Kerala Thampy and Jaffna Thamby
Jay Muckraj
princes in the Tranvancore Courts.Thamby and other Thamby derived names
(such as Thambiretnam) etc are not found in Tamil Nadu,only in Sri
Lanka.Also Velupillai.
Jay
Umbertslyr
>(such as Thambiretnam) etc are not found in Tamil Nadu,only in Sri
>Lanka.Also Velupillai.
I would like to disagree with you slightly here
My best friend in TN was Thampy Nagooran. The word Thampy/Thamby is used in
Southern TN, Kerala and Tamils in SL. Which shows the ancient connection
between these people. (one minor factor there are of course other major..)
Most SL Tamils are from Souhern Tamil Nadu (Like Thirunelvelly , Ramnad etc)
and Kerala when the Keralites were Tamils (before the 14 th century) Keralite
castes like Mukuvas in SL speak in Tamil showing that they left Kerala when
they were considered Tamils not Malayalis.
- Slayer-
Jay Muckraj
Umbertslyr <umber...@aol.com.4Peace> wrote in article
<19981208101803...@ng-bw1.aol.com>...
> >.Thamby and other Thamby derived names
> >(such as Thambiretnam) etc are not found in Tamil Nadu,only in Sri
> >Lanka.Also Velupillai.
>
> I would like to disagree with you slightly here
>
> My best friend in TN was Thampy Nagooran. The word Thampy/Thamby is used
in
> Southern TN, Kerala and Tamils in SL. Which shows the ancient connection
> between these people. (one minor factor there are of course other
major..)
>
>
And you are sure that your best friend is not in any part keralite?Thanks
Jay
Umbertslyr
>
>Jay
>
No he is a Tamilian. Further Nagoor Andavan temple is in Thamil Nadu not in
Kerala. I have many friends from Thirunelvelly and Ramnad districts who
confirmed that Thampy/Thamby is used as a term for endearment and as a name
among many communitis in southern Thamil Nadu and also Southern Kerala
(Trivanathapuram district) .
Names like Thambithurai, Thambiayah, Thambikakka, Thambi, Thambi Nagooran,
Periathambi etc are still in vogue in southern TN, where as it has gone out of
use among the new generation of Tamils in SL.
Cross cultural relationship between Southern TN, South Kerala and SL Tamils is
very intereting and predates the modern borders drawn by the nation states of
India (and states) and Sri Lanka.
There are many Individuals in Kerala who claim Sri Lankan Tamil ancestry. They
are called Ezhavar (Or Eelavar - from Eelam) and Tivar (from the islands) I am
sure due to the less strict caste structure in South TN such returnees from SL
have assimilated back with their caste brothers like Kallar, Maravar,
Agamaduyar, Pallar etc But in Kerala due to the Tarawad system and a stricter
interpretaion of the caste system these returnees from Sri lanka were isolated
as a new caste.
Which shows the migration to Sri Lanka by Dravidian people was continious and
was from the entire southern region of India and most of these immigrants
considered themselves as Tamils.
Read my article tiled "Who are these Keralites in Sri lanka" and "
Sanskcritization and Tamil migrations to Sri Lanka"' to get a fresh look in to
this interesting issue.
Tamils of Sri Lanka are Basically Kallar, Maravar, Agamudyar, Pallar, Parayar,
Piramanar etc imigrants from South tamil nadu mixed with Kerala castes like
Mukuva, Nairs, (very important when they were considered as Tamils not
Malayalis)etc.
Although these caste distinction do not matter that much and the Kallar,
Maravar, Agamudyar and Nairs in SL call themselves as Vellalars today (Thus
the Jaffna saying kalarum maravarum koodi Vellalar ayinare). Hopefully even the
other caste distinctions will go way in the near future.
- Slayer -
"You take the lies out of them, and they'll shrink to the size of your hat,
you take the malice out of them, and they will disappear." Mark Twain
sshankar
Do you have any references for all this or is it a "make it up on the
fly" flavour??
