The earliest occurrence of the term Velaalar (வேளாளர்) in
Sangam literature is in
Paripadal where it is used in the sense of a landowner.[11] The term Velaalar (வேளாளர்) can be derived from the word Vel (வேள்), Vel being a title that was borne by the
Velir chieftains of Sangam age among other things.[12]
The word Vellalar (வெள்ளாளர் ) may come from the root Vellam for flood, which gave rise to various rights of land; and it is because of the acquisition of land rights that the Vellalar got their name.[13]
History
The Vellalars have a long cultural history that goes back to over two millennia in southern India,[14] where once they were the ruling and land-owning community.[15][16] Though the Vellalar have generally been associated with the landed gentry and agriculture, they are not a homogenous group and various people from diverse backgrounds have identified themselves as a Vellalar in the course of history.[6]
In Sangam literature
The Vellalar are spoken of as a group of people right from the
Sangam period and are mentioned in many of the classical works of
Sangam literature. The
Tolkappiyam does not contain the term Vellalar but refers to a group of people called Velaan Maanthar who apart from practising agriculture had the right to carry weapons and wear garlands when they were involved in affairs of the state.[17] The term Vellalar itself occurs in the sense of a landowner in
Paripadal.[11] The poem
Pattinappaalai lists the six virtues of Vellalar as abstention from killing, abstention from stealing, propagation of religion, hospitality, justice and honesty.[18]
Post-Sangam period
In the years that immediately followed the Sangam age (from third to sixth century CE), the Tamil lands were ruled by a dynasty called
Kalabhras.[19] Historians believe that the Kalabhras belonged to the Vellalar community of warriors who were possibly once the feudatories of the
Cholas and the
Pallavas.[20] Scholar and historian
M. Raghava Iyengar identifies the Kalabhras with the Kalappalar section of the Vellalar and equates king Achyuta Vikranta with Achyuta Kalappala the father of
Meykandar.[21]Buddhadatta, the Pali writer who stayed in the
Chola kingdom and authored Buddhist manuals refers (in the Nigamanagātha of Vinayavinicchaya, verse 3179) to his patron Achyuta Vikranta who was then (fifth century CE) ruling the Chola kingdom as Kalamba-kula nandane meaning the favourite of the Kalamba family.[22] In
Pali language as in
Tamil, the word Kalamba or Kalambam (in Tamil) means the
Kadamba tree, the sacred
totemic symbol that is associated with Tamil god
Murugan.[23][24]
The Velir
The
Velir were an ancient group of Tamil chieftains who claimed Yadava (Yadu) descent.[25] The
Ay Vels were one such Velir group that ruled the territory in and around
Venad during the Sangam period. The word Venad is derived from Vel -nadu, that is the country ruled by Vel chieftains.[26] We know of a queen of Vikramaditya Varaguna, an Ay king of 9th century who is referred to as Murugan Chenthi and as Aykula Mahadevi from inscriptions. Her father, an Ay chief called Chathan Murugan is described as a Vennir Vellala that is a Vellala by birth,[27] in the Huzur plates of king Karunandakkan, the predecessor of Vikramaditya Varaguna.[28]
The
Irunkovel or Irukkuvel chieftains were another ancient Velir clan who ruled from their capital
Kodumbalur (near Pudukottai district). They were related to the Cholas by marriage.[29] In an inscription of
Rajadhiraja Chola an Irukkuvel feudatory who was a high-ranking military officer (Dandanayaka) of the king is described as a Velala.[f]
The Irungovels are considered to be of the same stock as the
Hoysalas as in one of the Sangam poems, the ancestor of the Irungovel chieftain is said to have ruled the fortified city of Tuvarai. This city is identified with the Hoysala capital
Dwarasamudra by some historians.[31] Also, the legend of the chief killing a tiger (Pulikadimal) has a striking resemblance to the origin legend of the Hoysalas where ‘'sala'’ kills the tiger to save a sage.[32] As per historian Arokiaswami, the Hoysala title ‘'Ballala'’ is only a variant of the Tamil word ‘'Vellala'’.[33] The Hoysala king
