118-492: The Tamil Eelam Supporters Organization (TESO) was an Eelam Tamil supporters organisation founded in 1985 with Dr. Kalaignar Karunanidhi as president and K. Veeramani and Nedumaran as members for the establishment of an independent Tamil Eelam in the northeast of Sri Lanka. When the Central Government of India ordered Tamil Eelam leadership to be sent out of Madras , thousands of Tamilians marched along
236-773: A clan name— veḷ , a name related to velir from ancient Tamil country . Once Prakrit speakers had attained dominance on the island, the Mahavamsa further recounts the later migration of royal brides and service castes from the Tamil Pandya Kingdom to the Anuradhapura Kingdom in the early historic period. Epigraphic evidence shows people identifying themselves as Damelas or Damedas (the Prakrit word for Tamil people) in Anuradhapura,
354-641: A dramatic appearance on the platform at this rally, but the police were powerless to arrest him. However, the police managed to arrest him a couple of days later at the Hulftsdorp residence of Vernon Gunasekera, the Secretary of the LSSP. However, the necessary legal preparations had been made. A writ of habeas corpus was served and the case was called before a bench of three Supreme Court judges presided over by Chief Justice Sir Sidney Abrahams . H. V. Perera,
472-591: A large meeting in Badulla on 12 May, and the police were powerless to act. At Wewessa Estate the workers set up an elected council and the Superintendent agreed to act in consultation with the Workers' Council. An armed police party that went to restore 'law and order' was disarmed by the workers. The strike wave was finally beaten back by a wave of violence by the police, aided by floods which cut Uva off from
590-600: A man can only marry in one of his sampantha kudi s not in the sakothara kudi s. By custom, children born in a family belong to mother's kudi . Kudi also collectively own places of worship such as Hindu temples . Each caste contains a number of kudis , with varying names. Aside from castes with an internal kudi system, there are seventeen caste groups, called Ciraikudis , or imprisoned kudis , whose members were considered to be in captivity, confined to specific services such as washing, weaving, and toddy tapping . However, such restrictions no longer apply. The Tamils of
708-452: A map in 1681 CE. Upon arrival of European powers from the 17th century CE, the Tamils' separate nation was described in their areas of habitation in the northeast of the island. The caste structure of the majority Sinhalese has also accommodated Tamil and Kerala immigrants from South India since the 13th century CE. This led to the emergence of three new Sinhalese caste groups:
826-776: A militia commander was shot for mutiny. Inspector-General of Police Herbert Dowbiggin became notorious for his methods. Hundreds of Sinhalese Buddhists were arrested by the British colonial government during the Riots of 1915. Those imprisoned without charges included future leaders of the independence movement; F.R. Senanayake, D. S. Senanayake, Anagarika Dharmapala, Dr C A Hewavitarne , Arthur V Dias , H. M. Amarasuriya , Dr. W. A. de Silva , Baron Jayatilaka , Edwin Wijeyeratne , A. E. Goonesinghe , John Silva, Piyadasa Sirisena and others. Sir James Peiris initiated and drafted
944-467: A resident ritualist or priest known as a Kurukkal . A Kurukkal may belong to someone from a prominent local lineage like Pandaram or Iyer community. In the Eastern Province, a Kurukkal usually belongs to Lingayat sect. Other places of worship do not have icons for their deities. The sanctum could house a trident ( culam ), a stone, or a large tree. Temples of this type are common in
1062-629: A secret memorandum with the support of Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan and E. W. Perera braved mine and submarine-infested seas (as well as the Police) to carry it in the soles of his shoes to the Secretary of State for the Colonies , pleading for the repeal of martial law and describing the actions committed by the Police led by Dowbiggin during the riots. The British government ordered the release of
1180-513: A significant amount of evidence points towards these Muslims being ethnic Tamils , they are controversially listed as a separate ethnic group by the Sri Lankan government . Sri Lankan Tamils (also called Ceylon Tamils) are descendants of the Tamils of the old Jaffna Kingdom and east coast chieftaincies called Vannimais . The Indian Tamils (or Hill Country Tamils) are descendants of bonded labourers sent from Tamil Nadu to Sri Lanka in
1298-739: A vote of censure on the Governor for having ordered the deportation of Bracegirdle without the advice of the acting Home Minister. Even the Board of Ministers had started feeling the heat of public opinion and the vote was passed by 34 votes to 7. On the same day, there was a 50,000-strong rally at Galle Face Green , which was presided over by Colvin R de Silva and addressed by Dr. N.M. Perera, Philip Gunawardena, Leslie Goonewardene, A. E. Goonesinha, George E. de Silva, D. M. Rajapakse, Siripala Samarakkody , Vernon Gunasekera, Handy Perimbanayagam, Mrs. K. Natesa Iyer and S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike . Bracegirdle made
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#17327913448931416-420: A white comrade (applause) .... He has generously consented to address you. I call upon Comrade Bracegirdle to address you.' Bracegirdle rose to speak amid tumultuous applause and shouts of 'Samy, Samy' (master, master). The authorities were on hand to note his speech: 'the most noteworthy feature of this meeting ... was the presence of Bracegirdle and his attack on the planters. He claimed unrivaled knowledge of
1534-745: Is a necessary adjunct to the agriculture. The Tamil-inhabited Vanni consists of the Vavuniya , Mullaitivu , and eastern Mannar districts. Historically, the Vanni area has been in contact with what is now South India, including during the medieval period and was ruled by the Vanniar Chieftains . Northern Tamils follow customary laws called Thesavalamai , codified during the Dutch colonial period . Western Tamils, also known as Negombo Tamils or Puttalam Tamils, are native Sri Lankan Tamils who live in
1652-518: Is also known as the "Catholic belt". The Tamil Christians , chiefly Roman Catholics, have preserved their heritage in the major cities such as Negombo , Chilaw , Puttalam , and also in villages such as Mampuri . Some residents of these two districts, especially the Karaiyars , are bilingual, ensuring that the Tamil language survives as a lingua franca among migrating maritime communities across
