About us
Nair Benevolent Association (NBA) was founded in 1981. It is a non profit association dedicated in various cultural, social, and charity activities for Malayalee communities based in Tri state areas. It conducts various charity functions which benefits various communities all around USA and India. These functions are free and open to everybody. NBA is supported by its generous members and friends whose donations help in running the association. All donations to NBA are tax deductible.
Who are Nairs?
The word 'Nair' means one who leads, a leader, a guardian, a teacher or a father. Nair is not a caste, but a society of the Dravidian culture.
Nair also known as Nayar or Malayala Kshatriya, is a name of one of the Hindu forward castes from the Indian state of Kerala. Before the British conquest in 1792, the Kerala region contained small, feudal kingdoms, in each of which the royal and noble lineages, the militia, and most land managers were drawn from the Nairs and related castes. Nairs were prominent in politics, government service, medicine, education, and law. Nairs constituted the rulers, warriors and landed gentry of Kerala (pre Indian-independence).
Nairs were traditionally matrilineal, which meant that the family traced its roots through the women in the family. The children inherited the property of their maternal family. Their family unit owned property jointly, and included brothers and sisters, the latter's children, and their daughters' children. The oldest man was legal head of the group and he was respected as the Karanavar of the family or Tharavadu (homestead). Rules of marriage and residence varied somewhat between kingdoms.
The Nairs are known for their martial history, including their involvement in Kalaripayattu and the role of Nair warriors in the Mamankam ritual. The Nairs were classed as a martial race by the British, but were de-listed after rebelling against them under Velu Thampi Dalawa. Thereafter, they were recruited in low numbers into the British Indian Army. Only Nairs were recruited into the Thiruvithamkoor Nair Pattalam (Travancore State Nair Army), until 1935 when non-Nairs were admitted. This State Force (known also as the Nair Brigade) was merged into the Indian Army after independence and became the 9th Battalion Madras Regiment, the oldest battalion in the Indian Army.
The Samanta Kshatriya Kolathiri and Travancore kingdoms have Nair heritage[ Herbert Wigram states that the Chirakkal Raja and the Travancore Raja belongs to branches of the same family and are representatives of the ancient Nāyar kings, perhaps the oldest aristocracy in the world. The Zamorin Raja was a Samanthan Nair and the Arakkal kingdom of Kannur, which was the only Muslim kingdom in the Kerala region, also had Nair origins. Nair feudal families such as the Ettuveetil Pillamar of Travancore and Paliath Achan of Kochi were extremely influential in the past and exerted great influence on the ruling clan.