{"id":55326,"date":"2016-06-05T15:10:16","date_gmt":"2016-06-05T22:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=55326"},"modified":"2016-06-05T15:10:16","modified_gmt":"2016-06-05T22:10:16","slug":"tamils-in-ancient-and-medieval-sri-lanka","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2016\/06\/05\/tamils-in-ancient-and-medieval-sri-lanka\/","title":{"rendered":"TAMILS IN ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL SRI LANKA"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

Tamils came into Sri Lanka in the ancient and medieval period as rulers and as soldiers. Several Tamil chiefs ruled over sections of the island in the ancient period. Elara, ruled over the principality of Anuradhapura until he was defeated by Dutugemunu in 161 BC. Elara\u2019s origins are not known. He was from south India but he was not a \u2018Chola prince\u2019. The good deeds attributed to him, such as the story of the cow and bell, are not unique to Elara.\u00a0 They are\u00a0 found in the Persian\u00a0 legend of the mythical hero Anosharvan,.<\/p>\n

Then in 103 BC, seven Tamil chiefs landed at Mantota with a powerful force. The reigning king, Vattagamani abhaya ran away since his forces were inadequate. The Tamil chiefs continued to rule until Vattagamani Abhaya finally got rid of them in 89 BC. Six Tamils ruled Sri Lanka in succession from 433 to 459 AD. Inscriptions assigned to them have been found at Kataragama and at Aragama, in Hiriyala hatpattu, Kurunegala district. Their rule was not welcome and local forces kept trying to eject them. Dhatusena took the throne away from them in 459 AD. \u00a0Cola king Parantaka I (907-955) invaded Sri Lanka during the time of Udaya IV (946-954) and took Anuradhapura, but could not hold it. The Sinhala king seems to have made a lightening raid to Tamil country in return. Parantaka II and Rashtrakuta king Krisna III invaded, without success, in the time of Mahinda IV (956-972).<\/p>\n

From the ninth century onwards, there were two rival Tamil dynasties in South India, the Pandyas and Colas. Both dynasties attempted to bring Sri Lanka under their control. There were several Pandya invasions during the Anuradhapura period, but the Pandyas were unable to dislodge the Sinhala king.\u00a0 The Cholas were able to do so. Rajaraja I (985-1014) invaded, took Anuradhapura and chased the Sinhala king Mahinda V down to Ruhuna. Rajendra I (1012-1044) captured Mahinda V and completed the conquest. Colas wanted to conquer the whole country but were only able to rule over the Rajarata. They occupied Rajarata from 1017-1070 AD. This brought in Tamil traders, Tamil administrators and Tamil soldiers.<\/p>\n

There is little or no information on Chola rule in Rajarata. . We do not know who ruled on behalf of the Cholas. Chola princes were appointed to rule Pandya and Kerala kingdoms, but there is no evidence of any such appointment for Sri Lanka or the appointment of a viceroy. We do not know whether the administrators who ruled over Rajarata were those of high rank or lesser rank. The Colas are said to have plundered and destroyed Buddhist institutions in Sri Lanka. W.M.K.Wijetunga says that \u2018Cholas were exceptional in their ruthlessness and the passionate desire to posses the wealth of their enemies even if it came from the centres of religious worship.\u201d However, they gave benefactions to Velgam vihara near Gantale. [used]<\/p>\n

The Cholas seem to have focused on economic returns. There is extensive information on the land tax and the payment of produce as revenue. However, very few coins belonging to the Cholas have been found in Sri Lanka. These coins were discontinued once the Sinhala kings regained the Rajarata. Colas did not introduce any new administrative ideas. The records of Vijayabahu I and Parakrama bahu I show that they used the same administrative terms and institutions that were known before Chola rule. Wijetunga thinks that the Cholas continued the existing Sinhala system, and that locals were employed in subordinate positions. The administration of justice had been neglected. Vijayabahu restored the legal system and personally administered justice.[ used]<\/p>\n