1770-417: Is considered diverged from its original source (due to Sinhalese language influence). According to K. Indrapala , cultural diffusion , rather than migration of people, spread the Prakrit and Tamil languages from peninsular India into an existing mesolithic population, centuries before the common era . Tamil Brahmi and Tamil-Prakrit scripts were used to write the Tamil language during this period on
1888-555: Is in Anuradhapura and one is in Matale District . Literary sources make references about Tamil rulers bringing horses to the island in water crafts in the second century BCE, most likely arriving at Kudiramalai . Historical records establish that Tamil kingdoms in modern India were closely involved in the island's affairs from about the 2nd century BCE. Kudiramalai, Kandarodai and Vallipuram served as great northern Tamil capitals and emporiums of trade with these kingdoms and
2006-579: Is principally dominated by the maritime Karaiyars , along with other dominant groups such as the Paravars . In Gampaha District, Tamils have historically inhabited the coastal region. In the Puttalam District, there was a substantial ethnic Tamil population until the first two decades of the 20th century. Most of those who identify as ethnic Tamils live in villages such as Udappu and Maradankulam . The coastal strip from Jaffna to Chilaw
2124-417: Is the kudi system. Although the Tamil word kudi means a house or settlement, in eastern Sri Lanka it is related to matrimonial alliances. It refers to the exogamous matrilineal clans and is found amongst most caste groups. Men or women remain members of the kudi of their birth and be brother or sister by relation. No man can marry in the same kudi because woman is always become sister to him. But,
2242-669: The Nalavar , Pallar , Parayar , Vannar and Ambattar . The castes of temple priests known as the Kurukkals and the Iyers are also held in high esteem. The artisans who are known as Kammalar also serve as Kudimakkal, and consists of the Kannar (brass-workers), Kollar (blacksmiths), Tattar (goldsmiths), Tatchar (carpenters) and Kartatchar (sculptor). The Kudimakkal were domestic servants who also gave ritual importance to
2360-830: The Salagama , the Durava and the Karava . The Tamil migration and assimilation continued until the 18th century CE. According to the 2012 census there were 2,270,924 Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka, 11.2% of the population. Sri Lankan Tamils constitute an overwhelming majority of the population in the Northern Province and are the largest ethnic group in the Eastern Province . They are minority in other provinces. 70% of Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka live in
2478-640: The Battle of Assaye ; following the Battle of Waterloo , the British Empire became more influential. Its prestige was only briefly dented by setbacks in India , Afghanistan and South Africa . It was virtually unchallenged until 1914. The British were very powerful during their rule in Sri Lanka and left more of a lasting impact than any other power. The formation of the Batavian Republic in
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#17327913448932596-591: The Hatton constituency, to 'organise an Estate Labour Federation in Nawalapitiya or Hatton, with an idea that he may be a proper candidate to be the future Secretary of the Labour Federation.' [6] On 3 April, at a meeting at Nawalapitiya attended by two thousand estate workers, at which Kamaladevi Chattopadhyaya spoke, Dr. N. M. Perera said: 'Comrades, I have an announcement to make. You know we have
2714-520: The Mudaliyars , an anglicised class of new elites created by the British rulers. The collaborationist compradore elements of the elite, led by S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike , F.R. Senanayake and D.S. Senanayake succeeded the populists led by Dharmapala from the leadership of the temperance movement. A jolt was given to the British aura of invincibility by the German cruiser Emden , which attacked
2832-642: The Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom in 1619 CE. The coastal areas of the island were conquered by the Dutch and then became part of the British Empire in 1796 CE. The Sinhalese Nampota dated in its present form to the 14th or 15th century CE suggests that the whole of the Tamil Kingdom, including parts of the modern Trincomalee District, was recognised as a Tamil region by
2950-699: The Romans from the 6th–2nd centuries BCE. The archaeological discoveries in these towns and the Manimekhalai , a historical poem, detail how Nāka-Tivu of Nāka-Nadu on the Jaffna Peninsula was a lucrative international market for pearl and conch trading for the Tamil fishermen. In Mahavamsa , a historical poem, ethnic Tamil adventurers such as Ellalan invaded the island around 145 BCE. Early Chola king Karikalan , son of Eelamcetcenni utilised superior Chola naval power to conquer Ceylon in
3068-741: The Shaiva sect. The rest were mostly Roman Catholics who converted after the Portuguese conquest of Jaffna Kingdom . There is also a small minority of Protestants due to missionary efforts in the 18th century by organisations such as the American Ceylon Mission . Most Tamils who inhabit the Western Province are Roman Catholics, while those of the Northern and Eastern Provinces are mainly Hindu. Pentecostal and other churches, such as Jehovah's Witnesses , are active among
3186-606: The Siam Nikaya in 1764, just 10 years after it had been established by a Thai monk. Around 1800 they organised the Amarapura Nikaya , which became hegemonic in the low-country by the mid-19th century. Buddhism was enforced by kings and priests because they belonged to the Brahmin caste which allowed them to have the power to push what religion they wanted to practice. Buddhism practiced among higher castes (Brahmins)
3304-632: The South Asian island state of Sri Lanka . Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province , form the plurality in the Eastern Province and are in the minority throughout the rest of the country. 70% of Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka live in the Northern and Eastern provinces. Modern Sri Lankan Tamils descend from residents of the Jaffna Kingdom , a former kingdom in the north of Sri Lanka and Vannimai chieftaincies from
3422-489: The 10th century CE. According to the anthropological and archaeological evidence, Sri Lankan Tamils have a very long history in Sri Lanka and have lived on the island since at least around the 2nd century BCE . The Indigenous Veddas are ethnically related to people in South India and early populations of Southeast Asia . It is not possible to ascertain what languages that they originally spoke as Vedda language
3540-490: The 19th century remained in existence down to 1972. The only significant modification to the colonial economy was the addition of a rubber sector in the mid-country areas. A new body of urban capitalists was growing in the low country, around transport, shop-keeping, distillery, plantation, and wood-work industries. These entrepreneurs were from many castes and they strongly resented the historically unprecedented and unbuddhistic practice of 'caste discrimination' adopted by