BharatMan
>
> Tamils of Sri Lanka are Basically Kallar, Maravar, Agamudyar, Pallar,
Parayar,
> Piramanar etc imigrants from South tamil nadu mixed with Kerala castes
like
> Mukuva, Nairs, (very important when they were considered as Tamils not
> Malayalis)etc.
>
> Although these caste distinction do not matter that much and the Kallar,
> Maravar, Agamudyar and Nairs in SL call themselves as Vellalars today
(Thus
> the Jaffna saying kalarum maravarum koodi Vellalar ayinare). Hopefully
even the
> other caste distinctions will go way in the near future.
>
>
You have made a point here.i am myself am of the Nair Caste (menon) and
there was a German missionary or academic(or both) Dr Gundert I think,who
was trying to prove that the Nairs were actually Vellalars from Tamil
Country migrated to Kerala in historical times.But this is the first time I
am coming across Nairs in Sri Lanka absorbed into the Vellalar caste.Were
they Nairs first and then Vellalars or did the Nairs come about after
splitting from the main Vellalar castes? Were they referred to as Nairs
(sanskrit nayaka-meaning Cheiftain) after the Nambudiris came into Kerala?
Would this apply only to Nairs from Travancore or Nairs throughoout?
Thanks
Jay
Umbertslyr
>there was a German missionary or academic(or both) Dr Gundert I think,who
>was trying to prove that the Nairs were actually Vellalars from Tamil
>Country migrated to Kerala in historical times.But this is the first time I
>am coming across Nairs in Sri Lanka absorbed into the Vellalar caste.Were
>they Nairs first and then Vellalars or did the Nairs come about after
>splitting from the main Vellalar castes? Were they referred to as Nairs
>(sanskrit nayaka-meaning Cheiftain) after the Nambudiris came into Kerala?
>
>Would this apply only to Nairs from Travancore or Nairs throughoout?
>
>Thanks
>
>Jay
>
I personally do not think Nairs were Tamil country immigrants into present day
Kerala. Kerala WAS TAMIL COUNTRY till 14-15 century. So the Nairs and others
like them are the sons of the soil cultivators like Velalars of what is left of
the ancient Tamil country currently called Tamil Nadu state, and Gaudas of
Karnataka, Kamma, Kapus & Reddy of Andhra Pradesh, Marata of Maharashtra so on
and so forth.
So called Nairs of today are the descendants of the old land owners,
cultivators, workers, merchants, Chiefs and Kings of the Chera county like the
Velalars were during the Sangam classical time.
The term Velalar means those who cultivate. So it was neither a tribe nor a
caste during the old days. It was just a title by any one was called if he were
a cultivator. Considering industrialization and commercialization was not a
large part of the economy then, most of the people of India (not just Tamil
country residents) were and still are cultivators. Many disparate tribal
elements were absorbed into this category. Some in Tamil Nadu like Kongu
Velalars and Tuluva Velalars show that they were immigrants from Kannada and
Tuluva country. So you didn't even have to speak Tamil to become one. Any one
who cultivated was a Velalar. Merchants and rulers were drawn from this polity.
(Ref. Tholkapiyam)
So the ancestors of Nairs would have been known as Velalars in Chera Nadu prior
to the arrival of the ancestors of Namboodiris.
In Sri Lanka, the immigration of tribal and caste people from south India was a
continuos process from time immemorial till very recently. How the Sinhalese
immigrated and became Buddhist is a different matter, I will try to concentrate
on Hindu and Tamil immigration to Sri Lanka specifically the Chera immigration.
(Read "Sanskcritization and Tamil Migration" by me to understand the
immigration Tamils from Tamil Nadu into Sri Lanka)
People from Chera country (i.e when they were Tamils) have go to Sri Lanka on
fishing, trading and pure conquest. Place names like Cheran Patru (land
conquered by the Cherans) is some of the few remaining indicators of Chera
immigration and conquest. Prior to the age of Namboodiris the ancestors of
Nairs (probably called Velalars) went to Sri Lanka only when they accompanied
invading Armies. Otherwise the immigration and settling was by passive methods
by the fisher castes called today as Mukkuvas. Even today the bulk of the
Tamils from Puthalam in west and Matta Kalappu (Batti) in the east claim
Mukkuva ancestry and are not just only fisherman. They are cultivators,
landowners and all the rest of the society, many were in the process of
becoming Velalars due to their place in society before the advent of this civil
war.
