practices may be
taken as a strong testimony to the fact that through such customs
women are made to believe that they are nothing but merely a chattel or
commodity which can be used by its owner in any manner he likes.
 MARRIAGE SYSTEM OF TODA’s:

• The above mentioned conditions lead the female into extra-marital

relations which eventually lead to the PROMISCUITY or free sex.
• Thus we can say that the Toda community is devoid of the notion
of CHASTITY or ADULTERY.
• Divorce is freely permitted in the Toda’s. however the
reason for divorce usually is laziness unlike ADULTERY. If
divorce happens, a man has to pay one buffalo as a
ransom and he gets back any gifts he has given as funeral
contributions.
• Familial and marriage disputes are usually settled by the
Chief of the tribe
 MARRIAGE CEREMONY OF TODA’s:
• Toda marriage ceremony of a couple is solemnized only after the
bride is conceived by a baby.
• They been practicing the traditional marriage style where
celebrations only starts after pregnancy.
• According to the tradition, the bride after marriage stays with her
husband for a month or two and then goes to her parents place.
And when she becomes pregnant, a joint ceremony takes place
called the bow and arrow ceremony.
• The groom goes to the forest and makes a bow and arrow from
the tender stems of the tree and presents it to his bride. If the
bride accepts it, that confirms that the baby in her womb is his
and she accepts him as her husband.
 MARRIAGE CEREMONY OF TODA’s:
• The ceremony organized at the beginning of the
seventh month of pregnancy, is marked by traditional
dance and songs by members with the clan wearing
colorful shawls.
• The ceremony which is conducted a day before the full
moon day also fascinated some of the foreign tourists
who witnessed it. The couple later take the blessings of
the elders. Some of these marriages are also arranged
when the two are still children.
 OBSERVATIONS:
• INCEST TABOO is absent and Promiscuity is allowed.
• Role of Women and Men is decided by the Economic Organization
and the type of their work. Although the Toda’s are matrilineal,
women are treated poorly.
• The children born through marriage are considered as the children
of whole tribe as the biological father cannot be determined.
• The descent of Toda’s can be traced through social/legal father
which was accepted through “Bow and Arrow Ceremony”.
• Through some government initiatives Toda’s are forcefully brought
into contact with mainstream communities.
• Thus from the above observations we can find that Toda’s living
conditions are still primitive. Although some variations are
happening due to diffusion of culture from contact with
mainstream communities.
 References:
• Nadeem,H., (1991), Tribal India,Delhi:Palka
Prakashan Publications.
• Marshall., William E.,(1873), Travels amongst the
Toda, or the study of a primitive tribe in South India,
London: Longmans, Green, and Co.
• Rivers, W. H. R.,(1906), The Toda’s, London:
Macmillan and Company.
• Thurston., Edgar,K., Rangachari.,(1909), Castes and
Tribes of Southern India, Madras: Government Press.