3658-578: The 19th century to work on tea plantations. Most Sri Lankan Tamils live in the Northern and Eastern provinces and in the capital Colombo , and most Indian Tamils live in the central highlands. Historically, both groups have seen themselves as separate communities, although there has been a greater sense of unity since the 1980s. In 1948, the United National Party government stripped the Indian Tamils of their citizenship . Under
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3776-550: The 19th century. Since Sri Lanka gained independence from Britain in 1948, relations between the majority Sinhalese and minority Tamil communities have been strained. Rising ethnic and political tensions following the Sinhala Only Act , along with ethnic pogroms carried out by Sinhalese mobs in 1956 , 1958 , 1977 , 1981 and 1983 , led to the formation and strengthening of militant groups advocating independence for Tamils . The ensuing civil war resulted in
3894-539: The 3rd century BCE. Ko, meaning "King" in Tamil, is comparable to such names as Ko Atan, Ko Putivira and Ko Ra-pumaan occurring in contemporary Tamil Brahmi inscriptions of ancient South India and Egypt . Potsherds with early Tamil writing from the 2nd century BCE have been found from the north in Poonagari , Kilinochchi District to the south in Tissamaharama . They bore several inscriptions, including
4012-488: The 9th and 10th centuries CE, Pandya and Chola incursions into Sri Lanka culminated in the Chola annexation of the island , which lasted until the latter half of the 11th century CE. Raja Raja Chola I renamed the northern throne Mummudi Chola Mandalam after his conquest of the northeast country to protect Tamil traders being looted, imprisoned and killed for years on the island. Rajadhiraja Chola 's conquest of
4130-850: The British-owned plantations, basically aimed at winning the right of organisation. There were two main plantation unions, Iyer's Ceylon Indian Congress and the All-Ceylon Estate Workers Union (later the Lanka Estate Workers Union , LEWU) led by the Samasamajists . In the Central Province the strike wave reached its zenith in the Mool Oya Estate strike, which was led by Samasamajists including Veluchamy , Secretary of
4248-801: The Buddhism practiced in Sri Lanka into something resembling the non-conformist Protestant model. A series of debates against clergymen of the Methodist and the Anglican church was organised, culminating in the 'defeat' of the latter at Panadura by modern logical argument. The Buddhist revival was aided by the Theosophists , led by American Col. Henry Steel Olcott , who helped establish Buddhist schools such as Ananda College , Colombo; Dharmaraja College , Kandy; Maliyadeva College , Kurunegala; Mahinda College , Galle; and Musaeus College , Colombo; at
4366-687: The CNC petitioned the colonial government to increase their powers, instead of demanding independence, or even dominion status. They were forced to withdraw their 'Ministers' Memorandum' after a vigorous campaign by the Youth Leagues. [2] [3] The South Colombo Youth League became involved in a strike at the Wellawatte Spinning and weaving mills. It published an irregular journal in Sinhala , Kamkaruwa (The Worker). In protest against
4484-533: The Colonial Government began an unsuccessful manhunt. LSSP started a campaign to defend him. At that year's May Day rally at Price Park, placards declaring 'We want Bracegirdle – Deport Stubbs' were displayed, and a resolution was passed condemning Stubbs, demanding his removal and the withdrawal of the deportation order. On 5 May, in the State Council, NM Perera and Philip Gunawardena moved
4602-541: The Estate Workers Union. In this strike, on 19 January 1940, the worker Govindan was shot and killed by the police. As a result of agitation both within the State Council and outside, the Government was compelled to appoint a Commission of Inquiry. Colvin R. de Silva appeared for the widow of Govindan and exposed the combined role of the police and employers in the white plantation raj. After Mool Oya,
4720-659: The Faizpur Sessions of the Indian National Congress in 1936. In April 1937 Kamaladevi Chattopadyaya , a leader of the CSP addressed a large number of meetings in various parts of the country on a national tour organised by the LSSP. This helped to establish the indivisibility of the fights for the independence of Sri Lanka and India. In Jaffna, where Kamaladevi also spoke, the left movement found consistent and loyal supporters from among one-time members of
4838-722: The Flowers which appeared in the Ceylon Daily News and criticised the practice of forcing Sri Lankan schoolchildren to purchase poppies to help British veterans at the expense of their own, which caused her to be vilified by her compatriots. The South Colombo Youth League now got involved in the Suriya-Mal Movement and revived it on a new anti-imperialist and anti-war basis. Yearly until the Second World War, young men and women sold Suriya flowers on
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4956-541: The God of Tamils Tenavarai Nayanar. The admiral invoked the blessings of Hindu deities at Temple of Perimpanayagam Tenavaram, Tevanthurai for a peaceful world built on trade. The 1502 map Cantino represents three Tamil cities on the east coast of the island - Mullaitivu , Trincomalee and Panama , where the residents grow cinnamon and other spices, fish for pearls and seed pearls and worship idols, trading heavily with Kozhikode of Kerala . The Arya Chakaravarthi dynasty ruled large parts of northeast Sri Lanka until
5074-400: The Indian Tamils. Others who supported them from time to time were George E. de Silva of Kandy, B. H. Aluwihare of Matale, D. P. Jayasuriya of Gampaha, A. Ratnayake of Dumbara and Susantha de Fonseka , Deputy Speaker. They also demanded the replacement of English as the official language by Sinhala and Tamil . In November 1936, motions that 'in the Municipal and Police Courts of the Island
5192-430: The JYC. On 28 November 1936, at a meeting in Colombo , the president of the LSSP, Dr. Inusha de Silva, introduced Mark Anthony Bracegirdle , a British/Australian former planter saying: 'This is the first time a white comrade has ever attended a party meeting held at a street corner.' He made his first public speech in Sri Lanka, warning that the capitalists were trying to split the workers of Sri Lanka and put one against
5310-411: The Ministers' support for the British war effort. The Ministers brought motions gifting the Sri Lankan taxpayers' money to the British war machine, which were opposed by the pro-independence members of the state council. There was considerable opposition to the war in Sri Lanka, particularly among the workers and the nationalists, many of the latter of whom hoped for a German victory. Among Buddhists, there