Veera Ballala III is even now locally known as the ‘'Vellala Maharaja'’ in
Thiruvannamalai, the town that served as their capital in 14th century.[34]
The Chola period
According to the anthropologist
Kathleen Gough, "the Vellalars were the dominant secular aristocratic caste under the Chola kings, providing the courtiers, most of the army officers, the lower ranks of the kingdom's bureaucracy, and the upper layer of the peasantry".[16]
Two identical
Tamil inscriptions from Avani and Uttanur in
Mulbagal Taluk dated in the 3rd year of
Kulottunga I (about 1072-1073 CE) describe how the great army of the right hand class (perumpadai valangai mahasenai) having arrived with great weapons of war from the 78-nadus of Chola-mandalam and the 48000-bhumi of Jayangonda-cholamandalam (the northern districts of Tamil Nadu that is
Tondaimandalam) conquered and colonized southern Karnataka (
Kolar district) by the grace of Rajendrachola (Kulottunga I).[35]
Historian
Burton Stein who has done a detailed analysis of this inscription equates the Valangai military forces and the Velaikkara troops of the Cholas with the Vellalas and notes that the contents of the above inscription confirm this identification.[36] The Velaikkara troops were special units of armed forces drawn from the right-hand castes that were close to the king. The units were generally named after the king like Rajaraja-terinda-valangai-velaikkarar, that is the known (terinda) forces of king
Rajaraja Chola I.[37] The Chola inscriptions state that the Velaikkara forces pledged under oath to commit suicide in case they failed to defend their king or in the event of his death.[38] The Chalukya kings were also known by the title Velpularasar, that is kings of Vel country (pulam means region or country in
Tamil) and as Velkulattarasar, that is kings of the Vel clan (kulam), in epigraphs and in the old Tamil lexicon Divakaram.[39][40]
The Vellalar also contributed to the
Bhakti movement in south India from the seventh century CE onwards and helped revive Hinduism. Many of the
Nayanmars, the
Shaiva saints, were Vellalar.[41][42] In the 12th century CE, saint
Sekkilan Mahadevadigal Ramadeva sang the glories of these Nayanmars in his magnum opus, the
Periyapuranam.[43] Sekkizhar was born in a Vellala family in
Kundrathur in
Thondaimandalam and had the title Uttama Chola Pallavaraiyan.[44][45][46] Sekkilan Mahadevadigal Ramadeva was an elder contemporary of
Kulothunga Chola II, the king who is said to have persecuted the
Brahmin philosopher
Ramanuja for his
Vaishnavite preachings by forcing him to sign a document stating
Shiva is the greatest god.[47][48]
The Vellalars of Sri Lanka have been chronicled in the Yalpana Vaipava Malai and other historical texts of the
Jaffna kingdom. They form half of the
Sri Lankan Tamil population and are the major
husbandmen, involved in tillage and cattle cultivation.[49][9] Local Sri Lankan literature, such as the Kailiyai Malai, an account on
Kalinga Magha, narrates the migration of Vellala Nattar chiefs from the
Coromandel Coast to Sri Lanka.[50]
Their dominance rose under
Dutch rule and they formed one of the colonial political elites of the island.[51][52]
In Jainism
At present, most of the
Tamil Jains are from the Vellalar social group.[1] Also, the Saiva Velaalar sect are originally believed to have been Jainas before they embraced
Hinduism.[g] The Tamil Jains refer to the Saiva Velaalar as nīr-pūci-nayinārs or nīr-pūci-vellalars meaning the vellalars who left Jainism by smearing the sacred ash or (tiru)-nīru.[h] While some of the Jains assign this conversion to the period of the Bhakti movement in
Tamil nadu others link it to a conflict with a ruler of the
Vijayanagar empire in the 15th century.[54] The villages and areas settled by the Saiva Velaalar even now have a small number of Jaina families and inscriptional evidence indicate that these were earlier Jaina settlements as is evident by the existence of old Jaina temples.[55]
Current usage
Even though at present, the term "Vellalar" is uncertain, a number of non-cultivating landholding castes like
Kaarukaatha Velaalar and the
