Sankeit people
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[edit] History
The Sankethis are Smartha brahmins residing in Karnataka, they are one of the many subcastes of the Tamil Iyers [See: Iyer]. There are also some Sanketis in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Of late, they have migrated worldwide. They are believed to have migrated from southern Tamil Nadu a millennium ago.They are said to have left their homeland under the guidance of a saintly lady,nAcAramma(also called nengAramma na nAnjiyAramma). They initially settled predominantly in Kaushika near Hassan, Karnataka and Bettadapura in Mysore district. They became the Kaushika and the Bettadapura Sankethis. they later spread to many other villages.
[edit] Geographical distribution
The 4 predominant groups are Kaushika, Bettadapura, Mattur-Hosahalli and Lingadahalli sankethis(in that order numerically). All put together they number about 50,000.They mainly live in Hassan and Mysore districts and parts of Mandya and Shimoga districts. A large number have migrated to cities such as Bangalore, Mysore and Hassan and sizeable numbers now live in the USA and the UK.The community is traditionally famed for intelligence, hardwork, and their expertise in music, vedas and in growing the areca palm.