5428-650: The Negombo dialect continued to evolve in the Coromandel Coast before it arrived in Sri Lanka and began to get influenced by Sinhala. So, in some ways, the dialect is closer to those spoken in Tamil Nadu than to Jaffna Tamil. Some Tamil place names have been retained in these districts. Outside the Tamil-dominated northeast, the Puttalam District has the highest percentage of place names of Tamil origin in Sri Lanka. Composite or hybrid place names are also present in these districts. Although Sri Lankan Tamils are culturally and linguistically distinct, genetic studies indicate that they are closely related to other ethnic groups in
5546-405: The Netherlands as an ally and of the French Directory , led to a British attack on Ceylon in 1795 as part of Britain's war against the French Republic. The Kandyan Kingdom collaborated with the British expeditionary forces against the Dutch, as it had with the Dutch against the Portuguese. Once the Dutch had been evicted, their sovereignty ceded by the Treaty of Amiens and subsequent revolts in
5664-523: The Northern and Eastern Provinces; a typical village has up to 150 such structures. The offering would be done by an elder of the family who owns the site. A coconut oil lamp would be lit on Fridays, and a special rice dish known as pongal would be cooked either on a day considered auspicious by the family or on the Thai Pongal day, and possibly on Tamil New Year Day . Sri Lankan independence movement [REDACTED] Sri Lanka portal [REDACTED] The Sri Lankan independence movement
5782-411: The Northern and Eastern provinces. There are no accurate figures for the number of Sri Lankan Tamils living in the diaspora . Estimates range from 450,000 to one million. The two groups of Tamils located in Sri Lanka are the Sri Lankan Tamils and the Indian Tamils . There also exists a significant population in Sri Lanka who are native speakers of Tamil language and are of Islamic faith. Though
5900-436: The Sihlanese kingdom and it is thought that Buddhism has many aspects that stemmed from Asoka. Similar to Asoka (Practice among the Sinhalese) "Such establishment of Buddhism in a country was evidently a departure in the history of that religion and seems to have been an innovation of Asoka". The British attempt at giving a Protestant Christian education to the young men of the commercial classes backfired, as they transformed
6018-407: The Sri Lanka Government and naturally that Government employed the IPKF against the guerrilla fighters of Eelam. Very soon, Indian papers reported that the Indian Government was spending at the rate of rupees ten million per day for maintaining the IPKF in Sri Lanka. The general public then realized that making the Indo-Lanka pact was a historic folly on the part of the Indian Government awoke to
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#17327913448936136-463: The Trincomalee district have different social customs from their southern neighbours due to the influence of the Jaffna kingdom to the north. The indigenous Veddha people of the east coast also speak Tamil and have become assimilated into the Eastern Tamil caste structure. Most Eastern Tamils follow customary laws called Mukkuva laws codified during the Dutch colonial period . Jaffna's history of being an independent kingdom lends legitimacy to
6254-536: The Uva Rebellion or collaborating with the colonial power). The leadership passed for the first time in the Kandyan provinces into the hands of ordinary people, non-aristocrats. The leaders were yeomen- artisans , resembling the Levellers in England's Civil War period and mechanics such as Paul Revere and Tom Paine who were at the heart of the American Revolution . However, in the words of Colvin R. de Silva , 'it had leaders but no leadership. The old feudalists were crushed and powerless. No new class capable of leading
6372-433: The Waste Lands Ordinance), a modern enclosure movement and reduced to penury. In 1848 the abortive Matale Rebellion , led by Hennedige Francisco Fernando ( Puran Appu ) and Gongalegoda Banda was the first transitional step towards abandoning the feudal form of revolt, being fundamentally a peasant revolt. The masses were without the leadership of their native King (deposed in 1815) or their chiefs (either crushed after
6490-527: The achievement of complete national independence, the nationalisation of the means of production, distribution, and exchange, and the abolition of inequalities arising from differences of race , caste , creed or gender . Its deputies in the State Council after the 1936 general election, N. M. Perera and Philip Gunawardena and the other leaders Leslie Goonewardene and Colvin R. de Silva were aided in this struggle by not quite so radical members like Don Alwin Rajapaksa of Ruhuna and K. Natesa Iyer of
6608-450: The capital city of Rajarata the middle kingdom, and other areas of Sri Lanka as early as the 2nd century BCE. Excavations in the area of Tissamaharama in southern Sri Lanka have unearthed locally issued coins, produced between the 2nd century BCE and the 2nd century CE, some of which carry local Tamil personal names written in early Tamil characters, which suggest that local Tamil merchants were present and actively involved in trade along
6726-425: The colonial power began in 1817 with the Uva Rebellion when the same aristocracy rose against British rule in a rebellion in which their villagers participated. They were defeated by the British. An attempt at rebellion sparked again briefly in 1830. The Kandy and Sinhalese peasantry were stripped of their lands by the Crown Lands (Encroachments) Ordinance No. 12 of 1840 (sometimes called the Crown Lands Ordinance or
6844-508: The comprador elite which opposed Dharmapala. This same elite vigorously opposed the grant of universal suffrage by the Donoughmore Constitutional Commission . Dharmapala was hounded out of the country by a press campaign by the Lake House group of the press baron D. R. Wijewardena . His mantle fell on the next generation, epitomised by the likes of Walisinghe Harischandra, Gunapala Malalasekera, and L.H. Mettananda, who were radicalised by Dharmapala's words. The young people who stepped into
6962-403: The country for destinations such as Canada, United Kingdom, Germany and India as refugees or emigrants. According to the pro-rebel TamilNet , the persecution and discrimination that Sri Lankan Tamils faced has resulted in some Tamils today not identifying themselves as Sri Lankans but instead identifying themselves as either Eelam Tamils, Ceylon Tamils, or simply Tamils. Many still support