Tamil invasions did not stop with this. Cola and Pandya invasions continued in the Polonnaruwa period. Cola invasions took place during the time of Queen Kalyanavati (1202 -1208), Anikanda (1209), and Lokesvara (1210-1211.) There were three Cola invasions during time of Queen Lilavati (1197-1212).These were repuled.\u00a0 Between 1215-1232, Rajarata was occupied by Magha of Kalinga. He used Tamil and Kerala troops. Parakrama Pandya was ruling in Polonnaruwa when Magha arrived. There were two Pandya invasions after Magha. Jatavarman Vira Pandya invaded around 1258 and Jatavarman Sundara Pandya invaded around 1263. These invasions\u00a0\u00a0 seem to have been short lived. [used]<\/p>\n

Tamil rule was deeply resented in Sri Lanka. During the Chola occupation, there was \u2018sullen opposition\u2019 as well as revolt by the Sinhalese living in the Rajarata.\u00a0 The Sinhalese were not prepared to submit to Tamil rule. Whenever Tamil kings or Tamil chiefs occupied Sri Lanka, the Sinhala royalty moved to some other part of the island and functioned from there. The Sinhala kings were very determined in this matter. Regardless of how long it took, they watched, waited and eventually pushed the Tamils out. Vijayabahu I (1055-1110) expelled the Colas and Vijayabahu III (1232-1236) got rid of Magha.\u00a0 No Tamil dynasty was allowed to take root.\u00a0 [ used]<\/p>\n

However, the Pandyans eventually succeeded in establishing a strong base in Jaffna. Around 1286, the Pandya kings installed Ariyachakravarti in Jaffna. The area under Ariyachakravarti grew in size and by 1344 the pearl fisheries around Mannar were in his hands. This occupation\u00a0\u00a0 has been wrongly labelled the \u2018Kingdom of Jaffna\u2019. This was not a kingdom at all.\u00a0 Ariyachakravarti was not a king. He left no inscriptions. He was probably a leader in the Pandyan army.\u00a0 Under Ariyachakravarti Jaffna became a part of the Pandya kingdom of south India.\u00a0 Vernon Mendis has called Jaffna \u2018a Pandyan principality.\u2019\u00a0 [used]<\/p>\n

Pandyans then tried to annexe the rest of the island using their Jaffna base. Aryachakravarti attacked and defeated Vikramabahu III (1337-74) He stationed officers in Colombo, Negombo, Wattala, Chilaw and exacted tribute. Revenue was obtained for a period which did not exceed 29 years.\u00a0 However, historians are definite that there was no territorial annexation of the Sinhala kingdom by Ariyachakravarti.\u00a0 The Sinhalese retaliated. The tax officials were\u00a0\u00a0 killed and Aryachakravarti was pushed back to Jaffna. Aryachakravarti attacked again during the time of Buvanekabahu V (1374-1408) but was defeated\u00a0 The\u00a0 Gampola kings of this time were weak, but the ministers and the army took over and saw to it that Jaffna did not rule over the rest of the island.\u00a0 [used]<\/p>\n

Thereafter, Jaffna went under South India for the second time. The powerful Vijayangara kingdom of south India defeated the Pandyans and ruled over the Tamil kingdom from 1366 to 1646. Jaffna was made to pay tribute. When it tried to rebel, prince Virupaksha of the Vijayangara Empire invaded and brought Jaffna under control. This is indicated in his inscription dated 1365. Jaffna stayed under\u00a0 the Vijayanagara kings till the Portuguese came. [used]<\/p>\n