Sometimes the tables were turned on these immigrants and settlers and were
expelled en-mass. Pretty interesting fact is the story of Ezhavas and Tivars of
Kerala. According to legend these Tamil immigrants from Malaya Nadu (Kerala)
were expelled due a war between their Chief and the Chiefs of the Vedha people
of Sri Lanaka (Mind you not the Sinhalese, the Vedhas are the aboriginal people
of Sri Lanka)
When they came back to Malaya Nadu (their ancestral homeland), it was tightly
in the grip of Namboodiris with a very strict interpretation of the caste
system, which was not the case when their ancestors had left Malaya Nadu. Thus
they were relegated to the lowest level of Shudradom as milechas from a foreign
country.
Now from historical evidence we know that the ancestors of Namboodiris came to
Kerala after the Arab conquest and harassment of their Saraswat homeland in
Northwest India. (Which is after 7th century AD.) and they consolidated power
after 9th century AD So without getting into too much historical debate we can
say the ancestors of the Ezhava and Tivars went to Sri Lanka before the
consolidation of power by the Namboodiris and came back to Kerala after the
consolidation of power by the 9th century AD.
Now considering that their legend says the Ezhava particularly were cultivators
in Sri Lanka and would lease land from the native hunter gatherer chiefs
(Vedhas) it is highly probable that they were probably Velalars from Malaya
Nadu. Thus making them kin of current day Nairs!
Any way after the formation of the identity called Nairs many were conscripted
into the Armies of the ruling princelets of Kerala. During times of peace many
were available as mercenaries. Nair soldiers were a prized commodity in the
internal dynastic squabbles of the Sinhalese as well as northern Tamil need for
defense against southern Sri Lankan kingdoms.
Many Nair soldiers were part and parcel of the Kings of the Western region of
Sri Lanka, sometimes the Zamorins of Cochin (?) sent in Armies to support one
faction or the other or in the early colonial struggles. Many of these Nair
soldiers settled down in Sri Lanka among the Sinhalese and Tamils. The primary
place of their residence is called Kochi Kaddai (after Cochin in Kerala) a
suburb of Colombo. This was not the only place of their residence. Due to their
association with the Armies of the kings many were incorporated into Sinhala
Govi (equivalent to Tamil Velalar caste) and Tamil Velalar caste without much
fuss (who could resist a Nair with a sword ! just kidding). The surname Kurupu
among Sinhalese is a derivation of Kurup of Nairs. Brendon Krurupu was a famous
cricketer from Sri Lanka of yesteryears.
Nairs were settled among the Tamils of Jaffna during the invasion of King Magha
from Orrissa who actually put his Army together with Nair mercenaries from
Kerala and the martial Tamils castes like Kalalar, Maravar and Agamudayar. King
Magaha is the progenitor of the Arya Cakkaravarties of Yalpana kingdom of
Jaffna Tamils. (ref. Yalpana Vaipava malai). These soldiers settled among the
local people of Jaffna.
So the synthesis of Tamils from Kerala, Tamils from Tamil Nadu and Malayalis
from Kerala in Sri Lanka and Jaffna in the formation of current day Ceylon
Tamils has been a long process. I have here touched only the tip of the
iceberg, there is more research to be done. Hopefully after the end of this
civil war we will have enough Tamils left to do the research.
Umbertslyr
>fly" flavour??
After wasting about 15 years of my life reading useless books to find out who I
am, how I came to be, who are we and how we came to be, I thought it would be
very appropriate to "make it up on the fly"
If you want to confirm my made up on the fly crazy theories you just have to
pick up any books on castes and tribes of south India and Sri Lanka. Study
about the formation of the Tamil nation and the Keralites any general books
will do (don't stop with one) Learn about the process called Sansckritization
and its cultural impact in south India.
