about reddys

Reddy
Languages	Telugu Tamil Kannada

Reddy (also transliterated as Reddi, Raddi, Roddy, Ruddy) is an elite social group or caste of India, predominantly inhabiting Andhra Pradesh. They are enlisted as a forward caste by the government. Traditionally, they are a high-caste community of nobility, warriors and cultivator According to academics, they were a warrior caste in the remote past and later became feudal overlords and peasant proprietors

Historically they have been the land-owning aristocracy of the villages.Their prowess as rulers and warriors is well documented in Telugu history. The Reddy dynasty (1325 - 1448 CE) ruled coastal and central Andhra for over a hundred years.The origin of the social group of Reddys has been linked to the Rashtrakuta.
Reddys regard Telugu as their mother tongue. According to the 1921 census, they constituted 6.5% of the population of Andhra Pradesh.

Etymology

The word Reddy derives from the great "Rathis" or "Rattis", also known as the "Rattas" or "Rashtrikas"  who ruled the Deccan from ancient times

Varna status

The varna designation of Reddys is a contested and complex topic. Even after the introduction of the varna concept to south India, caste boundaries in south India were not as marked as in north India, where the four-tier varna system placed the priestly Brahmins on top followed by the Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras. In south India, on the other hand, there existed only three distinguishable classes, the Brahmins, the non-Brahmins and the Dalits
 The two intermediate dvija varnas, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas did not exist.

The ruling castes of south India such as Reddysand Nairs held a status in society analogous to the Kshatriyas and Vaishyas of the north with the difference that religion did not sanctify themi.e. they were not accorded the status of Kshatriyas and Vaishyas by the Brahmins in the Brahmanical varna system. Historically, land-owning castes like the Reddys have belonged to the regal ruling classes and are analogous to the Kshatriyas of the Brahmanical society.

The Brahmins, on top of the hierarchical social order, viewed the ruling castes of the south like the Reddys, Nairs and Vellalars as sat-Shudras meaning shudras of "true being”. Sat-shudras are also known as clean shudras, upper shudras, pure or high-caste shudras This classification and the four-tier varna concept was never accepted by the ruling castes and the latter challenged the authority of the Brahmins who described them as shudras.

Reddys ruled many local dominions (samsthanams) until the British seized their power.The British appointed Reddys as zamindars and tax collectors. They were also enlisted in the British army. One of most prominent figures from the community during the British period is Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy. He challenged the British and led an armed rebellion against the British East India company in 1846. He was finally captured and hanged in 1847. His uprising was one of the earlier rebellions against the British rule in India as it was 10 years before the famous Indian Rebellion of 1857.

Zamindaris

Some of the prominent Reddy zamindaris/samsthanams:

• Amarchinta
• Chundi
• Domakonda
• Gadwal – Raja Somasekhar Ananda Reddy or Somanadri
• Munagala – Gurlapaty clan
• Vardhamanapuram — Gona clan
• Wanaparthy (Originally known as Sugur) – Founded by Veera Krishna Reddy