noun
or nair ˈnī(ə)r
( plural nayar or nayars or nair or nairs )
Usage: usually capitalized
Etymology: Malayalam nāyar, from Sanskrit nāyaka — more at naik
1. : a people of the Malabar coast of India that are probably Dravidians with Aryan admixture and are noted for polyandry in which women are free to contract alliances as they please outside their own clan with men of equal or better rank, children belong to the mother's clan, and property descends through the female line
2. : a member of the Nayar people