Udayar (caste)
The Udayar is a title used by multiple caste in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. Etymology. The word "Udayar" in Tamil means "Lord" or "Possessor" as in "Possessor of land or kingdom". Present status. According to Selva Raj, the Udayar are "socially humbler" than the Vellalar community but, together with the Pallar and Kallar, form the Marava castes, who are quite dominant in the region variously known as Ramnad and the Maravar country. Religion. In Ramnad and the nearby areas of Pudukottai, Madurai, Salem, Namakkal, Tanjore and Trichy, they and their two fellow Maravar caste groups are  prominent in their cult worship of the shrine at Oriyur that commemorates John de Britto, a 17th-century Portuguese Jesuit missionary and martyr. Raj says, "A notable feature of the Britto cult is that it is centered around caste identities rather than religious affiliation", and thus members of the caste-group, irrespective of their religious affiliation regard Britto as their clan-deity. Some Udayars are Roman Catholic Christians.