Beary

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Bearys
Total population
950,000+
Mappilas, Labbay

The Beary (also known as Byari) are a community concentrated along the southwest

Mangalore district of the south Indian state of Karnataka
.

The Beary community of

inhabitants of India, with a clear history of more than 950 years.[2]

Etymology

The word Beary is said[by whom?] to be derived from the Tulu word Byara, which means trade or business. Since the major portion of the community was involved in business activities, particularly trading, the local Tulu-speaking majority called them as Beary or Byari.[3]

Another popular theory is that the word Beary comes from

Tulunadu.[citation needed
]

A third theory says that the word Beary is derived from the root word Malabar. The Islamic

Other sources

Muslim conquerors came to North India.[citation needed
]

Noori disputes the claim that the first Muslims came to India along with

Malabar coast during the 7th century. Noori has quoted these and other sources to validate his argument that the Arab and other settlers came to India much before the Arab, Turk and Afghan conquerors came to North India.[citation needed
]

Language

The language spoken by Beary community is known as

Beary base (language).[5]
While the
Beary language is made of Tulu phonology and grammar with Malayalam idioms. Due to the trading role of the community, the language acquired loan words from other languages of Tulu, Malayalam, Kannada
and also from Perso-Arabic sources. This language was traditionally recognized as a dialect of Malayalam because of the similarities with Old Malayalam. Today Beary is considered as a separate language, close to Tulu and Malayalam.[6]

World Beary Convention

In April 2006, The World Beary Convention was held in Dubai under the banner World Beary Sammelana & Chammana 2006.[7] A similar event was held in 2010.[8]

Ornaments

The beary women have a love of ornaments and use them on occasions such as Mangila, Sunnat Mangila, Appate Mangila, Birnd, Moilanji and other social gatherings. There were different types of ornaments used by the Beary community in past which is at the verge of vanishing today due to the cultural invasion and urbanisation. These ornaments are made out of mainly gold and silver and used for the ornamentation of head, ears, neck, waist, wrist, fingers and feet. Beary research scholars are of the opinion that Beary ornaments were largely influenced by Jain ornament patterns. The ornament storage box used by Bearys was made out of brass and other metals was also used by Jain community and was called Kharjana by both Bearys and Jains.[9][need quotation to verify]

Cuisine

Poo-pole and pinde
Vodu-Pole on Mannudo-Vodu
Chekkero-Appa prepared in Thondhur

Beary cuisine is highly influenced by the South Indian cuisine. Just like Mangalorean cuisine it uses a lot of

curry leaves, ginger, chilli and spices like pepper and cardamom. Beary cuisine includes a type of biryani which is very different from types made elsewhere. Rice preparations, both fresh and dry fish, meat and eggs feature in Beary daily menus.[citation needed
]

Beary literature

The Beary Sahitya Academy is an association of

Beary-speaking people located mainly in Tulu Nadu, which includes the coastal districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi in Karnataka state and Kasaragod in Kerala state.[citation needed
] In 2022, the foundation-laying ceremony for the construction of a new building for Karnataka Beary Sahitya Academy at Thokkottu was held. [10]

Beary organisations

Karnataka Beary Sahithya Academy

With the establishment of Karnataka Beary Sahithya Academy, the language got formal recognition and academic status from the government of Karnataka. This led to a boom in Beary literary and cultural activities and a script was developed for the language in 2020.   

The main motive of the Academy is to reckon the rich culture and heritage of Bearys and to cultivate and motivate the emerging young talents in the Beary community. By creating awareness of Beary culture, language and literature, the Academy aims to accomplish its goal in overall development of Beary language to build a healthy society.

In 2022, the foundation-laying ceremony for the construction of a new building for Karnataka Beary Sahitya Academy at Thokkottu was held. [10]

Bearys Welfare Association

In 2010, the Bearys Welfare Association, based in

Bengaluru, distributed 80 scholarships for the needy.[11]

Bearys Welfare Forum

The Bearys Welfare Forum (BWF) of

Bearys Cultural Forum

Bearys Cultural Forum, in the United Arab Emirates, was constituted to provide education to the people of the coastal parts of the State of Karnataka. BCF's main objective is to promote, educate and create social, cultural and educational awareness amongst the Bearys and the population of the coastal Karnataka State and the UAE. The BCF regularly conducts cultural, sports, talent search, educational activities, Career Guidance Seminars, Iftar Party, etc. every year. BCF also provides educational scholarships to students for pursuing their higher studies in the field of Medicines, Engineering, Pharmacy, Business, Nursing, Journalism, Dentistry, etc.[citation needed]

In April 2012, 'Chammana 2012' hosted by Bearys Cultural Forum, Dubai, at the Radisson Blue Hotel, Dubai, attracted more than 1,200 people to its programme.[16]

In August 2018, BCF distributed scholarship to the downtrodden community.[17]

References

Other sources

  • Bearys of the coast, Article in Deccan Herald 12 December 1997 by B.M. Hanif.
  • Muslims in Dakshina Kannada: a historical study up to 1947 and survey of recent developments, Author Wahab Doddamane, A. Green Words publication. Mangalore, 1993.
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