Needs infos moplah

Kubur · 16th November 2018, 01:07 PM

Hi Guys

What is the difference between a moplah, a Coorg knife and an ayyudha katti??

Thanks

Jens Nordlunde · 16th November 2018, 04:13 PM

The two picture from Oriental Arms with a blue background are Moplahs.
The two picture with a grey background are Aydha Katthis. Notice espacially the kite shaped pommel on the Aydha Katthis.

Kubur · 16th November 2018, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jens Nordlunde

The two picture from Oriental Arms with a blue background are Moplahs.
The two picture with a grey background are Aydha Katthis. Notice espacially the kite shaped pommel on the Aydha Katthis.

Thank you Jens

So the main difference is the pommel.

My main problem is the word Moplah: is it a weapon or people, the Moplah?

The two weapons are both from South India?

ariel · 16th November 2018, 06:37 PM

AFAIK,
Ayda ( Ayudha) Katti is a Hindu weapon, whereas Mopla is just a variant of
Anglicised pronounciation or transliteration of Mappila, a Muslim ethnicity in virtually the same neighborhood, ie current Kerala/ Karnataka. They have significant Arab background.

Both are often described as "Coorg" swords, but the very word is also a British mispronounciation of Kodagu, reflecting the hilly topography of the area.

Kubur · 16th November 2018, 06:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ariel

AFAIK,
Ayda ( Ayudha) Katti is a Hindu weapon, whereas Mopla is just a variant of
Anglicised pronounciation or transliteration of Mappila, a Muslim ethnicity in virtually the same neighborhood, ie current Kerala/ Karnataka. They have significant Arab background.

Both are often described as "Coorg" swords, but the very word is also a British mispronounciation of Kodagu, reflecting the hilly topography of the area.

Thank you Ariel
I got for my money, good
So Ayda is an Hindu weapon
Mopla is the Muslim version of the Hindu one?
and i learnt that there is no Coorg people...
In his Hindu book Elgood call this weapon sacrificial axe, is it the same stuff?

Jens Nordlunde · 16th November 2018, 10:39 PM

Kubur - no that is too easy, I will come back to you tomorrow.
Please tell me on which page Elgood in his Hindu Arms and Ritual writes that the Aydha Katthi is a sacrificial axe.

Jens Nordlunde · 17th November 2018, 01:29 PM

So Ayda is an Hindu weapon.

Yes the Aydha Katthi is a Hindu weapon.

Mopla is the Muslim version of the Hindu one?
Yes the Moplah is a Muslim weapon.

and i learnt that there is no Coorg people...
I have no idea from where you learned this. There is/was a Coorg people living at the south western part of India. They are a brave and proud people assisting the British East Indian Company fighting Tipu Sultan.
There is a very interesting article dealing with the later Coorg history, the Aydha Katthis and their different markings on the blades.
The Journal of The Arms and Armour Society. Vol. XXII, no. 4. September 2017. Two Iconic Knives of the Rajahs og Coorg by Nidhin G. Olikara.

The Aydha Katthis we see are mostly quite late, but both as a weapon and as a tool it must have gone back for centuries.
Unfortunately I have never seen any research done, to find out how old they are.

Kubur · 17th November 2018, 10:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jens Nordlunde

[i]
I have no idea from where you learned this.

From Ariel post

Kubur · 17th November 2018, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jens Nordlunde

Kubur - no that is too easy, I will come back to you tomorrow.
Please tell me on which page Elgood in his Hindu Arms and Ritual writes that the Aydha Katthi is a sacrificial axe.

Page 70
not mentionned as Aydha katthi but very similar
and very old as you said
i wont call that an axe or even a sword
but more a cleaver or a machette

Jens Nordlunde · 17th November 2018, 10:44 PM

Please dont compare the ones on page 70 in Elgood's book to the Aydha Katthis and the Moplahs - they have notheing to with these items.

ariel · 18th November 2018, 12:32 AM

Kubur,

Nowhere did I claim that there was no such thing as Coorg people.
I thought I was clear to state that the very word Coorg is an anglicised mis- pronounciation of the original Indian name: no more, no less. By the same token there is no Moscow: it is Moskva, and no Jerusalem: it is Yerushalaim.

In all those places there are very much real native inhabitants who call themselves “ moskvichi” and “ yerushalmim”.
AFAIK ( thanks Wiki!) people of Karnataka call themselves Kannadigas.

Brits are big on mis-pronouncing geographical locations, including their own: a town Cholmondeley is pronounced CHUM- lee:-)

16th November 2018, 01:07 PM	#1
Kubur Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 2,145	Needs infos moplah Hi Guys What is the difference between a moplah, a Coorg knife and an ayyudha katti?? Thanks Last edited by Kubur; 16th November 2018 at 01:33 PM.

16th November 2018, 04:13 PM	#2
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	The two picture from Oriental Arms with a blue background are Moplahs. The two picture with a grey background are Aydha Katthis. Notice espacially the kite shaped pommel on the Aydha Katthis. Attached Images

16th November 2018, 06:37 PM	#4
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	AFAIK, Ayda ( Ayudha) Katti is a Hindu weapon, whereas Mopla is just a variant of Anglicised pronounciation or transliteration of Mappila, a Muslim ethnicity in virtually the same neighborhood, ie current Kerala/ Karnataka. They have significant Arab background. Both are often described as "Coorg" swords, but the very word is also a British mispronounciation of Kodagu, reflecting the hilly topography of the area.

16th November 2018, 10:39 PM	#6
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	Kubur - no that is too easy, I will come back to you tomorrow. Please tell me on which page Elgood in his Hindu Arms and Ritual writes that the Aydha Katthi is a sacrificial axe.

17th November 2018, 01:29 PM	#7
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	So Ayda is an Hindu weapon. Yes the Aydha Katthi is a Hindu weapon. Mopla is the Muslim version of the Hindu one? Yes the Moplah is a Muslim weapon. and i learnt that there is no Coorg people... I have no idea from where you learned this. There is/was a Coorg people living at the south western part of India. They are a brave and proud people assisting the British East Indian Company fighting Tipu Sultan. There is a very interesting article dealing with the later Coorg history, the Aydha Katthis and their different markings on the blades. The Journal of The Arms and Armour Society. Vol. XXII, no. 4. September 2017. Two Iconic Knives of the Rajahs og Coorg by Nidhin G. Olikara. The Aydha Katthis we see are mostly quite late, but both as a weapon and as a tool it must have gone back for centuries. Unfortunately I have never seen any research done, to find out how old they are.

17th November 2018, 10:44 PM	#10
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	Please dont compare the ones on page 70 in Elgood's book to the Aydha Katthis and the Moplahs - they have notheing to with these items.

18th November 2018, 12:32 AM	#11
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Kubur, Nowhere did I claim that there was no such thing as Coorg people. I thought I was clear to state that the very word Coorg is an anglicised mis- pronounciation of the original Indian name: no more, no less. By the same token there is no Moscow: it is Moskva, and no Jerusalem: it is Yerushalaim. In all those places there are very much real native inhabitants who call themselves “ moskvichi” and “ yerushalmim”. AFAIK ( thanks Wiki!) people of Karnataka call themselves Kannadigas. Brits are big on mis-pronouncing geographical locations, including their own: a town Cholmondeley is pronounced CHUM- lee:-)