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The Vēḷir (Template:Lang-ta) were a royal house of minor dynastic kings and aristocratic chieftains in Tamilakam in the early historic period of South India. They were vassals of the Cholas and Cheras.

The Vēḷir had close relations with them through marriages and coronation right. The Vēḷir were crowned with the epithet Satyaputo "members of the fraternity of truth" for their virtues, and their lands were often hill/mountainous terrain. Vēḷir became a title inherited by Veḷḷālar chiefs of the medieval period.

Sangam period

In Sangam literature, the Velir were divided into a number of groups, which were most probably, exogamous phratries, such as aim-peru- velir or the Five Great Velir (Akam., 125), eru-velir or the Seven Velir (Akam., 36), and patinoru velir or the Eleven Velir (Akam., 135). Seven kings from seven dynastic clans of the Vēḷir royal house formed the Kadai Ezhu Vallal (The last of the 7 (lines) of Great Patrons), liberal patrons of arts and literature in ancient Tamilakam.

Early Tamil history was marked by a battle for supremacy between the Velir confederacy and the Kōcar, with Pandyas being the ruling clan of the Kōcar confederacy. The Kōcar entered the Tamil country from Konkana and Tulu lands, the same regions from which the Velir migrated into the Tamil land. Territories which came under the control of Kōcars came to be known as koṅku or kō-nāṭu. The Velir occupied most of the fertile plains on the eastern and western coasts and built the powerful Chola and Chera empires which were infact grand confederacies of the Velir Chieftains; whereas the Kōcar were hill people who occupied the central highlands included in the Kongu and the Pandya territories and built the Pandya Kingdom. The traditional division of the old Tamil rulers into the three Ventar (kings)(of Chola, Chera, Pandya) and many Velir chieftains obscured the fact that the original and fundamental division was between the Velir (including the Cholas and Cheras) and the Kōcar (including the Pandyas); with the bitter wars between Cholas and Pandyas lasting for centuries.

The Kōcar clans were made up of the Maravars and the Kallars and formed the fighting arm of the Pandya kingdom.

History

According to Tholkappiyam, the Velirs came to south from the city of Dwarka under the leadership of sage Agastya and belonged to the Yadu clan. Iravatham Mahadevan considers it plausible to assume that the Yadavas were Aryanised descendants of an original non-Aryan people.

Numerous poems in the ancient Sangam literature extol these chieftains' charity and truthfulness. Among the most prominent were the 'seven patrons' (kadaiyezhu vallal), namely; Paari, Malayaman Kaari, Ori, Adigaman, Avi, Nalli and Veliyan.

Asoka's edicts mentioned a clan of rulers called Satyaputas along with three crowned Tamil kings Sathiyaputo as mentioned in the Asoka's second rock edict is the same as Sathiyaputo mentioned in the Jambai inscription. The Jambai inscription was issued by Adigaman Chieftain. The Sanskrit name means "members of the fraternity of truth". It is known later that Satiyaputo is a term used to describe Atiyaman, a popular Velir noble based on a Tamil epigraph found recently at Jambai near Tirukkovilur in Tamil Nadu which says satiyaputo atiyan netuman anci itta pali which translates to "Monastery given by Satyaputta Athiyan Nduman Anji"Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).

Potsherds with early Tamil writing from the 2nd century BCE found in excavations in Poonagari, Jaffna bear several inscriptions, including a clan name—vela, a name related to velir from the ancient Tamil country. Note: *The Puranhaanhuuru poem 201- written by the poet Kapilan and not Paranan; Please alter accordingly in the text.

Velir Chiefs

The names of Velir chiefs are to be found across Tamil literature. In Sangam literature the more prevalent word used is Vel, such as in the names Vel Avi and Vel Paari.

Athiyamān Nedumān Añci and his son Ezhini, were Adigaman chieftains, based in Tagadur. They were contemporaries of Auvaiyar. The Sangam poem "Thagadur yathirai", now lost, was written about his battle with the Chera king. Another Velir was Irunkōvēl (Purananur-201 by Paranar*) who ruled from Koval (modern day Tirukovilur) on the banks of the Pennai, (the present Ponnaiyar River) which presently discharges into the sea at Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu. It is likely that the course of the river has changed to the south over many centuries. Other Velir chiefs of repute include Alumbil Vel, Alandur Vel and Nangur Vel

