Radala

Radala refers to a small minority caste in the Kandyan Kingdom of Sri Lanka. They were the of the Kingdom of Kandy. The term Radala is coming from the combination of words Radh (meaning, "Royal") and Kola or Kula (meaning, "caste"), which literally means the royal caste. The word "Radala" came into existence after the throne of the Kingdom of Kandy went to the Nayak Dynasty. Higher officials in the court of Vira Narendra Sinha were offered this state and Nayakkara prince was selected as king over king's son by a local queen. After capturing the Kandyan provinces in 1815 with the aid of locals from both maritime and Kandyan provinces, the British created an extensive class of loyal 'New Radalas' in the Kandyan territory to assist them in the administration of that province.

Traditionally, Radala was not a common term used for all officials of the state. In the Sinhala version of the Kandyan Convention of 1815, only the Adigars, Dissavas and a few others are called Radalas. The 19th century British rulers who created an extensive class of 'New Radalas' in the Kandyan territory were keen to call them an aristocracy to assist them with its administration. However Sri Lankan history shows that many Kandyan Radalas were civil and military officials of the court and considered aristocratic but not as direct heirs to the Kandyan throne.

The offspring of Kandyan Kings from aristocratic concubines (yakadadoli) were those that were originally considered as Radalas. In addition to a chief queen and one or two secondary queens, Kandyan kings also had a Harem. Harem ladies from royal stock were called Randoli. Hindu princesses were brought over from Madurai in South India as Randolis, after the royal families of the maritime region in Sri Lanka converted to Christianity and were therefore no longer eligible. Ladies of the Radala and Govigama castes were taken into the harem as Yakadadoli and sometimes as Randolis. Favourite concubines frequently received land grants and their offspring were appointed as high officials of the royal court and in a few cases inherited the kingdom. As a result of this, Mampitiya Bandara and Unamboowe Bandara, born to Radala yakadadolis and fathered by Kandyan kings, could have ascendened the Kandyan throne.

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