7080-399: The county's leading civil lawyer, volunteered his services free on behalf of Bracegirdle; he was made a Queen's Counsel (QC) on the day that Bracegirdle appeared in court. On 18 May order was made that he could not be deported for exercising his right to free speech, and Bracegirdle was a free man. After the outbreak of the Second World War, the independence agitators turned to opposition to
7198-458: The court of the Jaffna Kingdom. Since the beginning of the Sri Lankan Civil War in the 1980s, it is distinguished by an emphasis on themes relating to the conflict. Sri Lankan Tamil dialects are noted for their archaism and retention of words not in everyday use in Southern India. The cultures of the Sri Lankan Tamils are also very distinctive and unique, even though the cultural influence of modern South India has grown and become prevalent since
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#17327913448937316-475: The cruiser. Another jolt to the aura of British invincibility was their defeat in the Gallipoli campaign in 1915. In 1915 commercial-ethnic rivalry erupted into a riot in the Colombo against the Muslims, with Christians participating as much as Buddhists. The British colonial authorities reacted heavy-handedly, as the riot was also directed against them. Dharmapala had his legs broken and was confined to Jaffna; his brother died there. Captain D. E. Henry Pedris ,
7434-412: The date back to 15th century BCE. In Sri Lanka, there is radiometric evidence from Anuradhapura that the non- Brahmi symbol-bearing black and red ware occur in the 10th century BCE. The skeletal remains of an Early Iron Age chief were excavated in Anaikoddai , Jaffna District . The name Ko Veta is engraved in Brahmi script on a seal buried with the skeleton and is assigned by the excavators to
7552-427: The deaths of more than 100,000 people and the forced disappearance and rape of thousands of others. The civil war ended in 2009 but there are continuing allegations of atrocities being committed by the Sri Lankan military . A United Nations panel found that as many as 40,000 Tamil civilians may have been killed in the final months of the civil war. In January 2020, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that
7670-475: The dominant castes. People in the Vanni districts considered themselves separate from Tamils of the Jaffna peninsula but the two groups did intermarry. Most of these married couples moved into the Vanni districts where land was available. Vanni consists of a number of highland settlements within forested lands using irrigation tank -based cultivation. An 1890 census listed 711 such tanks in this area. Hunting and raising livestock such as water buffalo and cattle
7788-407: The east. According to the anthropological and archaeological evidence, Sri Lankan Tamils have a very long history in Sri Lanka and have lived on the island since at least around the 2nd century BCE . The Sri Lankan Tamils are mostly Hindus with a significant Christian population. Sri Lankan Tamil literature on topics including religion and the sciences flourished during the medieval period in
7906-504: The eradication of inequalities imposed by caste . In 1927, the JYC invited the Indian independence movement leader Mahatma Gandhi to visit Jaffna. The JYC led a successful boycott of the first State Council elections in Jaffna in 1931, arguing that the Donoughmore reforms did not concede enough self-government. [1] In the 1930s the Youth Leagues were formed in the South, around a core of intellectuals who had returned from education in Britain, influenced by leftist ideals. The Ministers of
8024-477: The estimated 20,000+ disappeared Sri Lankan Tamils were dead. The end of the civil war has not fully improved conditions in Sri Lanka, with press freedom not being restored and the judiciary coming under political control. One-third of Sri Lankan Tamils now live outside Sri Lanka. While there was significant migration during the British colonial era to Singapore and Malaysia, the civil war led to more than 800,000 Tamils leaving Sri Lanka, and many have left
8142-400: The first century CE. Hindu Saivism , Tamil Buddhism and Jainism were popular amongst the Tamils at this time, as was the proliferation of village deity worship . The Amaravati school was influential in the region when the Satavahana dynasty established the Andhra empire and its 17th monarch Hāla (20–24 CE) married a princess from the island. Ancient Vanniars settled in the east of
8260-555: The idea of Tamil Eelam , a proposed independent state that Sri Lankan Tamils aspired to create in the North-East of Sri Lanka. Inspired by the Tamil Eelam flag , the tiger also used by the LTTE , has become a symbol of Tamil nationalism for some Tamils in Sri Lanka and the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora. There is little scholarly consensus over the presence of the Sri Lankan Tamil people in Sri Lanka, also known as Eelam in Sangam literature . One older theory states that there were no large Tamil settlements in Sri Lanka until
8378-476: The internally displaced and refugee populations. The 2012 Sri Lanka Census revealed a Buddhist population of 22,254 amongst Sri Lankan Tamils, i.e. roughly 1% of all Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka. The Hindu elite, especially the Vellalar , follow the religious ideology of Shaiva Siddhanta (Shaiva school) while the masses practice folk Hinduism , upholding their faith in local village deities not found in formal Hindu scriptures. The place of worship depends on
8496-526: The island in the first few centuries of the common era to cultivate and maintain the area. The Vanni region flourished. In the 6th century CE, a special coastal route by boat was established from the Jaffna peninsula southwards to Saivite religious centres in Trincomalee (Koneswaram) and further south to Batticaloa ( Thirukkovil ), passed a few small Tamil trading settlements in Mullaitivu on
8614-611: The island led to the fall of four kings there, one of whom, Madavarajah, the king of Jaffna, was a usurper from the Rashtrakuta Dynasty . These dynasties oversaw the development of several kovils that administered services to communities of land assigned to the temples through royal grants. Their rule also saw the benefaction of other faiths. Recent excavations have led to the discovery of a limestone Kovil of Raja Raja Chola I's era on Delft island, found with Chola coins from this period. The decline of Chola power in Sri Lanka
8732-496: The island while being related to the Indian Tamils from South India as well. There are various studies that indicate varying degrees of connections between Sri Lankan Tamils, Sinhalese, and Indian ethnic groups. A study conducted by Kshatriya in 1995 found that both ethnolinguistic groups of Sri Lanka, including the Tamils, were closest to the Tamil population of India and also the Muslim population of South India. They were found to be
