Kattunayakan means 'forest chief.' The Kattunayakan (or Kattu Nayakan) are a scheduled tribe sub-group native to the Western Ghats, and they inhabit approximately 59 villages in Pandalur and Gudalur taluks of the Nilgiris, near Wayanad and Nilambur hills in Kerala. The Kattunayakan live as nuclear families, and their culture is very unique in their traditional way of living. The Census of India in 2011, recorded their population as 2,480. They speak a dialect of Kannada within the community and Tamil and Malayalam with outsiders. They were traditionally hunters and gatherers, and are now mainly engaged in agriculture, labour, animal husbandry, and working in coffee and pepper plantations. They are also skilled caretakers of elephants and honey hunters, and they sell a variety of forest produce in weekly markets.