Tamils came into Sri Lanka not only as rulers but also as soldiers. Tamils were\u00a0 brought into Sri Lanka to fight as soldiers (mercenaries) in the Sinhala king\u2019s army. Sinhala princes who could not find military support in the island, went to south India for troops. The first to do this was Ilanaga (33-34 AD)\u00a0 followed by Abhayanaga. (231-240) and Moggallana\u00a0 ( 491-508). The\u00a0 seventh century\u00a0 saw a large influx of these Tamil mercenaries. They arrived on five occasions to participate in the power struggles of local princes. Three of these occurred in the reigns of Silameghavanna (619-628), Aggabodhi III (629-639), and Dathopatissa I (639-650).\u00a0 [used]<\/p>\n

The soldiers brought in during\u00a0 the time of Silameghavanna by a general were either killed or distributed among the Buddhist temples as slaves. But soldiers brought in by Dathopatissa I and Aggabodhi I were spoilt by the kings and became difficult to control. They created trouble over payments and were encouraged to live on pillage and plunder. Those who served under Dathopatissa I are said to have plundered temples and burnt down the king\u2019s palace and the temple of the tooth. Dathopatissa\u2019s successor Kassapa II (650-659) tried to expel them. But the soldiers resisted the orders to return. They \u2018seized the town\u2019 and the palace had to give in.<\/p>\n

The Tamils did not stop at that. Tamil generals like Pottahakuta, Potthasala and Mahakanda\u00a0 had been given high office. They wanted a king they could control. They objected to Dappula I, (659 AD) therefore Dappula only lasted one year. Potthakuttha , then a powerful minister, nominated Haththadatha, a nephew of Dathopatissa I as king.. Hatthadata, who had fled to India, then returned with a Tamil army and took the throne with the support of the local Tamils. Great numbers of Tamils living in Rajarata joined him. Tamil power reached its highest point during his time. The senapati and chief minister were Tamils.\u00a0 Haththadatha (659-667) was a puppet ruler. .<\/p>\n

There were Tamil soldiers in the Polonnaruwa period as well. A set of professional Tamil soldiers known as Velaikkara were employed in the service of Vijayabahu I (1055 – 1110) according to one source, they looked after the tooth relic temple and the villages attached to it. The chief Buddhist monk of the time had asked for them. The Velaikkaras also were difficult to control. An invasion into South India planned by Vijayabahu I (1055-1110) had to be abandoned since the Velaikkara troops carried out an uprising. They were \u2018thoroughly subdued.\u2019 The Velaikkaras together with Kerala and Sinhala soldiers are said to have staged a rebellion during the reign of Parakrama bahu I. This was severely crushed. The Velaikkaras helped Vikramabahu I (1111-1132) to come to power. Gajabahu II (1132-1153) was also dependent upon them Vijayabahu I also had on his hands, a large body of captive Cola soldiers.<\/p>\n

There is evidence to show that the Tamils arriving in the Anuradhapura period were treated as an alien people. They were segregated from the local population. There are references in the historical records after the 7th century, to \u2018demel kuli\u2019 (Tamil allottees) \u2018demel kaballa\u2019 (Tamil land allotments) and \u2018demela gambim\u2019 (Tamil villages). The village of Kinigama had a separate section that was called \u2018demel kinigam.\u2019 \u00a0There was a \u2018demela adhikari.\u2019 in the time of Sena II (853-887) and Kassapa IV, (898-914).This officer was responsible for the promulgation of immunity grants to the Tamil lands. The position was held by a Sinhalese.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>There were strictures against the appointment of Tamils as district chiefs and giving daughters in marriage to them. The Tamils, in their turn, remained loyal to South India. When Pandya prince Srimara Srivallabha invaded Sri Lanka in the time of Sena I. (833-853), the resident Tamil population went over to the Pandya king. The Tamils left behind after the Chola occupation were employed in subordinate positions. Vijayabahu I employed Tamil clerks. Parakramabahu I, brought back Tamil prisoners from his campaigns in South India. They were used for the restoration of temples. Parakrama bahu I\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 employed Tamils who could sing and dance as spies.<\/p>\n

