Guardians of the Forest: The Cholanaiykan Tribe’s Living Heritage in the Southern Western Ghats

Abstract

The Cholanaikans, one of Kerala’s most secluded and diminutive scheduled tribes, inhabit the dense forests of the Nilambur Valley in Malappuram District. Known as ‘cave dwellers’ due to their traditional rock-shelter homes called “Alais”, they sustain a hunter-gatherer lifestyle deeply intertwined with the forest ecology. This study documents their history, social structure, subsistence patterns, cultural practices, and traditional medicinal knowledge, derived from field exploration and interviews with tribal elders. Their socio-political organization revolves around territorial kin groups led by hereditary chieftains, with a strict patrilineal and patrilocal family system. The Cholanaikans maintain distinctive ritual practices related to marriage, birth, and death, underscoring their unique cultural heritage. Despite increasing external influences, they continue to preserve their rich ethnobotanical knowledge and forest-based subsistence, marking them as vital guardians of the Southern Western Ghats' living heritage.