Gōdā

[Radhakrishna Warrier]

The name of āṇṭāḷ (pronounced āṇḍāḷ) is said to have been Gōdā (Tamil Kōtai, pronounced kōdai).  In Tamil Nadu, it is usually a feminine name.  In Kerala, this name can also be a masculine kshatriya name as in Goda Varma Raja. In Sanskrit, Gōdā means giving cow, presented with cow, or in some way related to cow.  This meaning was probably considered as auspicious for a personal name in pre-modern India.  However, the Tamil word kōtai does not have a suitable meaning to function as a name of a person.  Does it mean that Tamil name Kōtai was just a tadbhava of Sanskrit Gōdā? 

Regards,

Radhakrishna Warrier