The Kongu Vēḷir dynasty ruled Kongu Nadu, while the Vēl Pāri dynasty produced numerous kings ruling Parambu Nadu, the most popular of whom was a close friend of the poet Kapilar. The Irunkōvēl line ruled over Ko Nadu and their most famous ruler, Pulikadimal, was a contemporary of Karikala Chola and Kapilar. The most heralded of the Āviyar line was Vaiyāvik Kōpperum Pēkan, a contemporary of the poet Paranar, and renowned for his generosity. The Malayamān Vēḷir dynasty ruled Nadu Naadu around Tirukoilur, their royal emblem featured a horse and their most famous king was Malaiyamān Thirumudi Kāri. Both he and his son Thaervann Malaiyan assisted the early Cholas and Cheras. The most famous Vēḷir dynasty was the Athiyamān dynasty, and this dynasty's powerful and most famous king was Athiyamān Nedumān Añci. His son Elini ruled Kudiramalai of the ancient Jaffna kingdom and Vanni, a co-ruling contemporary of the famous king Korran. These kings belonged to a prolific Tamil horseman tribe. The ancient Tamil Naka Oviyar tribe of the Vēḷir house, whose nation stretched to the Tamil emporiums of Mantai and Kudiramalai, had the famous king Nalliyakkotan who ruled this region and is paid tribute to in the Ciṟupāṇāṟṟuppaṭai.

Each of the Vēḷir dynasties ruled from their own capitals and utilized the seaport of Arikamedu.

Inscriptions

Asoka mentions the Satyaputras in his inscriptions along with the Cholas, Pandyas and the Kerala putras. The Satyaputra-Athiyamān Velirs wielded sufficient power in the time of Asoka (3rd century BCE) almost on par with the Cheras, Cholas and Pandyas, a power which continued for several centuries.

Ye Ca anta ata Choda, Pandiya, Satiyaputo, Ketalaputo, Tam bapanni, Antiyogo naama, Yonalaja

Everywhere in the conquered dominions of king Priyadarsin, the beloved of the gods, and the dominions on the borders as those of the Chola, the Pandya, the Satiyaputra, the Cheralaputra, Tamraparni, the Yavana King named Antiyoka and the other neighbouring kings of this Antiyoka...

In several excavated Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions found at Jambai, Tirukkoyilur of Viluppuram district, South Arcot in Tamil Nadu mention is made again of the dynasty:

Satyaputō Athiyan Nedumān Añji itta Pali

The abode given by Athiyan Nedumān Añji, the Satyaputō

The inscription, assignable to first century CE, mentions the Athiyā Chief Neduman Anci, a heroic historic king celebrated in volumes of the Sangam literature classics Purananuru and Akananuru. This Athiymān king was most likely a descendant of the dynasty mentioned in Asoka's edicts. The inscription records the endowment of a cave-shelter by the chieftain Atiyan Netuman Anci who sports the title Satiyaputo. The inscription gives the name of his clan (Atiyan), of his father (Netuman) and of himself (Anci). This clear statement enables researchers with absolute certainty, to identify a chieftain mentioned in the Tamil Sangam literature with a personage figuring in a Tamil-Brahmi inscription.

The Gummireddipura plates make mention of the Satyaputra-Velir Adigaman dynasty.

An inscription belonging to one of the kings of the Irunkōvēl line from the Adhipuriswara temple in Tiruvorriyur district mentions Velirs :

Records in the reign of the Ganga-pallava king Kovijiya Kampavarman, gift of 27 kalanju of gold for offerings by Pudi Arindigai, wife of Videlvidigu-Ilangovelar of Kodumbalur in Ko-nadu. The money was placed in the hands of the residents of Vaikattur, a suburb of Tiruvorriuyur, on interest at 3 manjadi per kalanju per annum

See also

• Kshatriya
• Vellalar
• Yadu

References

1. Quote verbatim from both sources to support the statement
2. Quote verbatim from the source to support the statement
3. The quotes below obviously show the Satyaputras were a separate unit and not the same as Cholas, Pandyas, Cheras. So clarify connection between Satyaputras and Velirs