Kondaikatti Velaalar who served ruling dynasties in various capacities also identify themselves as Vellalar.[i] Likewise, the
Kottai Pillaimar who were traditionally land-holders and lived inside forts, neither lease land for agriculture nor do they till their own fields. They also do not supervise cultivation directly due to the stigma attached to farming and manual labor.[57] Similarly, the Vellala Chettis, a branch of the Chozhia Vellalars were traders and merchants.[58] The Adi-saiva vellalar sect is a strictly vegetarian
Saivite group that traditionally served as priests.[59]
Social status
The Vellalar were considered to be of high status and enjoyed a high rank during the Chola period. They helped promote and stabilize
Shaivism during the Chola era and many of the cult's leaders were drawn from the ranks of the Vellalar. They were a prosperous community of farmers and landowners who had provided economic support to Shiva temples in the Tamil country. In the Tamil region, Vellalar like Mudaliyar and Pillai along with certain other non-brahmin groups enjoyed a status equal to that of the Brahmins. The Vellalar also had more authority, power and status than the Brahmins in some social and ritual contexts.[60] They were more orthodox than the Brahmins in their religious practices.[61][62] The Vellalar nobles had marriage alliances with Chola royal families.[63][64]
The
Smarta Brahmins have always competed with the Tamil
Shaivites for religious influence in the temples in the
Kaveri delta region. The Smarta adopted the worship of Hindu deities and combined their Sanskritic background with Tamil Saiva and Vaishnava devotionalism and eventually identified themselves as
Shaivites and started worshipping in
Shiva temples.[65]
From the Sangam period to the Chola period of Indian history (A.d. 600 to 1200), state-level political authority was in the hands of relatively low, Vellalar chieftains, who endowed local and nonlocal Brahmins with land and honors, and were in turn legitimized by them.[66]
^According to
Susan Bayly, even in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, "Vellalar affiliation was as vague and uncertain as that of most other south Indian castes"; Vellalar identity was a source of prestige and "There were any number of groups sought to claim Vellalar status for themselves"[4]
^The term "Vellalar" is a generic term for a group of high ranking Non-brahmin castes in TamilNadu[5]
^Coming to the Vellalas, Andre Beteille, an authority on caste in South India writes: The term 'Vellala' is rather confusing because of its comprehensive use. Even the Vellalas proper, those who are of Vellala origin-are not a homogeneous unit but are subdivided into small sections. These sub-groups are always segmented and are endogamous.[6]
^Without going into detail, it must suffice to say that in Sripuram the Vellalas proper are segmented into three endogamous units: Chozhia Vellala, Karaikathu Vellala, and Kodikkal Vellala.[7]
^The Kongu Vellalar is an engogamous group. They use 'gounder' as a title and hence they are also known as Kongu Vellala Gounders.[8]
^Records in his third year gift of 90 sheep for a lamp by Velala Madurantakam alias Tandanayakan Rajadhiraja Ilangovelan of Nadar, a village in Tiraimur-nadu which was a sub-division of Uyyakondan-valanadu in Solamandalam.[30]
^It is also widely believed that the Saiva Vellalas of Madras State who are stricter vegetarians than even Tamil Brahmins, were Jainas.[53]
^All of those who feared for their lives converted to Saivism (and not any other religious sect) adorning the sacred ash, 'throwing away their sacred threads', they assumed the identity of Saiva (nir-puci) vellalars or nir-puci-nayinars (the Jainas who smeared sacred ash).[54]
^Among the Tamil castes, both Karkattar Vellalas (Arunachalam, 1975) and Kondaikatti Vellalas (Barnett, 1970) have much the same profile as the KP (Kottai Pillaimar): both are non-cultivating land-holders, with a history of service to ruling dynasties.[56]
References
^
abR. Umamaheshwari (2018). Reading History with the Tamil Jainas. A Study on Identity, Memory and Marginalisation. Volume 22 of Sophia Studies in Cross-cultural Philosophy of Traditions and Cultures. Springer. p. 250.