8850-654: The island. During the protohistoric period (1000–500 BCE) Sri Lanka was culturally united with Southern India , and shared the same megalithic burials, pottery , iron technology, farming techniques and megalithic graffiti . This cultural complex spread from southern India along with Dravidian clans such as the Velir , prior to the migration of Prakrit speakers. Settlements of culturally similar early populations of ancient Sri Lanka and ancient Tamil Nadu in India were excavated at megalithic burial sites at Pomparippu on
8968-608: The island. Negombo Tamil dialect is spoken by about 50,000 people. This number does not include others, outside of Negombo city, who speak local varieties of the Tamil language. The bilingual catholic Karavas are also found in the western coastal regions, who trace their origins to the Tamil Karaiyar however identify themselves as Sinhalese . Negombo Tamil indicates that the Karavas immigrated to Sri Lanka much later than Tamils immigrated to Jaffna. This would suggest that
9086-537: The leaders who were in detention. Several high officials were transferred. A new Governor, Sir John Anderson was sent to replace Sir Robert Chalmers with instructions to inquire and report to His Majesty's Government. Newspapers such as The Ceylon Morning Leader played a vital role to mold public opinion. In 1919 the Ceylon National Congress (CNC) was founded to agitate for greater autonomy. It did not seek independence, however, representing
9204-512: The lentils he distributed as dry rations to the people affected in those days. As Sybil described in Forward: The Progressive Weekly many years later: 'Work in connection with malaria relief was an eye-opener to many of these people who were just getting to know the peasant masses. The poverty was incredible, the overcrowding even more so, fifteen, twenty or more people crammed into tiny huts, dying like flies. This
9322-594: The low-country suppressed, the British began planning to capture the Kandyan Kingdom. The 1803 and 1804 invasions of the Kandyan provinces in the 1st Kandyan War were defeated by the Kandyan Sinhalese forces. In 1815, the British fomented a revolt by the Kandyan Sinhalese aristocracy against the last Kandyan monarch and marched into uplands to depose him in the 2nd Kandyan War. The struggle against
9440-529: The misdeeds of the planters and promised scandalous exposures. His delivery, facial appearance, his posture were all very threatening ... Every sentence was punctuated with cries of samy, samy from the labourers. Labourers were heard to remark that Mr. Bracegirdle has correctly said that they should not allow planters to break labour laws and they must in future not take things lying down.' (T. Perera, The Bracegirdle Saga: 60 Years After , 'What Next', No 5 1997.) [7] The British planters were angry that their prestige
9558-708: The most distant group from the Veddahs, and quite distant from both North-West Indians (Punjabis and Gujratis) and North-East Indians (Bengalis). In comparison to Indian Tamils, the Tamils of Sri Lanka had a higher admixture with the Sinhalese, though the Sinhalese themselves share a 69.86% (+/- 0.61) genetic admixture with the Indian Tamils. The study stated that any admixture from migrations several thousand years ago must have been erased through millennia of admixture among geographically local peoples. In 1981, about eighty percent of Sri Lankan Tamils were Hindus who followed
9676-578: The name Demala-pattana (Tamil city). In this work, a number of villages that are now situated in the Jaffna, Mullaitivu and Trincomalee districts are mentioned as places in Demala-pattana. The English sailor Robert Knox described walking into the island's Tamil country in the publication An Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon , referencing some aspects of their royal, rural and economic life and annotating some kingdoms within it on
9794-432: The next few centuries. Tamil soldiers from what is now South India were brought to Anuradhapura between the 7th and 11th centuries CE in such large numbers that local chiefs and kings trying to establish legitimacy came to rely on them. By the 8th century CE Tamil villages were collectively known as Demel-kaballa (Tamil allotment), Demelat-valademin (Tamil villages), and Demel-gam-bim (Tamil villages and lands). In
9912-399: The north coast. The conquests and rule of the island by Pallava king Narasimhavarman I (630–668 CE) and his grandfather King Simhavishnu (537–590 CE) saw the erection and structural development of several Kovils around the island, particularly in the north-east —these Pallava Dravidian rock temples remained a popular and highly influential style of architecture in the region over
10030-513: The object of worship and how it is housed. It could be a proper Hindu temple known as a Koyil , constructed according to the Agamic scripts (a set of scriptures regulating the temple cult). More often, however, the temple is not completed in accordance with Agamic scriptures but consists of the barest essential structure housing a local deity. These temples observe daily Puja (prayers) hours and are attended by locals. Both types of temples have
10148-537: The other. He took an active part in organising a public meeting called by the LSSP on Galle Face Green in Colombo on 10 January 1937 to celebrate Sir Herbert Dowbiggin's departure from the island and to protest against the actions of the police during his tenure as Inspector General . In March, he was co-opted to serve on the executive committee. He was employed by Natesa Iyer, Member of the State Council for
10266-484: The plantations in its lucrative new colony to the south. Through the Indian indenture system , hundreds of thousands of Tamil " coolies " from southern India were transported into Sri Lanka to work on European-owned cash crop plantations. The coffee economy collapsed in the 1870s when coffee blight ravaged the plantations, but the economic system it had created survived intact into the era of its successor, tea, which
10384-766: The political claims of the Sri Lankan Tamils, and has provided a focus for their constitutional demands. Northern Tamil society is generally categorised into two groups: those who are from the Jaffna peninsula in the north, and those who are residents of the Vanni to the immediate south. The Jaffna society is separated by castes . Historically, the Sri Lankan Vellalar were in northern region dominant and were traditionally husbandman involved in agriculture and cattle cultivation . They constitute half of
10502-482: The population and enjoyed dominance under Dutch rule, from which community the colonial political elites also were drawn from. The maritime communities existed outside the agriculture-based caste system and is dominated by the Karaiyars . The dominant castes (e.g. the Vellalar or Karaiyar ) traditionally use the service of those collectively known as Kudimakkal . The Panchamars, who serve as Kudimakkal, consists of
