Surnames Several Kamma surnames that end with neni denote the descent from an ancestor having the title Nayakudu/Nayudu/Nayuni. Other surnames indicate the villages to which the persons originally belonged to. Kammas use different titles in different regions such as Chowdary, Naidu, Rao and Naicker. In Tamil Nadu and Southern Andhra Pradesh, Naidu is commonly used. Naicker title is used in the areas south of Coimbatore district. However, Telugu speaking Kapu, Velama and other communities also use the titles Naidu and Naiker in Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, respectively. Sub-Divisions According to the census of British India (1891) there were six divisions viz., Peda Kamma, Godachatu Kamma and Illuvellani Kamma (Krishna, Guntur, Anantapur and North Arcot districts); Bangaru Kamma (North Arcot); Vaduga Kamma (Coimbatore) and Kavali Kamma (Godavari districts)[In addition, divisions such as Gandikota Kamma, Gampa Kamma and Macha Kamma also exist. In modern times these divisions have all but vanished. Religion While most of the Kammas are Hindus there were conversions to other religions/schools of thought such as Christianity, Atheism, Buddhism and Islam. Politics Kammas are politically active, especially in the Coastal Andhra region of Andhra Pradesh and parts of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. During the twentieth century a number of leaders like Prof N.G. Ranga, Kotha Raghuramaiah, Gottipati Brahmaiah, Moturu Hanumantha Rao and Kalluri Chandramouli played prominent roles in the national freedom movement. Several Kammas were also attracted to leftist ideals and joined the Communist Party. It was a strong political force in the state until the mid sixties. Many wealthy Kammas willingly relinquished their lands and actively worked for the land distribution reforms. This helped many landless individuals attain middle class status and brought about greater economic development of the state as a whole rather than to just one particular community. We are witnessing the benefits of this sacrifice now in the state as Andhra Pradesh has developed into an economic hub. However, their affinity towards the Communist party in the early days led them to lose political clout along with the diminished influence of the Communist party throughout the world. During the 1980s, they again played a key role in state and national politics with the inception of the Telugu Desam Party by its then President Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao also called as NTR Nara Chandrababu Naidu gave a progressive direction to Andhra Pradesh and won global recognition to the Telugu language and the state of Andhra Pradesh Crossroads The Kammas are at a crossroads, today. A large number of families has already transplanted themselves to urban centres in India and abroad. Their enterprising nature and hard work created a class of ‘neo-rich’. In villages, land reforms forced many Kammas to give away their lands to the government. Subsequently, land holdings got fragmented and presently most of the Kammas living in rural areas are small farmers. The vagaries of weather and a lack of good support prices made agriculture unremunerative. Loss of interest in agriculture and the lure of urban environment have only exacerbated the situation. There are impending signs of a gulf developing between the rural and urban Kammas. Development of collective and corporate agriculture in the near future may obviate this possible scenario kammajyothi.blogspot.in/2010/04/kammas.html
Posted on: Wed, 05 Nov 2014 15:03:35 +0000
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