Then if you can find some Sri Lankans including Brahmins (You see, we have them
too and they are our brothers in this saga) and talk to them about their family
histories, traditions and folk history. May be after wasting 10 years of your
life you will see the craziness of my made up on the fly stories. Good luck.
Umbertslyr
There has been some speculation as to why Tamils (or those Tamils who still
maintain their Tamil identity) showed up in Sri Lanka. Umberto Gui has
maintained it is Tamils nationalistic aspirations to colonize the lands of
others. What I am trying to portray here is the reasons behind these migrations
and the settlement of Sri Lanka by South Indians.
Pre History
Some Tamil scholars and the common folk believe that Tamils or those who were
aware that they were an ethnic group called Tamils have lived in Sri Lanka
since time immemorial. Although the above hypothesis has not been proven yet
with archeological or anthropological evidence, it is very possible that among
the number of tribes domiciled in Sri Lanka during the time of Indo European
settlement some of those groups might have been Dravidian. Whatever little pre
historic evidence gathered so far, points towards Autric Munda (the other not
well known native people of India) presence in Sri Lanka. Which is interesting
and perplexing.
Sanskritization
What is Sanskritization what is its impact on Tamils in Sri Lanka. Tamils by
definition are Dravidian in culture and the Hindu religion along with Buddhism
and Jaininsm was introduced into the south India by priests and scholars from
North India just before the Christian era. Sanskritization is a process in
which individuals or groups of people achieve the cultural norms of the
Indo-Aryan Sanskritic culture. Because it was perceived to be superior. For lay
people let me try to explain this phenomenon in simple terms. It is like the
Anglicized Sinhalese and Tamils of Cinnamon Gardens, where they drop all native
traits accept western garments, western religious values, western food habits,
western sport habits and eventually come to believe that they are whites in
black drag in Sri Lanka (not that crude ha, ha, ha, ha) After the conversion to
Hinduism and a presence of a large Brahmin population in the south it became
evident to all South Indians that overnight they have become Shudras, the
lowest of the lower castes in the Varna (which means color in Sanskrit) system.
So the scramble to get to the top of the pile of the Shudras started in
earnest. The ability to convert to Buddhism or Jaininsm was gone because these
religionists have been violently thrown out by Kings and Princess of South
India because Hinduism gave them a cart blanch to rule in the name of divine
king.
Way Out
One way to out was to invent stories of Aryan ancestry for individuals and
groups, tribes and castes to distinguish themselves from the other Shudras.
This also meant minor inconveniences like giving up on meat eating, i.e.
accepting the food habits of the Brahmins, dressing up like the Brahmins
including the thread across their bodies, shaving their heads, wearing Hindu
marks in their fore heads etc, etc. This could be achieved by another way too.
If a person born in Madurai moves to Madras and says that he is of a higher
status than what he was known in Madurai, others had no option but to believe
it. Thus mass migrations of individuals and tribes and castes took place within
India. We have to look at the Tamil migrations to Sri Lanka in this context.
Although the Kallar, Maravar, Agamudayar, Thevar and other Tamil speaking
tribes had had prestige and power under the Buddhist/Jain/Pre reconverted Hindu
kings due to their militaristic background and service in the Army, as soon as
the population became overwhelmingly Hinduized after the re conversion effort
after the 7th century, they saw a diminishing in their power and prestige.
Invasion of Jaffna
Thus some of their kinsman came up with the idea of invading the Jaffna
peninsula, because it was up for grabs due to many reasons in Sri Lanka,
including the devastating invasion of the Kalinga king Magha. Obviously there
must have been settlements of Tamils in the Jaffna peninsula and Sri Lanka
before that. These tribesmen independently organized these raids into Jaffna
and finally subdued the peninsula along with its remaining Sinhala cultivators
and their service castes along with other domiciled Tamil people. They went
onto invent a new identity which was the caste Velalar, thus these disparate
invading tribes became jelled into one caste. They also used imported service
castes from Tamil Nadu along with local indentured labor. The system of Adimai
(slaves) and Kudimai (indentured worker) was born, whereas members of certain
castes could be sold into slavery where as some others were indentured workers.