10620-610: The proceedings should be in the vernacular ' and that 'entries in police stations should be recorded in the language in which they are originally stated' were passed by the State Council and referred to the Legal Secretary, but nothing was done about these matters and English continued to be the language of the rule until 1956. Fraternal relations were established between the LSSP and the Congress Socialist Party (CSP) of India and an LSSP delegation attended
10738-440: The proceeds of poppy sales on Armistice Day (11 November) being used for the benefit of the British ex-servicemen to the detriment of Sri Lankan ex-servicemen, one of the latter, Aelian Perera, had started a rival sale of Suriya ( Portia tree ) flowers on this day, the proceeds of which were devoted to helping needy Ceylonese ex-servicemen. In 1933 a British teacher Doreen Young Wickremasinghe , wrote an article, The Battle of
10856-1060: The realities but stood on false prestige and did not wish to withdraw the IPKF. But the Government of Sri Lanka insisted on the withdrawal of Indian troops in May 1989 probably because this force tried to prevent the Sri Lanka army from hunting down not only the freedom fighters but the innocent Tamil civilians. On 20 April 2012 M. Karunanidhi sought the revival of the Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation (TESO). After this announcement M. Karunanidhi got severe criticism from several other pro-Tamil leaders. After several hurdles on 12 August 2012 TESO conference held as Eelam Tamils Rights Protection Conference at YMCA grounds in chennai. Eelam Tamils Sri Lankan Tamils ( Tamil : இலங்கை தமிழர் , ilankai tamiḻar or ஈழத் தமிழர் , īḻat tamiḻar ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils , are Tamils native to
10974-511: The same time injecting more modern secular western ideas into the 'Protestant' Buddhist thought-stream. Sinhala Buddhist Revivalists such as Anagarika Dharmapala started linking 'Protestant' Buddhism to Sinhalese-ness, creating a Sinhala-Buddhist consciousness, linked to the temperance movement . This cut across the old barriers of caste and was the beginning of a pan-Sinhala Buddhist identity. It appealed in particular to small businessmen and yeomen, who now began to take centre stage against
11092-532: The seaport of Penang in Malaya , sinking a Russian cruiser , bombarded Madras and sailed unimpeded down the eastern coast of British Ceylon. Such was its impact that, in Sri Lanka to this day, 'Emden' is the bogeyman that mothers scare their children with, and the term is still used to refer to a particularly obnoxious person. In a panic, the colonial authorities jailed a Boer wildlife official, H. H. Engelbrecht, after accusing him falsely of having supplied meat to
11210-695: The shoes of Dharmapala organised themselves into Youth Leagues , seeking independence and justice for Sri Lanka. The first moves came from the Young Lanka League led by A. E. Gunasinha, C. H. Z. Fernando , EAP Wijerathne and AP Thambayah. In 1924 The Jaffna Students' Congress, later renamed the Jaffna Youth Congress (JYC) was founded. Influenced by the Indian Independence movement, it was secular and committed to Poorana Swaraj (Complete Self-Rule), national unity, and
11328-676: The situation in Sri Lanka. Rajiv Gandhi refused to meet him and thus showed his indifference to the sufferings of the Tamils in Sri Lanka. When the Government of India sent an Indian Battalion to Sri Lanka as the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), the Dravidar Kazhagam protested against it. The worst fears of the Dravidar Kazhagam regarding the IPKF proved true within a week or two of its functioning in Sri Lanka. The battalion had to take orders from
11446-925: The southern coast of Sri Lanka by the late classical period. Other ancient inscriptions from the period reference a Tamil merchant, the Tamil householder residing in Iḷabharata and a Tamil sailor named Karava. Two of the six ancient inscriptions referring to the Damedas (Tamils) are in Periya Pullyakulam in the Vavuniya District , one is in Seruvavila in Trincomalee District , one is in Kuduvil in Ampara District , one
11564-531: The streets of New Delhi protesting against the provocative order. Five days later TESO successfully prevented movements of trains throughout Tamil Nadu as a protest against the extradition of the Eelam leadership. When the situation on the borders between India and Sri Lanka were tense, Nedumaran heroically sailed to Sri Lanka, videotaped the plight of Tamils in Sri Lanka and on his return, went straight to New Delhi to meet Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to apprise him of
11682-558: The streets on Armistice Day in competition with the Poppy sellers. The purchasers of the Suriya Mal were generally from the poorer sections of society and the funds collected were not large. But the movement provided a rallying point for the anti-imperialist minded youth of the time. An attempt was made by the British colonial authorities to curb the movement's effectiveness through the 'Street Collection Regulation Ordinance'. Doreen Young
11800-524: The strike wave spread southward towards Uva, and the strikes became more prolonged and the workers began more and more to seek the militant leadership of the Sama samajists. In Uva, Samasamajists including Willie Jayatilleke, Edmund Samarakkody and V. Sittampalam were in the leadership. The plantation-raj got the Badulla Magistrate to issue a ban on meetings. N. M. Perera broke the ban and addressed
11918-476: The struggle and heading it towards power had yet arisen.' Agriculture was the main source of revenue for the country and foreign exchanges. The land in Sri Lanka is very important because it has led to many different wars among different countries. In the 1830s, coffee was introduced into Sri Lanka, a crop which flourishes in high altitudes, and grown on the land taken from the peasants. The principal impetus to this development of capitalist production in Sri Lanka
12036-489: The terms of an agreement reached between the Sri Lankan and Indian governments in the 1960s, about forty percent of the Indian Tamils were granted Sri Lankan citizenship, and most of the remainder were repatriated to India. By the 1990s, most Indian Tamils had received Sri Lankan citizenship. Sri Lankan Tamils are categorised into three subgroups based on regional distribution, dialects, and culture: Negombo Tamils from
12154-676: The turn of the 20th century and led mostly by the educated middle class. It succeeded when, on 4 February 1948, Ceylon was granted independence as the Dominion of Ceylon . Dominion status within the British Commonwealth was retained for the next 24 years until 22 May 1972 when it became a republic and was renamed the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka . The British were dominant in Asia after
