The origin of the Nair is disputed. Some people think the name itself is derived from "nayaka", an honorific meaning "leader of the people", while others believe it stems from the community's association with the Naga cult of serpent worship. Christopher Fuller, an anthropologist, has said that it is likely that the first reference to the Nair community was made by Pliny the Elder in his "Natural History", dating from 77 AD. That work describes what is probably the Malabar coast area wherein could be found the "Nareae, who are shut in by the Capitalis range, the highest of all the mountains in India". Fuller believes it probable that the "Nareae" referred to the Nairs and the Capitalis range is the Western Ghats.