Alternate Names: Hill Pantaram, Malapantaram, Malepantaram, Pandaram Basha
Dialects: None known. Lexical similarity: 83%–94% between varieties in Kerala, 63%–68% with Malayalam ,, 64%–68% with Tamil ,.
Genealogy:
Demographics: 5,850 (2001 census).
Language Use: Shift toward Malayalam [mal] in Kerala. Home, community. Negative attitudes. Many also use Malayalam [mal], except written.
Language Development: Literacy rate in L2: 48% for Kerala, 59% for Tamil Nadu (2001 census).
Nation of Origin: India
Other Comments: A Scheduled Tribe. Hindu, traditional religion.