In his book, The evolution of an ethnic identity: Tamils in Sri Lanka 300 BCE to 1200 CE <\/em>\u00a0(2005)\u00a0 K. Indrapala tries to show that there has been a separate and parallel Tamil ethnic group existing alongside the Sinhalese in ancient and medieval Sri Lanka. Indrapala says that though the Tamils originated in South India, they inhabited the areas of north, north-west and north-east Sri Lanka from the 4th century BC. He says they evolved as a second ethnic group, parallel to the evolution of the Sinhalese. He says that by the end of the 12 century, the Tamil element was dominant in the areas north, west and east of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa. He says that after the 12th century, the island bifurcated into Tamil speaking and Sinhala speaking areas.<\/p>\n

He says that in the 13 century, the Sinhalese were dislodged form the north, their lands and properties were confiscated. He says that north Ceylon became transformed into a Tamil region and that this led to a creation of an independent Tamil kingdom.\u00a0 He says more Tamils migrated from south India and this led to the peaceful establishment of a Tamil settlement in the Jaffna district. He says that northern Ceylon was thus transformed into a Tamil region and there was a separate \u2018kingdom of Jaffna\u2019. He concludes that \u2018It was peaceful migration that was largely responsible for the Tamil settlement of the Jaffna district. \u2018 He is trying to prove that the present day Tamils have a historical right to the north and east.\u00a0 (Eelam)<\/p>\n

This is utter nonsense. There is no evidence to support any of this and Indrapala does not even attempt to provide evidence. He himself, points out that there is little information which can be used to prove that an indigenous Tamil ethnic group existed in north and east of Sri Lanka in the period 300 AD-900 AD. (p 170) He admits that there are few inscriptions in the east for this period, and none at all in the north, only a carnelian seal.(p370).<\/p>\n

Further, Indrapala\u2019s own research contradicts his current utterances. Indrapala, then a young historian, did research in the 1960s on early Tamil settlements in the Ceylon. He found that permanent Tamil settlements only appeared in the 10th century. There was no evidence of settlements before that. He also noted that until the 12th century, these settlements were outside Jaffna. P.A.T Gunasinghe says that the Tamil penetration into the interior on the east and west coasts of Sri Lanka was probably achieved in the 16th<\/sup> century and not the 13th century and that they settled only 8 to 16 miles inwards from the coast.<\/p>\n

According to Kiribamune, the earliest inscription in Tamil found in Sri Lanka has been dated to a period immediately preceding the Cola conquest of the island at the end of the 10th<\/sup> century. It records a donation to a Hindu shrine. The bulk of the Tamil inscriptions fit into the Cola occupation. Rajarata was administered in Tamil during this period. \u00a0When the Sinhala king overthrew the Colas, he threw out\u00a0 the Tamil language as well. There is only one Tamil inscription dated to Parakrama bahu I and that was for the benefit of south Indian traders who called at the port of Uratturai, (Kayts). None of the rulers who came after Parakrama bahu I set up inscriptions in Tamil, they are all in Sinhala. Nissanka Malla had only one Tamil inscription and that was\u00a0 in\u00a0 South India at Rameswaram. This indicates that the Tamil language was not permitted to take root in ancient and medieval Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n

Sirima Kiribamune\u2019s \u2018Tamils in ancient and medieval Sri Lanka’\u00a0\u00a0 published in Ethnic studies reports <\/em>1986 was the primary source for this essay.\u00a0 I have also used the writings of P.A.T Gunasinghe, T. Hettiarachchy, K. Indrapala, W.A. Jayawardene, V.L.B. Mendis, C.W. Nicholas, S. Paranavitana and W.M.K. Wijetunga.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS Tamils came into Sri Lanka in the ancient and medieval period as rulers and as soldiers. Several Tamil chiefs ruled over sections of the island in the ancient period. Elara, ruled over the principality of Anuradhapura until he was defeated by Dutugemunu in 161 BC. Elara\u2019s origins are not known. He was from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-55326","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55326"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55326\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}