Siviyar

Siviyar (Tamil: சிவியார், lit. 'Chiviyar', also written Chiviar and Tamil: சிவிகையார், lit. 'Chivikaiyar') is a caste found in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka.[1] They were traditionally palanquin bearers. They are a single community in Sri Lanka, but are however a subcaste of the Idaiyar caste of Tamil Nadu.[2]

Siviyar
ReligionsHinduism
LanguagesTamil
Related groups Idaiyar, Tamils, Sri Lankan Tamils

Etymology
A traditionally palanquin used in Jaffna Kingdom

The name is derived from the Tamil word Civikai meaning "palanquin" and the suffix -ar denoting honorific plural.[3][4] The headmen of them were known as Kūriyan, meaning "proclaimer", in reference to his proclaiming or announcement of the titles of the person whom he carries before the palanquin.[5][6]

History
Siviyars of India

The Siviyars worked under the kings of Jaffna Kingdom as palanquin bearers, woodcutters and water carriers.[7] After the fall of Jaffna Kingdom, were the Siviyars under Dutch Ceylon serving as palanquin bearers under the Commanders and Dissavas, and were a influential class in Jaffna, who also held titles such as Mudaliyars.[8][9] They are divided into three traditionally endogamous subcaste or labour groups; adikke-Siviyar, uppu-Siviyar, and arisi-Siviyar. The adikke-Siviyars are involved in ingraining wheat and curry-powder. The uppu-Siviyar are involved in salt making, and the arisi-Siviyar in rice cultivation.[10]

The Siviyars of Tamil Nadu migrated from Mysore region to Tamil Nadu during the reign of Tipu Sultan.[11]

Several from this caste were strongly represented in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.[12]

See also

References
  1. Singh, Kumar Suresh (1996). Communities, Segments, Synonyms, Surnames and Titles. Anthropological Survey of India. p. 1130. ISBN 9780195633573.
  2. Thupston, Edgar (1909). Casstes and Tribes of Southern India. Government Press. p. 391.
  3. Glossary of Native, Foreign, and Anglicized Words Commonly Used in Ceylon in Official Correspondence and Other Documents. Asian Educational Services. 1996. p. 11. ISBN 9788120612020.
  4. Wilden, Eva (2006). Literary Techniques in Old Tamil Caṅkam Poetry: The Kuruntokai. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 101. ISBN 9783447053358.
  5. Winslow, Miron (1989). Winslow's a Comprehensive Tamil and English Dictionary. Asian Educational Services. p. 352. ISBN 9788120600003.
  6. Knight, Joseph; Spaulding, Levi (1844). An English and Tamil dictionary: or, Manual lexicon for schools. Giving in Tamil all important English words, and the use of many in phrases (in Tamil). American Mission Press. p. 585.
  7. Lach, Donald Frederick; Kley, Edwin J. Van (1998). Asia in the Making of Europe. University of Chicago Press. p. 993. ISBN 9780226467672.
  8. Arasaratnam, Sinnappah (1 January 1996). Ceylon and the Dutch, 1600-1800: External Influences and Internal Change in Early Modern Sri Lanka. n Variorum. p. 384. ISBN 9780860785798.
  9. Tambiah, Henry Wijayakone (2001). The Laws and Customs of the Tamils of Jaffna. Women's Education & Research Centre. p. 94. ISBN 9789559261162.
  10. Bruland, Stine (2015). "Re-creating meaning in a Tamil family after war and migration". Underneath the Margosa Tree. Norwegian University of Science and Technology: 65.
  11. People of India: A - G. Oxford Univ. Press. 1998. p. 3305. ISBN 9780195633542.
  12. Premdas, Ralph R. (1993). The Enigma of Ethnicity: An Analysis of Race in the Caribbean and the World. University of the West Indies, School of Continuing Studies. p. 297.
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