49k) battle of the time of Kulaflhara for, as we know from the Cflava4sa , it was in the latter's reign that an Iryacakravartin led some of the PIya campaigna The allusion in the Cekaricac!kara-nl!lai seems to be a genuine tradition preserved in the courts of the iryaca1cravartins of Jaffna. In the light of afl. these considerations, the conclusion that the Iryacakravartins of Jaffua were descended from those of Panmad becomes irresistible. In his paper on the kingdom of northesin Ceylon, Paranavitana has made some interesting comments on the origin of the Iryacakravartins of Pinmad. Arguing on the basis that the word 'Ariya (Irya) has a distinct connotation in T2nil literature', namely that 'it denotes the language, literature and people of North India, as distinct from those of the Dravidian lands', he baa euggest.d a North Indian origin for the Iryacakravartina Be argues his case as follows: - Even if, as stated in the Cekarca-cTkara-nilai and reported by de Queyroz, the rulers of Jafina were called 1riyaa due to descent from a Bralimin of .ni!varam, it is not the fact of this ancestor being a Brahain, but of his belonging to a particular class of Brnhmlnn, namely Iriya Brahins, that would have conferred on them the titi. of 4riya. For there are still at 1. Cv., 9O:k3-k7 2. S.Paranavitana, 'The 4rya Ifngdom in North Ceylon', p. 2O+.
491 Izvaram a sect of Brhm{ns called 4riyappirlm4ar, who hay, special rights in the temple and who claim to be immigrants from North India. The North Indian origin of the Brahmins to whom the 1riyaa of Jaffna traced their origin is admitted also by the CeIcrca-ckaranfElai, for it says that they came with Rma. A stray verse, ascribed to Puka2nti, included in the anthology called Tami-n1valar-caritai, seems to support the Northern origin of the rya kings. This stanza, which expresses the poet's grief at the death of an lrya king, refers to him by a phrase which, in the printed text, is given as vaal ri r-kThifAp,. The compound vaalIriyar can only be analysed as vaal+L'iyar. But the first of these two words, according to the Tamil Lexicon means banya, and gives no sense in this context. As v can be confused with ]. in Tamil manuscripts, the correct reading appears to be avriyar-knf, the king of the Northern Kryas. De Queyroz definitely mentions that these Brahmons of RInvaram came from Gufar1t which, together with the adjoining regions, is called &riaka (Iryaka) by classical geograpber8. De ueyroz further states that these Irya Br.h mirn claimed royal descent. This is rather puzzling, for the rigidity of the Hindu caste system of those days would not have permitted a qatriya being accepted as a Brhmin. It is possible that originallythere were at RLfl!varam and its neighbourhood Br2h mine as well as KSatrlyaa who called themselves lryae, and that, at a later date, when the Brahmina alone_succeeded in preserving their separate identity, all 4riyas of Rn1varam known to tradition were held to be Br.hm(ni. The fact that the rya rulers of Jaffna wore the sacred thread need not necessarily prove that they were of Brahmin origin; the qatriyas, too, were entitled to wear it. 1 Having thus argued in favour of a North Indian, and possible EatrLya, origin for the Iryaca.kravartins, Paranavitana proeeda to 'ascertain who the Arias were' For this purpose he takes 1. S.Paranavitana, 'The Zrya Kingdom in North Ceylon', p. 20i4 205. 2. Ibid., p. 205.
