J. A. R. Stevenson and W. G. Maxwell

“ On that day killing a hog, and procuring liquor, they make báji. They wash the feet of the child. The Jáni being come, he ties a cord from the haft to the point of a sickle; they divine by means of it. Having assembled the Petrilu (literally ancestors, but here denoting household images, or gods) they put rice on the sickle. As the names (of the ancestors? or family?) are repeated in order, each time the rice is put on, that name is chosen on the mention of which the sickle moves, and is given to the child. They then drink liquors, and eat báji. They give rice and flesh to the Jáni. ”

“ The word for cow has in it the Sanscrit root go, or gau. The term for goat is like the Telugu (Tamil characters) venta, a sheep or goat: it must I think be the same word. The word for birds, cutting off the plural termination, is the Telugu (Indic characters) petta a bird. The next word for animal, is Sanscrit, Telugu, and Tamil, common I believe throughout India. For fowl the word is the Tamil, (Tamil characters) corzi, the Telugu letters expressing an imitation of the Tamil sound: the retaining this Tamil peculiarity is favourable to an inference as to the Tamil origin of the Khoonds. ”

“ The Khonds never sacrifice a criminal, or a prisoner captured in war. It must always be purchased—the price paid is from 60 to 200 Rupees, and the price is paid either in brass vessels, cattle, or coin, or partly in each.
The Janee or priest (who may be of any caste) officiates at the sacrifice, but he performs the pooja offering of incense, flowers, &c. to the idol, through the medium of the Toomba, who must be a Khond child under seven years of age. This child is fed and clothed at the public expense, and eats with no other person, and is not subjected to any act deemed impure. ”

“ In the rest there is a tolerable sprinkling of words, which are synonimous with Teluga or Tamil words. The Udiya dialect is seen at a glance, to be derived from the Mágadha, or Bengal and Babar dialects, if not from the Hindustani, to which it has a frequent resemblance, some times amounting to identity. But I look upon the Udiya (or Wodiah) to be more modern than the Khoond speech. The word for milk may be noted as being in Udiya, the same as in Telugu, and nearly the same as in Tamil, while Pádú, as the Khoonds have it, shews a variation, which would give a different sense in Tamil ”

“ The word for eyes is Tamil, with a slight difference in the plural termination, as before noticed. The word for ear in Sanscrit is srava, in Telugu, sevata, in Tamil sevi, in the Todar dialect of the Neilgherries kevi, in the Khoond dialect, crìvu, in Tamil the word hearing is கெள்வி kelvi shewing that s is changeable into k, as is indeed the case with some other words. ”

“ The term for river would seem to be only a dialectic variation of the Tamil நதி nathi, (vulgó nuddee, and nullah) a word which, coming from the Sanscrit, is found in all Hindu languages. The words for tank, stone, man, seem to come from the Hindustani, or possibly from the Udiya language of the province of Orissa. The word for mother is a slight variation from a Tamil word of like meaning, though now not much used. Abba, for father is found in Hebrew, Syriac, Telugu, Tamil, and in some of the dialects of the islands in the eastern archipelago ”

“ Besides the annual sacrifice, human victims are offered up by Mootas, or by individuals, to avert any threatening calamity arising from sickness, murrain, or other causes. The victims may be of any caste, or sex, or age; (I have not however heard of an instance of Khonds being sacrificed) : but grown males are the most esteemed, because the most costly. ”

“ The Khonds and others dance round the post to music, and addressing the earth, say, "O god! we sacrifice to you, give us good crops and seasons and health." Then the victim is addressed—"We have bought you with a price, not seized you, and now sacrifice you according to custom. No sin rests on us." On the following day the victim is intoxicated with toddy again, and anointed with oil. Each individual present touches the anointed part, and wipes the oil on his own head. ”

“ I may add as regards the name adverted to at the commencement of this digest, that the hand writing sometimes leaves it uncertain whether the word by which they are designated should be Cádulu, or Codulu, but from the way in which the á is sometimes written, I think it is not meant to be introduced into the word, which is I believe Codalu; but I make the remark that I may not wilfully lead into error. I am not sure if the she-buffalo often mentioned may not be a cow; which, however, a Hindu would not like to acknowledge. As to the term Baji it is to me unintelligible. ”

