Sri Lankan Vellalar

Sri Lankan Vellalar (Tamil: இலங்கை வெள்ளாளர், lit. 'Ilaṅkai veḷḷāḷar') is caste found in Sri Lanka, who comprise about half of the Sri Lankan Tamil population. They were traditionally mostly involved in agriculture and trade, but also included landowners and temple patrons. They also form part of the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora.

The Sri Lankan Vellalars share common origins with the Vellalars of Tamil Nadu. The earliest reference to the Vellala is attested in the Tolkāppiyam. The Kailayamalai, an account on Kalinga Magha, the founder of Jaffna Kingdom, narrates the migration of Nattar chiefs from the Coromandel Coast of South India, with some of them being Vellalar chiefs.

According S. Arasaratnam, was the Vellalar dominance strengthen by Dutch colonizers after the fall of the Portuguese. The Dutch interpreted the local laws, later codified as Thesavalamai, as allowing Vellala chiefs to own slaves. Thus the Saiva Vellalar chiefs had the Nalavars, Pallars, Paraiyars, Vannars and Ambattars worked under them under the term panchamar ("the fives"), who were treated as the untouchables. According to historians did the Vellalar population increase between the 17th and 19th century due to other castes and communities assimilation in Vellalar society.

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