MAP SHOWING SITES c_ ( •M• . N
2 ABSTRACT This thesis is a study o
4 COTES Page Abstract . . Acknowled
6 INIRODUCT ION In this work we hav
8 on this subject is Simon Casie Ch
10 Unlike the earlier works, Ancien
12 begins abruptly with the reign o
14 of the survival of earlier inhab
16 these were all writtem after the
18 based his work on the Vaiypal, K
Ndav4a inscription, dated in the th
22 determination of the nature of s
This is especially so regarding the
26 in culture and language, althoug
28 to derive the forms Tja and Iam
30 His third argument is that 'hund
the Tamil poems cannot be identifie
34 port is named }Iodouttou The pre
Our sources undoubtedly indicate th
38 evidence of the Pli chronicles s
first century B.0 Although the Mahv
42 It is as unreliable as the many
44 concerning any Dravidian settlem
form of a bounding circle or dolmen
48 though lesser known, ports of Ku
vicinity This means that all the ot
52 defeated the Sinhalese ruler and
54 influence of the Pallava school
56 on the 1fahvasa, states that thi
58 1na 'had the Damias expel1ed' Bu
to the existence of minor Tamil set
asentents These aiva ruins of Anurd
64 to have been an institution of t
66 or citizens who were members of
68 that lived in this quarter on th
70 the term Dem4-kblla to mean 'an
72 conferred on certain officiala o
.74 body of indirect evidence, it m
76 suggest that there were Dravidia
7r chronicle. That by the tenth cen
80 India did not consider Ceylon as
82 b4 with the Xi4igani of the abov
84 CHAPTER II SL'rTLENTS IN THE PER
86 arrive at more than what has bee
88 struggle that went on between th
90 That Vijayablhu did not have any
92 large number of Tamil inscriptio
94 as well as the pariyclrakar, the
96 peninsula and three are in the K
98 of a 6trong civilian population
100 at Periyak4am. With this possib
of certain taxes for the coat of th
104 ndra-ca-pi and the cakra-ptyr w
106 The gifts were made by several
108 the gift a 1_' by a certain Ara
110 of the year 1067, mentions a pe
112 a-ma4alam, to the temple of Kut
114 set up by officials do not nece
About ten Siva Dv1es, five Viu temp
at Nalla-t ai-iakkam, Buddhannehe l
120 of the tenth century was built
122 supports him by stating that 't
124 are known from the Ca inscripti
126 Pli Pulattbinagara), Koiy'rain1
128 They reveal the presence of Tam
130 in provisionally marking those
132 to temples for the performance
Ceylon This period, therefore, sees
136 to them or to their associate b
138 therefore, date back to about t
140 on the interpretations of the t
142 There was also a community of B
144 to suggest that there was any k
146 The AifffhIruvar were primarily
145 that all these bodies were orga
150 suggest the nature of the work
152 between the Valafljiyar and the
the 1a1r,rattir as one of their lea
153 three lines of this inscription
158 local and a foreign group. But
160 to in the V 1kala and VihirhThn
As pointed out earlier, the period
164 e) Tiru-ciila-aikkrar (Taniil t
166 been a aikkra (Pii V.akkr& may
168 Among the other sections of the
170 inscription, an official who ha
172 status and was used for individ
the Ker4a and ica4ia mercenaries in
1(0 three wings, we are unable at p
178 army is said to have been 2, 11
180 of the southern Maavars' In Cey
182 general of Parkramabhu I who co
184 year of a ParkramabThu, who is
186 South Indian artisans found emp
188 of South India, especially in t
190 have been a Blow and unnoticed
192 Even these minor movements of p
194 evidence of the epigraphs help
196 from ruined Buddhist buildings
The evidence relating to this perio
200 inscription we find that the Vi
that we get the earliest occurrence
204 where this inscription is found
206 around the twelfth century the
208 consecration name of Ciica..ka-
210 ut from its occurrences in the
It is not probable that all these w
214 We also learn that the site of
216 communities were Tamils, for it
218 te pie, have been definitely id
in the area which point in the same
settlements here in the period of C
224 About a mile away from Kanadarv
22 at Polonnaruva As a result we ar
228 Nakarattr were probably of Kann