^Rowena Robinson (2003). Christians of India. SAGE Publications. p. 81.
^
abP. R. G. Mathur (1994). Applied Anthropology and Challenges of Development in India. Punthi-Pustak. p. 152.
^André Béteille (2012). Caste, Class and Power: Changing Patterns of Stratification in a Tanjore Village. Oxford University Press. p. 86.
^D. Tyagi; K. K. Bhattacharya; S. S. Datta Chaudhuri; D. Xaviour, eds. (2012). Nutritional Status of Indian Population: Southern region. Anthropological Survey of India, Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Department of Culture, Government of India. p. 243.
^Iravatham Mahadevan.
"Meluhha and Agastya: Alpha and Omega of the Indus Script"(PDF). p. 16. Archived from
the original(PDF) on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 7 June 2011. The Ventar-Velir-Velalar groups constituted the ruling and land-owning classes in the Tamil country since the beginning of recorded history
^Ka. Ta Tirunāvukkaracu (1994). Chieftains of the Sangam Age. International Institute of Tamil Studies. p. 33.
^C. Sivaratnam (1964). An Outline of the Cultural History and Principles of Hinduism. Stangard Printers. p. 269.
^D. Devakunjari (1979). Madurai Through the Ages From the Earliest Times to 1801 A.D. Publisher: Society for Archaeological, Historical, and Epigraphical Research. p. 72.
^N. Subrahmanian (1993). Social and Cultural History of Tamilnad: To A.D. 1336. Ennes. p. 67.
^K. A. NILAKANTA SASTRI, M.A., Emeritus Professor of Indian History and Archaeology, University of Madras. Professor of Indology. University of Mysore. (1955). The Colas, Second Edition. G. S. Press, Madras. p. 108.{{
cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)
^Thomas Oberlies, Richard Pischel (2001). Pāli, A Grammar of the Language of the Theravāda Tipiṭaka. Walter de Gruyter. p. 88.
^K. R. Srinivasan (1979). Temples of South India. National Book Trust. p. 8.
^Vijaya Laxmi Singh (2005). Mathurā.The Settlement Pattern and Cultural Profile of an Early Historical City. Sundeep Prakashan. p. 121.
^R. Leela Devi. History of Kerala. Vidyarthi Mithram Press & Book Depot. p. 117.
^Burton Stein (1994). Peasant State and Society in Medieval South India. Oxford University Press. p. 350.
^Raj Kumar (2008). Encyclopaedia of Untouchables Ancient, Medieval and Modern. Kalpaz Publications. p. 181.
^Indu Banga, ed. (1991). The City in Indian History. Urban Demography, Society, and Politics. South Asia Publications. p. 61.
^P. V. Jagadisa Ayyar (1993). South Indian Shrines. Asian Educational Services. p. 53.
^T.A. Society (Tiruchchirāppalli, India) (1986). The Tamilian Antiquary Volume 1, Issue 5. Asian Educational Services. p. 28.
^M. Arokiaswami. The Early History of the Vellar Basin, with Special Reference to the Irukkuvels of Kodumbalur. A Study in Vellala Origin and Early History. Amudha Nilayam. p. 28.
^M. Arokiaswami. The Early History of the Vellar Basin, with Special Reference to the Irukkuvels of Kodumbalur. A Study in Vellala Origin and Early History. Amudha Nilayam. p. 29.
^F. H. Gravely (2002). The Gopuras of Thiruvannamalai. Commissioner of Museums, Government of Tamil Nadu. p. 2.
^B. Sheikh Ali (1990). H. V. Sreenivasa Murthy (ed.). Essays on Indian History and Culture. Felicitation Volume in Honour of Professor B. Sheik Ali. Mittal Publications. pp. 105–107.
^Burton Stein (1994). Peasant State and Society in Medieval South India. Oxford University Press. pp. 190–191.
^Gurcharn Singh Sandhu (2003). A Military History of Medieval India. Vision Books. p. 208.
