Because the castes mentioned below described themselves as the sub-castes of Nair community, they were known as 'low caste Nairs' in the pre-independence era. There was also hierarchy between these castes. Actually, these castes were different communities with distinctive characteristics.
Chakkāla Mārān
Chakkala Maran, presently known as Chakkala Nair, were the pressers of oil for use in Temples. Their title was Pulva. In Travancore, they are called Chakkalans and in Malabar they are called Vattakādans. In the Census report of 1921, it is stated that, "The Chakkalans who have been agitating for being treated as
Asthikurichi Mārān
Asthikurichi Maran, also known as Sheethikan, were the priests or instructors of funeral rituals performed by Nairs. Like Pulikkal caste they too are a sub-division of Mārān community. I don't know if Mārān community and Mārār community are same or not.
Chāliyan
Chaliyan, also known as Shaliya, was a caste of merchants. They are migrants from Karnataka and in Kerala they are mostly found in northern Malabar. In Karnataka, they are also known as Nayige.
Maṇiyāni
Like Chaliyan, Maniyani are also migrants from Karnataka. In Karnataka, they are known as Maniyani Yadav. They belong to the Kolari caste of Dakshina Kannada. They were brought to Kerala by the British Military during the period of East India company to supply milk to their regiment. Some members of this caste use the title Nayudu.
Vāṇiya
Vaniya, also known as Vaniyan, Vanika, Ayiravar, Nagarathar, is a division of Chettis. Their traditional occupation was oil-pressing. In the recent Census reports their caste name is written as Vaniya Nair and Vaniya Chettiar. Their caste deity is Sree Muppidatiamman whose Temple is in Kottar market, Nagarkovil, Tamil Nadu.
Paḍamangalam and Tamil Paḍam
Padamangalam and Tamil Padam are the migrants from Tamil country. Tamil Padam or Padamangalam, formed the Devadasis in the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple at Thiruvananthapuram. In Tamil Nadu, the Devadasis did not belong to a single caste but were drawn from diverse groups like the Melakkarar, Nayanakkarar, Nattuvanar and the Sengunthar. In the early twentieth century these caste groups assumed the name Isai Vellalar which meant the cultivators of music.
Nānjilnādu Veḷḷāla
Nanjilnadu Vellala is a caste found in Nanjilnadu. Nanjilnadu is a region in eastern part of Kanyakumari district. Some of the families of this caste accepted matrilineal system of inheritance and changed their caste name to Nanjilnadu Nair. I don't know if some members of this community still describe their caste as Nair but today Nanjilnadu Vellala is known as a different community.
Viḷakkithala
Vilkkithala, also known as Velakkithala and Velakkathara is a caste in which the male members used to work as barbers and female members used to work as mid-wives. In the old Census reports their caste name in written as Vilakkithalavan. It is simalar to the Nai(Naayee) community of northern India. This community is mainly found in southern Malabar and Travancore. In northern Malabar, the male members of Mārān or Mārāyan community worked as barbers.
A proverb says that Mārāyan has four privileges :-
1) Pani, or drum, beaten with the hand.
2) Koni, or bier, i.e., making of the bier.
3) Natumittam, or shaving
4) Thirumittam, or sweeping the Temple courts.
Veḷuthédathu
Veluthedathu, also known as Veluthedon or Veluthedan, is a caste whose traditional occupation was washing clothes for Brahmans and rulers. The name is believed to signify a place where clothes are bleached. In Castes and Tribes of Southern India it is stated that, "A person who is in the condition of impurity is temporarily outcasted. This applies to Nambuthiris, Nairs as well as to Thiyans. Now the washerwoman is invariably of Thiyan caste. There are Mannans whose hereditary occupation is washing clothes for Nambuthiris and Nairs, but, for the most part, the washerwoman who washes for Nair lady is of the Thiyan caste."
Ānthur
Anthur is a community in Kerala mostly found in Kozhikode(Calicut) and Kannur districts. Their name is derived from Andur, a place which was once a fief under the Samoothiri(Zamorin) of Kozhikode. Odan, Kulalan, Anthru Nair, Andra Nair, Mannu Nair, Velar etc are other names. Their traditional occupation was making earthen pots and tiles. It is not clear when they began using the title Nair.
Chāranavar
Charanavar, which is also called Charna Nair, is a caste mostly found in northern Malabar. The sub-divisions of this caste are Akathu Charnavar and Purathu Charnavar. The Purathu Charnavar were the armed retainers of the various chieftains while the Agathu Charnavar were the personal and domestic servants. In caste hierarchy, their position was above Pallichan. I don't know much about this caste but religious Nagavanshi Nair women do not marry from this caste too. The Illathu Nairs of southern Malabar are known as Malabari Shudra Nairs.
From centuries, all castes did only their traditional occupations for living and because of that their financial statuses were unequal. But in the time of British rule, some Hindu spiritual leaders decided to make improvements in the Hindu community. They fought against the class-system which was introduced in India in the beginning of foreign invasion and encouraged the people of all castes to get modern education instead of getting trained in their traditional occupations only. Gradually, the number of white-collar workers began increasing in all castes. Every person who was not having any title was given title according to his profession. For example, 'Nair' to all those who worked as soldiers, 'Menon' to all those who worked as accountants, etc. From there began a misconception that families with same surname belong to same community because the castes which are neither Brahmin nor Nair had very little knowledge about the Nair community.
Reference: Census of India, 1961 - Volume 7, A. M. Abraham Ayrookuzhiel. The Sacred in Popular Hinduism: An Empirical Study in Chirakkal, North Malabar. Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society, Bangalore (1983), Urari S
