Karaiyar
| Karaiyar | |
|---|---|
| கரையார், குருகுலம் | |
| Classification | Chieftain, Seamanship, Fishermen, |
| Religions | Christianity, Hinduism |
| Languages | Tamil |
| Subdivisions |
|
| Related groups | Tamil people, Karava |
Karaiyar is a caste found mainly on the northern and eastern coastal areas of Sri Lanka and the Coromandel coast of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, and globally among the Tamil diaspora. Traditionally, they were a seafaring and warrior caste, today involved in fishing.
Historically, they have also been referred to as Kurukulam and Karaiyalar. Karaiyars are the Tamil equivalent of the Sinhalese Karava.
The word "Karaiyar" is derived from the Tamil language words karai ("coast" or "shore") and yar ("people"). According to Robert Caldwell, the Kareoi people mentioned by the 2nd century CE Greco-Egyptian writer Ptolemy refer to people living on the Tamil coast, and their name derives from the same root.V. Kanakasabhai believed that "Kareoi" is simply an incorrect form of the word "Karaiyar".
The Karaiyar, along with Paravar and Mukkuvar, are among the old coastal communities of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Sri Lanka. The ancient Tamil literature mentions several coastal populations, but does not contain any direct references to the Karaiyars. The Purananuru mentions "Karaiyavar", but not as a coastal population; in the later literature, the word came to be identified with coastal people. According to historian S. K. Sittampalam (1993), the term "Paratavar kulathavar" in the ancient epic Kannaki Valakkurai Kaatai (a regional variant of Silappatikaram) refers to the Karaiyars. Vaiya Padal (14th century) mentions the Karaiyars as one of the castes living in the Jaffna kingdom.
According to another account given in the Mukkara Hatana manuscript, a battalion of 7740 Karaiyar soldiers came from Kurumandalam in Southern India, and defeated the Mukkuvars (another fishing community) and Thulukkars (Tamil Muslims). The Yalpana Vaipava Malai states that Parakramabahu VI of Kotte invited Karaiyar battalions to facilitate trade with other countries.
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