^École pratique des hautes études (France). Section des sciences économiques et sociales, University of Oxford. Institute of Social Anthropology, Research Centre on Social and Economic Development in Asia (1995). Contributions to Indian Sociology Volumes 29-30 of Contributions to Indian Sociology: Occasional Studies. Mouton. p. 265.{{
cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)
^Raj Kumar (2008). Encyclopaedia of Untouchables Ancient, Medieval and Modern. Gyan Publishing House. p. 179.
^K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, M.A., Professor of Indian History and Archaeology University of Madras (1937). The Colas. Thompson & Co., Ltd., Printers, Madras. p. 11.{{
cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)
^Keith E. Yandell Keith E. Yandell, John J. Paul (2013). Religion and Public Culture: Encounters and Identities in Modern South India. Routledge. p. 249.
^Professor of Asian History Hermann Kulke, Dietmar Rothermund (2004). A History of India. Psychology Press. p. 143.
^Muthusamy Govindasamy (1977). A Survey of the Sources for the History of Tamil Literature. Annamalai University. p. 135.
^C. Chandramouli (2003). Temples of Tamilnadu Kancheepuram District, Volume 1. Controller of Publications. p. 54.
^Balasubrahmanyam Venkataraman (1994). Tillai and Nataraja. Mudgala Trust. p. 65.
^B. Natarajan (1974). The City of the Cosmic Dance: Chidambaram. Orient Longman. p. 32.
^Caṇmukam Meyyappan̲ (1992). Chidambaram Golden Temple. Manivasagar Pathippagam. p. 13.
^Madabhushini Narasimhacharya (2004). Sri Ramanuja. Makers of Indian literature. Sahitya Akademi. p. 25.
^Fernando, A. Denis N. (1987). "PENINSULAR JAFFNA FROM ANCIENT TO MEDIEVAL TIMES: Its Significant Historical and Settlement Aspects". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka. 32: 84.
JSTOR23731055.
^Andhra University (1972). Religion and Politics in Medieval South India. Papers of a Seminar Held by the Institute of Asian Studies and Andhra University. Institute of Asian Studies. p. 15.
^
abR. Umamaheshwari (2018). Reading History with the Tamil Jainas. A Study on Identity, Memory and Marginalisation. Volume 22 of Sophia Studies in Cross-cultural Philosophy of Traditions and Cultures. Springer. p. 222.
^R. Umamaheshwari (2018). Reading History with the Tamil Jainas. A Study on Identity, Memory and Marginalisation. Volume 22 of Sophia Studies in Cross-cultural Philosophy of Traditions and Cultures. Springer. p. 223.
^Karuna Chanana, Maithreyi Krishna Raj, ed. (1989). Gender and the Household Domain. Social and Cultural Dimensions. Sage Publications. p. 92.
^Kamala Ganesh (1993). Boundary Walls. Caste and Women in a Tamil Community. Hindustan Publishing Corporation. p. 27.
^Govind Sadashiv Ghurye (1969). Caste and Race in India. Popular Prakashan. p. 209.
^A. Aiyappan, K. Mahadevan (1988). Population and Social Change in an Indian Village. Quarter Century of Development in Managadu [i.e. Mangadu] Village, Tamil Nadu. Mittal Publications. p. 42.
^Indira Viswanathan Peterson (2014). Poems to Siva The Hymns of the Tamil Saints. Princeton University Press. p. 45,54.
^Madras (India : State). Record Office (1957),
Tanjore District Handbook (in Slovenian), Superintendent Government Press, p. 128, retrieved 4 January 2023
^Gough, K. (1978),
Dravidian Kinship and Modes of Production, Publication (Indian Council of Social Science Research), Indian Council of Social Science Research, p. 10, retrieved 4 January 2023
^University of Travancore; University of Kerala (1948),
Journal of Indian History, p. 274, retrieved 4 January 2023
^Indira Viswanathan Peterson (2014). Poems to Siva The Hymns of the Tamil Saints. Princeton University Press. pp. 54–55.