Castes and Tribes of Southern India/Kārālan
Kārālan.— In the Census Report, 1891, the Kārālans (rulers of clouds) are returned as a tribe of hunters and cultivators found in the hills of Salem and South Arcot. In the Report, 1901, Kārālan is given as a synonym for Vellāla in Malabar, and also as a name for Malayālis. At the census, 1901, many of the Malayālis of the Shevaroy hills in the Salem district returned themselves as Vellālas and Kārālans. And the divisions returned by the Kārālans, e.g., Kolli, Pacchai, Periya, and Perianan, connect them with these Malayālis (q.v.).