Thampi and Thankachi

The Thampis and Kochammas are the sons and daughters of the maharajahs of Southern Travancore (Present-day Kanyakumari district) and their consorts belonging to Nair caste. The titles "Thampi" and "Thankachi" was given by the royal families in the region of Padmanabhapuram, Travancore Kingdom (present-day Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu) to their Malayali Nair relatives. They were part of the Samanthan Nair aristocracy and belong to the Illam Nair subcaste. The Thampi surname is also used by non-Nair communities, and they have no relation to the aristocratic Nair Thampis.

The very term Thampi and Thankachi meaning, brother and sister respectively which indicated the position of the Thampi families as the non-crown inheriting royal relatives of the Royal House of Travancore as per the matrilineal law followed.

The consort of the ruling Maharajah (King) as well as Elayarajah (Crown Prince) was known as the Ammachi with the title of Panapillai Amma. To the names of the sons of the Maharajahs was prefixed the title of Sri suffixed with Thampi. The daughters were known as Kochammas. The other members as well as the descendants of the Ammaveedus, however, were simply known as Thampi and Thankachi.

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