Hindu Administrative Institutions c12.s2.13

c12.s2.13

In these regions the tribes mentioned above predominated, though other classes of people also lived. It may be pointed out that the Tamil grammarians¹ and lexicographers classify the soil as five divisions, *tiṇais*: neytal, marutam, mullai, pālai, and kurinji. This regional classification appears to have been the original basis of division among peoples in South India, but with the spread of Sanskrit culture, these various types became distinct occupational groups or castes, each ministering to the needs of the whole community. It may be that the regional classification added force to the occupational groups which grew with the progress of the society and constituted a separate class of professional men.