Castes and Tribes of Southern India/Nāsuvan

by Edgar Thurston

Nāsuvan.— Nāsivan or Nāsuvan, said to mean unholy, one who should not be touched, or one sprung from the nose, is the name for Ambattans (Tamil barbers). The equivalents Nāsiyan and Nāvidan occur as a name for Telugu barbers, and Malayāli barbers who shave Nāyars and higher castes. Nāvidan is further recorded as the occupational name of a sub-division of Tamil Paraiyans, and Vēttuvans.