Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index Kodagu (also sometimes called Coorg) is a district of Karnataka state, India. Kodagu occupies the southernmost part of the Western Ghats within Karnataka, and is bordered to the south by the neighbouring states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The population is under 600,000. The district town is Madikeri (sometimes called Mercara), meaning 'place of the bees'. Coffee is grown in large areas and the Kodava people live a rich life due to the economic freedom provided by the coffee market. Kodavas consider themselves as warriors and they have many cultural practices such as carrying a ceremonial knife on their wraparound robes. The culture also includes communal gatherings where drink, dance and a special pork dish with the special seasoning of Garcinia are central attractions. The names of Kodava people is also characteristic and includes a clan name. The clan is central to Kodava culture and families trace their lineage through clans. Marriage within a clan is discouraged. The Kodava language or Kodava Thak has no written tradition, and has under 200,000 speakers. It is a Dravidian language, related to dialects of Kannada, and is heavily influenced by Malayalam. This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.