Castes and Tribes of Southern India/Mēstri

by Edgar Thurston

Mēstri.——A title of Semmāns and other Tamil classes. The Pānān tailors are said to be also called Mēstris. Concerning the word mēstri, or maistry, Yule and Burnell write as follows.*^[1] "This word, a corruption of the Portuguese Mestre, has spread into the vernaculars all over India, and is in constant Anglo-Indian use. Properly a foreman, a master-worker. In W. and S. India maistry, as used in the household, generally means the cook or the tailor."

1. • Hobson-Jobson.