Some of the conquered Sinhalese became slaves where as others were treated like
indentured workers. Where as in many cases these conquered Sinhalese and Tamils
mixed and the off springs of mixed progeny were accepted as bona-fide Velalars.
This was no different from what happens all over the world after a conquest.
Not some uniquely Tamil nationalist institution. Ask the Irish what happened
after they were conquered, ask the native Indians of America after they were
conquered.
Karaiyar/Karawe
Let's get into the reasons behind the Karawe/Karaiyar migrations into Sri
Lanka. For some unknown reason the Sinhala people did not use the resources of
the sea. The only indigenous Sinhala caste/group known for fishing were the
Nilavo who actually fished the inland rivers and pond thus indicating a Vedha
/Vannia (aboriginals of Sri Lanka) origin. The Karawe/Karaiyar in India have
already invented stories about their Aryan origin in India. They said they were
of the Kuru Kula which was a play on the Tamil word Karai which actually means
coast. Elders of the caste group said it actually meant Kuru thus they were the
descendants of the defeated Mahabarata characters the Kauravas. Any way when
this story was born there was a mad scramble by other fisher castes such as
Parathavar, Mukkuvar and others to associate themselves with the
Karawe/Karaiyar, thus expecting the Aryan ancestry story would rub ion them
too. The Mukkuvar in Chilaw like the Warnakoolasuriya and Mihindukulasuriya
still carry on this charade of North Indian Kashtriya ancestors of Keralites
kind of story even today. Karai-ur in Jaffna was renamed Kuru-Nagar due to this
same reason. After a while due their continuos association with fish (according
to the Sanskritic Hindu tradition a polluting food) the Karawes and other
fisher castes started to loose the respect and position that they had initially
gained with their caste story, thus some of them saw an opportunity in Sri
Lanka as the newly arrived Sinhalese along the productive Western coast were
yet to figure out how to fish. Thus a gradual migration to the coastal regions
of Sri Lanka by Karawe and associated fisher castes took place. They also
occupied the coastal regions of the Northern Peninsula where the Native
population had by now become Tamil Speaking which included the invading Tribal
elements and local Tamilized Sinhalese. There evidence to show that the
Karawe/Karaiyar came to Sri Lanka within the last 500 years.
Conversion
The initial success of Catholic priests in converting these coastal people to
Catholicism can also be explained in the context of Sanskritization. This was
an attempt by those people who have been ritually put down since the advent of
Hinduism to alleviate their conditions by changing their religion. The same
thing can also explain the subsequent conversion of part of the Karawe/Karaiyar
to Buddhism in Sri Lanka thus becoming Sinhalese (most of the Southern Dark
Sinhalese have Dravidian ancestry), because as a group they were in a religious
flux always trying to escape the caste system. Now if the process of
Sanskritization can be called a Nationalistic aspiration, then each and every
caste group in India even today who are still in this process of Cultural
Aryanization can be called a nationalist colonizers. Colonization of Sri Lanka
by the so-called Tamils was a by-product of individuals, tribes and castes to
escape the clutches of the caste system in India. Others such as Orriyans,
Telugus and Malayalis also jelled with the Sri Lankan populations group it just
the Sinhala and very uniquely Ceylon Tamil identity which have survived so far.
BharatMan
> So the synthesis of Tamils from Kerala, Tamils from Tamil Nadu and
Malayalis
> from Kerala in Sri Lanka and Jaffna in the formation of current day
Ceylon
> Tamils has been a long process. I have here touched only the tip of the
> iceberg, there is more research to be done. Hopefully after the end of
this
> civil war we will have enough Tamils left to do the research.
>
>
> - Slayer -
>
Thanks very much.The explanation is very clear.
Jay
Umbertslyr
Many Places in Northeast province in SL are named after places in Tamil Nadu
and Kerala
I can remember only a few now.
Mannar is named after Mannarkudi in TN
Thinalvelly (Also called Thirunelvelly) is named after Thirunelvely in TN
Palakadu is named after Palagat in Kerala