12272-728: The west coast and in Kathiraveli on the east coast of the island. Bearing a remarkable resemblance to burials in the Early Pandyan Kingdom , these sites were established between the 5th century BCE and 2nd century CE. Excavated ceramic sequences similar to that of Arikamedu were found in Kandarodai (Kadiramalai) on the north coast, dated to 1300 BCE. Cultural similarities in burial practices in South India and Sri Lanka were dated by archaeologists to 10th century BCE. However, Indian history and archaeology have pushed
12390-617: The western Gampaha and Puttalam districts. The term does not apply to Tamil immigrants in these areas. They are distinguished from other Tamils by their dialects, one of which is known as the Negombo Tamil dialect , and by aspects of their culture such as customary laws . Most Negombo Tamils have assimilated into the Sinhalese ethnic group through a process known as Sinhalisation . Sinhalisation has been facilitated by caste myths and legends. The Western Tamils caste hierarchy
12508-475: The western part of the island, Eastern Tamils from the eastern part, and Jaffna or Northern Tamils from the north. Eastern Tamils inhabit a region that spans the Trincomalee , Batticaloa , and Ampara districts. Their history and traditions are inspired by local legends, native literature, and colonial documents. In the 16th century the area came under the nominal control of the Kingdom of Kandy , but there
12626-417: Was a peaceful political movement which was aimed at achieving independence and self-rule for the country of Sri Lanka , then British Ceylon , from the British Empire . The switch of powers was generally known as peaceful transfer of power from the British administration to Ceylon representatives, a phrase that implies considerable continuity with a colonial era that lasted 400 years. It was initiated around
12744-575: Was being harmed by a fellow white man. They prevailed upon the British Colonial Governor Sir Reginald Stubbs to deport him. Bracegirdle was served with the order of deportation on 22 April and given 48 hours to leave on the SS Mooltan, on which a passage had been booked for him by the Government. The LSSP with Bracegirdle's assent decided that the order should be defied. Bracegirdle went into hiding and
12862-604: Was disgust that Buddhist monks of German origin were interned as ' enemy aliens ' whereas Italian and German Roman Catholic priests were not. Two members of the Governing Party, Junius Richard Jayawardene and Dudley Senanayake , held discussions with the Japanese with a view to collaboration to oust the British. Starting in November 1939 and during the first half of 1940 there was a wave of spontaneous strikes in
12980-594: Was elected the first president of the Suriya Mal movement at a meeting held at the residence of Wilmot Perera in Horana. Terence de Zilva and Robin Ratnam were elected Joint Secretaries, and Roy de Mel Treasurer. There had been a drought in 1934 which caused a shortage of rice, estimated at 3 million bushels. From October on there were floods, followed by a malaria epidemic in 1934–35, during which 1,000,000 people were affected and at least 125,000 died. The Suriya-Mal Movement
13098-642: Was followed by the restoration of the Polonnaruwa kingdom in the late 11th century CE. In 1215, following Pandya invasions, the Tamil-dominant Arya Chakaravarthi dynasty established an independent Jaffna kingdom on the Jaffna peninsula and other parts of the north. The Arya Chakaravarthi expansion into the south was halted by Alagakkonara , a man descended from a family of merchants from Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu. He
13216-469: Was further enforced by kings/ priest power, and their power increased and carried into the newly settled land. Since the higher caste individuals and those in power were enforcing Buddhism, it eventually became the established religion among the Sihlanese communities. It became very popular among all castes and practiced all over and in different land (areas). There was a practice that was known as Asoka in
13334-479: Was honed by volunteer work among the poor during the malaria epidemic and the floods. The volunteers found that there was widespread malnutrition , which was aggravated by the shortage of rice, and which reduced resistance to the disease. They helped fight the epidemic by making pills of ' Marmite ' yeast extract. Philip Gunawardena and N. M. Perera came to be known as Avissawelle Pilippuwa (Philip from Avissawella) and Parippuwa Mahathaya ('Mr. Dhal ') because of
13452-473: Was introduced on a wide scale from 1880 onwards. Tea was more capital-intensive and needed a higher volume of initial investment to be processed so that individual estate-owners were now supplanted by large English consolidated companies based either in London ('sterling firms') or Colombo ('rupee firms'). Monoculture was thus increasingly capped by monopoly within the plantation economy. The pattern thus created in
13570-723: Was scattered leadership under Vannimai chiefs in Batticaloa District who came with Magha's army in 1215. From that time on, Eastern Tamil social development diverged from that of the Northern Tamils. Eastern Tamils are an agrarian-based society. They follow a caste system similar to the South Indian or Dravidian kinship system. The Eastern Tamil caste hierarchy is dominated by the Mukkuvar , Vellalar and Karaiyar . The main feature of their society
13688-668: Was the chief minister of the Sinhalese king Parakramabahu V (1344–59 CE). Vira Alakeshwara, a descendant of Alagakkonara, later became king of the Sinhalese, but he was overthrown by the Ming admiral Zheng He in 1409 CE. The next year, the Chinese admiral Zheng He erected a trilingual stone tablet in Galle in the south of the island, written in Chinese , Persian and Tamil that recorded offerings he made to Buddha , Allah and
13806-551: Was the decline in coffee production in the West Indies , following the abolition of slavery there. However, the dispossessed peasantry was not employed on the plantations: The Kandyan Sinhalese villagers refused to abandon their traditional subsistence holdings and become wage-workers in the harsh conditions that prevailed on these new estates, despite the pressure exerted by the colonial government. The British therefore had to draw on its reserve army of labour in India, to man
13924-546: Was what colonial exploitation meant: worse than the worst that prevailed in Britain when Marx and Engels analysed the conditions of the working classes. This was what had to be fought.' [4] The Marxist Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), which grew out of the Youth Leagues in 1935, was the first party to demand independence. [5] The first manifesto of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party declared that its aims were
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