23 wars against the Cas and had the
232 were Tamils. Presumably this pa
234 not established in the Battical
23U CHAPTER IV STTLEHENTS IN THE TH
The first important feature of this
240 called Sasa vata, composed in t
242 record, the general Iti repelle
244 The conquest of northern Ceylon
The CUavaida account of the invasio
Almost inimediatel after the stroph
250 when the author of the Clavaisa
established himself at Polonnaruva,
254 there is no gainsaying the fact
importance of the foreign invasions
258 and that the majority of the Si
260 were among the more iportant re
262 In Paranavitana's opinion, 'all
264 One could suppose that the nume
It may be recollected that several
268 Jaffna peninsula does not help
It is not possible to identify the
1 establishment in the region in ea
274 anywhere. This poses a serious
27 who were responsible for giving
worthy of note in this respect: 278
280 etymology The account of the se
and tenth century some villages in
materials for the erection of lasti
28G much depreciated as a result of
288 etymology which attempts to exp
290 earlier traditions from the lat
9Q9 Those who went to the island in
The accounts in the Vaiy!pal and th
29 The Naavaryar (variant: Mauvarya
29 that all these castes were repre
300 These were evidently named afte
from Kpakanu and Pu.ya-inakIpla-ppa
301 in our sources. In view of such
3OGo. Province, the chieftaincies o
307 In l9kl Geiger published an int
309 Arier in bewu ten Gegensatz zu
311 include in their enumeration. P
313 of warriors or tribesmen who we
315 of Ceylon. It is even possible
317 In Ceylon, the earliest work in
319 C!1avasa. Though at first sight
321 of Vannis, namely the }iaha-van
The Vaiyars of the nineteenth centu
32 came into existence independentl
In the sources mentioned above Ku.a
(c) Co4agai a of the Trincomalee Sa
331 and aspired to the kingship of
333 enemies had led punitive raids
335 alias Co.agafiga whds mention i
337 with not only the renovation of
33) In the light of the evidence th
31 Sinhalese settlements that once
343 According to the Kcar-kalveu, K
345 Malaiyakam, T4uvai, Toaimatalam
347 Ppla Kttiram (Bh' la Gotra) and
34J Ukkiraciñka, , as it ap ears i
351 as Kantajy, Pakai and Carnpl!r
353 in the chronicles of Trincomale
35 va (chieftaincies) may be based
357 Probably Ki4akkan and possibly
35 settle ents of Dravidians that s
361 Ceylon by the Dravidians was no
1 . structures. A door-jamb from on
1 to the Tamil population, as in Ja
36/ Chaggxna (Skmam)finda mention i
369 The Ker4a origin of this caste
meanjn mariners or boatmen As a sea
narrated in the Vaiy and the Vaiypa
375 presence of Ilukkuva mercenarie
37' the rest. Consequently we are n
37 xniyam, the Xaliñga ruler (!gha
This tradition seems to refer to a
383 year 512 (2590 .c.) and underto
385 (Mugwiuvaavana), Villattavai (V
with Nu&varam in order to give it a
egion may have been forced to chang
391 The wi e rea occurrence of Tami
393 used in the inscription for 'wo
From the foregoing analysis it beco
Marumakkattyarn laws of Kera.a and
399 CHAP!ER VI THE BEGINNINGS OF TH
401 part of the ia].and in the four
aside these arguments and shown tha
405 as well are baaed on the errone
the account of Ku!aa in some of the
409 resembles in many ways the lion
411 bhildren, a son and a daughter.
413 and the avvaiapva-ifl!lai. In t
and obtained the arid peninsula of
derivation of the name and that is
ecently, there oceurs the name Subh
This statement is evidently due to
the basis of certain references in
d2 Vra-ca1nika, (Ka1ifikar-ma - Kin
427 the inscription. Similarly, the
429 P11 chronicle deals mainly with
431 an island off the peninsula of
433 been suggested that this may be
435 obliged to abandon it ' This wo
43? This is not quite convincing. D
541 kingdom marks the cul mination
543 in the island in this period. T
545 the invasions of )!gba and the
541 of the thirteenth century favou
549 A SELT BIBLIOGRAPUT A, Tami]. I
551 15. PLTva1iya, ed. A.V.Suravira
553 IV. Modern Works (Articles on e
555 2k. Indrapa].a, Karthigesu 'The
557 k8. Paranavitana, Senarat (cont
559 57. Taylor, William, Catalowue