Muthuraja

Muthuraja or Mutharaiyar is a Tamil caste found in the state of Tamil Nadu in India. They are variously known as Valaiyar, Moopanar, Servai and Ambalakkarar.[1] They primarily work in agriculture, with some instead being petty traders and fishermen.[2]

Muthuraja
Regions with significant populations
Tamil Nadu
Languages
Tamil, Telugu
Religion
Hinduism

The community are mostly distributed in the Tiruchirappalli, Pudukkottai, Madurai, Coimbatore and Chennai districts of Tamil Nadu but were originally from what is now the state of Andhra Pradesh.

Etymology

The etymology of the community name is unclear. The names Muthuraja and Muthuraiyar may be derived from two words, the Tamil name muthu meaning "pearl" and raja or raiyar both meaning "king".[3] Muttaraiyar may also be derived from mundru meaning "three" and tharai meaning "earth", which was also a title of Velir chiefs.[4]

They are commonly known as Valaiyar, derived from Tamil word valai meaning "net" in reference to their earlier occupations as hunters and fishermen. Their title Ambalakkarar is derived from the Tamil word ambalam meaning panchayat or "village council", as they served as the heads of these councils.[3]

Origin

According to Tamil historians, the Muttarayar are said to have invaded kingdoms in Tamilakkam (now part of Tamil Nadu) around the 2nd century CE from Erumainadu, which is identified with the area in and around modern Mysore in Karnataka.[5] Their ancestors were soldiers in what is now the state of Andhra Pradesh, where they served the polygars. Thus, many still speak the Telugu language at home and the Tamil language outside.[6][7][8][9]

They seem to have established themselves as Lords of the Tanjore district in Tamilakkam around this time. The most famous of this Mutharaiyar dynasty were Perumbidugu Mutharaiyar, also called Kuvavan Maaran, his son Maaran Parameswaran, alias Ilangovadiaraiyan, and Perumbidugu Mutharaiyar II, alias Suvaran Maaran.[10][11]

During the 7th to 8th centuries, they served as feudatories of the Pallavas and controlled the fertile plains of the Kaveri region. An inscription in the Vaikuntha Perumal temple in Kanchipuram mentions a Muttaraiyar chief receiving Nandivarman II Pallavamalla at the latter's coronation.[12] According to historian T. A. Gopinatha Rao, this chief was Perumbidigu Muthurayar II,[13] who is styled as Kalvara Kalvan in this epigraph.[14] According to historian Mahalingam, he fought along with Udayachandra, the Pallava general of Nandivarman II, in at least twelve battles against the Cheras and Pandyas.[15] When the Cholas came to power in 850, Vijayalaya Chola wrested control of Tanjore from the Muthuraja chieftains and turned them into vassals.[16]

The early rulers of the dynasty seem to have encouraged Jainism. The Jain acharya Vimalachandra from Sravanabelagola is said to have visited Suvaran Maaran's court and challenged the Saivas, Kapalikas, Pasupatas and Buddhists.[17]

Demographics

The Muthuraja are mostly distributed in the Tiruchirappalli, Pudukkottai, Madurai, Coimbatore and Chennai districts of Tamil Nadu.[18]

Literature

One of the most notable Muthuraja people was Peru Mutharaiyar, who was known for his great wealth and grand feasts. Two stanzas (200, 296) of Nālaṭiyār, a Jain work of ancient Tamil literature, is dedicated to him.[19] Another work called Muttolaayiram which is part of the Tamil anthology lauds the exploits of the Mutturaja chieftains.[5]

See also

References
  1. Fuller, Christopher John (1996). Caste Today. Oxford University Press. p. 72. ISBN 9780195637953.
  2. Setty, E. Desingu (1990). The Valayar of South India: Society and religion. Inter-India Publications. p. 293. ISBN 9788121002387.
  3. Kent, Eliza F. (26 March 2013). Sacred Groves and Local Gods: Religion and Environmentalism in South India. Oxford University Press. pp. 33–34. ISBN 9780199895472.
  4. "A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the Tamil Language". www.tamilvu.org. Government of Tamil Nadu. p. 200. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  5. Anthropological Survey of India. Bulletin, Volume 3, Issue 2. India. Dept. of Anthropology. p. 8.
  6. Athreya, Venkatesh B.; Djurfeldt, Göran; Lindberg, Staffan, eds. (1990). Barriers broken: production relations and agrarian change in Tamil Nadu. Sage Publications. p. 25. The Muthurajas are descendants of the soldiers which the poligars recruited in their homeland, the Telugu-speaking areas of contemporary Andhra Pradesh, north of Tamil Nadu. Like other castes originating from Andhra, they are bilingual, often speaking Telugu in family circles and Tamil outside the house
  7. Eveline Masilamani-Meyer, ed. (2004). Kattavarayan Katai. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 19:. Among the Telugu castes that came to Tamilnadu were the Mutturajas or Mutrāchas.CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  8. Christine M. E. Matthews, ed. (1979). Health and Culture in a South Indian Village. p. 69. Mutrachas are originally Telugu from Andhra Pradesh State They were employed by Vijayanagar kings to defend the frontiers of their dominions, and were given the title of Paligars, Mutracha comes from mudi raja ( old king)
  9. K. M. Venkataramaiah, ed. (1996). A handbook of Tamil Nadu. p. 425:. Muthuracha: A Telugu caste found in some districts of Tamil Nadu, the Muthuracha (muthurācha) is also called Muttaraiyan. Some are talaiyāris or watchmen of villages. They seem to be a major sect in the coastal villages of Andhra PradeshCS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  10. Ve Pālāmpāḷ (1978). Feudatories of South India, 800-1070 A.D. Chugh Publications. p. 135.
  11. Naṭan̲a Kācinātan̲ (1978). Hero-stones in Tamilnadu. Arun Publications. p. 20.
  12. Gupta, Parmanand (1977). Geographical Names in Ancient Indian Inscriptions. Concept Publishing Company. p. 55.
  13. N. Subrahmanian (1993). Social and cultural history of Tamilnad, Volume 1. Ennes. p. 66.
  14. Parmanand Gupta (1977). Geographical Names in Ancient Indian Inscriptions. Concept Publishing Company. p. 55.
  15. D Dennis Hudson (2008). The Body of God: An Emperor's Palace for Krishna in Eighth-Century Kanchipuram. Oxford University Press. p. 541.
  16. Kesavan Veluthat. The political structure of early medieval South India. Orient Longman, 1993. p. 112.
  17. H.S. Bhatia. Political, Legal And War Philosophy In Ancient India. Deep and Deep Publications, 2001. p. 180.
  18. Singh, Kumar Suresh (1998). India's Communities. Oxford University Press. pp. 2426–2429. ISBN 9780195633542.
  19. M. S. Ramaswami Ayyangar, B. Seshagiri Rao (1982). Studies in South Indian Jainism: South Indian Jainism. Sri Satguru Publications. p. 56.
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