“ I am told that people from the north speak of the khoi mountaineers as wild, deformed, and of vindictive character; so much so, that it is not safe to speak to one of them, as a real or imaginary affront is never forgiven, but if possible is avenged with blood. They are also said to be potent in the use of charms, and incantations; but these may be idle tales. One cannot, however, but remark their dissolute and drunken habits, as in most semi-barbarous people ”

“ However not to dwell on such things, nor on resemblances to customs heretofore among the South-sea-islanders, we may advance to that sacrifice which is briefly alluded to at the close, the merria sacrifice, on that of a human victim. ”

“ Hogs and other animals are killed, and liquors brought, when they prepare báji (supposed from the use of the word in another place to be a son of olio, or mixed dish) and all partake of it. From this day forward, the parties are considered to be man and wife. They beat on drums; they give to the Jáni, rice, flesh, and liquor, and send him away. ”

“ Before proceeding I must premise, for the information of some readers, that it has been a question among learned Orientalists, whether the refined Sanscrit was the parent of the common Hindi, the latter being a corruption, or whether the Hindi formed the basis or substratum of a common Indian language, adopted by the Brahmans on their entry into Hindustan, but polished by improvements and enriched by the addition of scientific and other terms, especially astrological ones, brought with them on their emigration. ”

“ If the deceased were of any consequence, dancers come, and dance to the sound of their drums; to whom some animal is given, which they take and go away. Subsequently on the twelfth-day, they carry a hog to the spot where the body was burned; and after perambulating the site of the pyre, return to their home; where they kill the hog in the place set apart for their household gods; and procuring liquor, they make báji ”

“ Booddee for daughter is the Sanscrit putri, slightly corrupted. Aupoe for son, is perhaps none other than the familiar domestic term of endearment அபபாவு appavu, only used in addressing a male-child. కుడువ coodoova is the Telugu word కోడలు codalu, a daughter-in-law. The word for son-in-law seems merely a corruption of the Sanscrit jamalu, having the same meaning. Behah is also a mere dialectic variation from the Sanscrit vivaha marriage. The word for male-child is the same as the above for son, and the word for female-child may be a corruption of the Sanscrit átmajà, a daughter. ”

“ For Jurachi-pennu the rain-deity, if there be no rain, they kill a sheep beneath a tree, and causing worship (puja) to be made by the Jani, they cook half the flesh for the Jani, and cause him to eat, and the other half they divide among themselves.
6. To Tádá, the B'hu-devata, or deity of the earth, they make the merria-sacrifice, or offering. This puja having been finished, they give from one to three pecks (tumu or maracal) of grain, rice, a fowl, a sheep, (or fowls and sheep) to the Jani (or sacrificer) . ”

“ The following" day the people of the intended bride's family go to see the purposed bridegroom : on which occasion the relatives of the latter shew every thing contained in their dwelling, or possession,, to the visitors. Whatsoever these find to be valuable, be it a cow, or any thing else, they desire that it may be given to them; and they receive a promise that it shall be given, though it is not allowable then to receive and take it away : they feast on ardent spirits and flesh, and then depart. The next day the relatives of the man, call together a few other people ”

“ Maxwell's list Khoi-jati. If the orthography of the first written term be correct, as I presume it may be so considered, it must be a mistake to write the word Khoonds, intimating a transition through the Hindustani. The Telugu alphabet has a letter corresponding with k′h; but as it is not used in Mr. Stevenson's paper, the proper representative according to Sir W. Jones's orthographical system is c.; and as Dr. Maxwell only intends to give the sound, and probably made use of Hindustani as a medium of intercourse, his spelling does not necessarily militate against the same conclusion. ”

“ Stevenson, alluded to in the extract from his letter:—
Memorandum regarding Human Sacrifices among the Khoonds.—The sacrifice is offered to Thadha deveta (the earth) , under the effigy of a bird. It is offered annually to propitiate the deity to grant favourable crops and seasons. The ceremony is performed at the expense, in rotation, of certain Mootas composing a circle, and connected together from local circumstances. It is impossible to ascertain the number of places in which the annual sacrifices take place, but they are very numerous. ”

“ The perusal did not add much to resemblances of the Khoond dialect, but the materials on either hand are not full. The Todar language has some few Tamil roots, the Burgher dialect is full of Tamil words. The Todar dialect indicates great antiquity, and derivation, I am almost positive, from the Canarese, probably Hala Kanada,—The speech of the Vadagara (or northerns?) is much more modern—that word at Madras designates the people of Telingana ”