| Regions with significant populations | |
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| Languages | |
| Religion | |
 Hinduism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
Saliya (also known asSaliyar,Chaliyan) is a South Indian Hinducaste. Their traditional occupation was that of weaving and they are found mostly in the regions of northernKerala, southern coastalKarnataka,Andhra Pradesh,Tamil Nadu as well asMaharashtra andMadhya Pradesh.
In the Kannada and Telugu regions, early names for weaving groups wereSaliga,Sale,Sali and similar forms. Another term wasJeda (andJandra), which meant “spider”. Scholars note thatSaliga is atadbhava form of theSanskritjalikha, meaning spider or weaver, whileJeda is a native Kannada word.
In Kerala, the community is known asChaliyan. Unlike several other west coast groups, they lived in organised weaving streets calledteru. This settlement pattern has been taken by some researchers as evidence of earlier migration of weavers from Tamil regions into Kerala.[1]
According to Ramaswamy, as part of theVirasaiva movement weavers initially championed caste negation or anti-casteism initially.[2] However, as time passed even that movement became caste-ridden and various communities started claiming ritual superiority vis-a-vis other communities part of the same religion and also against non-Virasaiva communities likeBrahmins. As caste negation gave way to caste exaltation even weavers tried to obtain higher caste credentials and privileges. In 1231, atChintamani (in the present day Karnataka region with a mixed Kannada/Telugu population) it is said (a dubious claim according to Vijaya Ramaswamy) that a king granted privileges like right to theyajnopavita (thesacred thread worn by Brahmins), right to ride a palanquin, right to one's own flag and symbol etc... toDevanga weavers. Many of these privileges were later granted toPadmashali weavers too.[3]
Saliyars speak onlyTamil in Tamil Nadu and do not know any other regional languages. Alli Nayanar is one of the 63 Nayans of the Saliyar community who are clearly mentioned in the great legends. Although the name Salyar is an ancientTamil, the Salyar (TN) community lives mostly in southern Tamil Nadu, speaks only Tamil, and leans mostly towardsTamil culture.
The Right-hand (Valanga) and Left-hand (Edanga) division was an old social arrangement found mainly in the Tamil and Telugu regions of South India. Traditional accounts place the Saliya community on the Right-hand side, while groups such as the Devanga and Kaikkolar were usually associated with the Left-hand category.[4]
In Kannur, Ashtamachal Bhagavathy temple part ofPayyannur Teru has a unique tradition of a festival calledMeenamrithu which is related to sea trading culture of the past. It was believed to have belonged to a merchant community calledValanjiyar belonging to left-hand caste group in the past. However, now Saliyas conduct this ritual. But relationship between Valanjiyar and Saliya communities at present is still a speculation.[5]
