L. K. Ananthakrishna Iyer

Diwan Bahadur Lakshminarayanapuram Krishna Ananthakrishna Iyer (1861–1937) was an anthropologist of British India, who is renowned for his work amongst the hill tribes of the western part of Madras province.

Early life

Ananthakrishna Iyer was born to a Vedic scholar, L. N. Krishna Iyer, in the village of Lakshminarayanapuram near Palghat in the then Malabar district of the Madras Presidency. He was the eldest of four sons and two daughters.

Career

Ananthakrishna Iyer is best known for his books Castes and Tribes of Mysore, and Castes and Tribes of Cochin. Both are pioneering works on the tribes inhabiting the west coast of India. He was born in 1861 at Palaghat in Kerala. He passed matriculation from Palaghat high school in 1878 and passed BA from Madras Christian college in 1883. Heworked with Revenue Department for some time at Vayanad, then left to join Victoria College Palaghat. In the year 1896, he became a headmaster in a Christian school. In 1897, he joined Maharajas College at Eranakulam as scientific assistant The Log book kept at St Berchmans H S Changanacherry gives this piece of information: "He took charge of the school as Headmaster on 22 February 1897 ≥.He was there till May that year and left for Ernakulam by former Headmaster Thomas K J kallarakavumkal Mammood P O PIN 686536 Changanacherry Kerala". His son, L. A. Krishna Iyer, was also a noted anthropologist and a Padma Bhushan awardee.

Works

• Iyer, L. K. Ananthakrishna (1930) The Mysore Tribes and Castes. Mysore: Mysore University Press.
• Iyer, L. K. Ananthakrishna (1912) Tribes and Castes of Cochin.

Sources

• Ajit K. Danda (ed.) (1989) L. K. Ananthakrishna Iyer: 125th Birth Anniversary Tribute. Special Volume of Human Science.