1. ^ Mahadevan, Iravatham (2009). "Meluhha and Agastya : Alpha and Omega of the Indus Script" (PDF). Chennai, India. p. 16. The Ventar-Velir-Velalar groups constituted the ruling and land-owning classes in the Tamil country since the beginning of recorded history and betray no trace whatever of an Indo-Aryan linguistic ancestry
2. Fairservis, Walter Ashlin (1992) . The Harappan civilization and its writing. A model for the decipherment of the Indus Script. Oxford & IBH. pp. 52–53. ISBN 978-81-204-0491-5.
3. International Institute of Tamil Studies, 1970. Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 2, p.207
4. Venkatasubramanian, T. K. (1986). Political Change and Agrarian Tradition in South India. Delhi: Mittal Publications. pp. 63–67.
5. Sastri, K. A. Nilakanta (1955). The Colas. Madras University historical series. Vol. 9. University of Madras. p. 49.
6. Dirks, Nicholas B. (2007-12-03). The Hollow Crown: Ethnohistory of an Indian Kingdom. Cambridge University Press. p. 149. ISBN 978-0-521-05372-3.
7. International Institute of Tamil Studies, 1970. Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 2, p.185
8. ^ International Institute of Tamil Studies, 1970. Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 2, p.207. Page 207 states: "Early Tamil history can be re-interpreted as virtually a battle for supremacy between the Velir and the Kōcar. The Velir occupied most of the fertile plains on the eastern and western coasts and built up the powerful ChOla and Chera empires which were really grand confederacies of the Velir chieftains. The Kōcar, true to their origin as the hill people, occupied the central highlands included in the Kongu and the Pandya territories and built up the Pandya Kingdom. The traditional division of the old Tamil rulers into the three Ventar (kings) and the many Velir (chieftains) has obscured the fact that the original and fundamental division was between the Velir (including the Cholas and the Cheras) and the Kocar (including the Pandyas). The bitter Chola-Pandya wars lasting for centuries in the Tamil country were the final echoes of the conflict between the ruling citadel-dwellers and the oppressed city dwellers of the Proto-Indian civilization."
9. International Institute of Tamil Studies, 1970. Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 2, p.220. Page 220 states: "Velaikkarar (related to the Velir as indicated by their name) considered themselves socially superior to the Pandyas who seem to be the ruling clan of the Kocar confederacy. Similarly the Velaikkarar groups figure as temple attendants only in the Chola inscriptions."
10. ^ International Institute of Tamil Studies, 1970. Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 2, p.248. Page 248 states: "According to Tamil tradition, the Kōcar entered the Tamil country from Konkana and Tulu lands, a fact which immediately connects them with the migration of the Velir from the same regions. The territories under the control of the Kōcar came to be known as koṅku or kō-nāṭu though the Kōcar clans were to be found throughout the Tamil country."
11. International Institute of Tamil Studies, 1970. Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 2, p.230. Page 230 states: "The Kōcar clans (including Maravar and Kallar) formed the fighting arm of the Pandya kingdom, the counterpart of Velala or Velaikara forces under the Velir (including the Chera and the Chola kingdoms)."
12. Shashi, S. S. (1989). Encyclopedia of Indian Tribes. p. 216.
13. Pivot politics: changing cultural identities in early state formation processes By M. van Bakel page 165: "The Velir were an instrusive group in South India... It is now suggested that (...) may have been associated with the Yadu of Dvaraka..."
14. Mahadevan, Iravatham (2009). "Meluhha and Agastya : Alpha and Omega of the Indus Script" (PDF). Chennai, India. p. 16. "..it is more plausible to assume that the Yadavas were the Aryanised descendants of an original non-Aryan people than to consider the Tamil Velir to have descended from the Indo-Aryan speaking Yadavas. As M. Raghavaiyangar (2004: 27), has pointed out vel, means 'one who performs a sacrifice' (namely a 'priest'). The Agastya legend itself can be re-interpreted as non-Aryan and Dravidian even in origin and pertaining to the Indus Civilisation.
15. ^ Sastri, K. A. Nilakanta (1955). A History of South India. p. 77.
16. 9.^ Mahadevan, Iravatham (2003). Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D.. Harvard Oriental Series vol. 62. Cambridge, Mass: Department of Sanskrit and Indian Studies, Harvard University. ISBN 978-0-674-01227-1. p. 399.>
17. Mahadevan, Iravatham (2003). Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. Department of Sanskrit and Indian Studies. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-674-01227-1. Retrieved 17 October 2013. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
18. M. van Bakel, Martin (1994). Pivot politics: changing cultural identities in early state formation processes. Amsterdam: Het Spinhuis. p. 172. ISBN 978-90-5589-007-1. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
19. Aiyangar, Sakkottai Krishnaswami (2004) . Ancient India: collected essays on the literary and political history of Southern India. Delhi: Asian Educational Services. p. 351.
20. Historical heritage of the Tamils, page 256
21. Kolappa Pillay Kanakasabhapathi Pillay. (1963). South India and Ceylon. University of Madras. pp. 39
22. Asoka and the Tamil Country: The Evidence Of Archaeology - Dr. R. Nagasamy, Tamil Arts Academy
23. "South Indian Inscriptions Volume_13 - Cholas Inscriptions". Archaeological Survey of India. Retrieved 17 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
24. Kongu Nadu, a history up to A.D. 1400, page 152
25. Saptar̥ṣīśvara temple in the lower Kaveri Delta, page 13
26. Dr. R. Nagasamy, Asoka and the Tamil Country: The Evidence Of Archaeology
27. I. Mahadevan, RECENT DISCOVERIES OF JAINA CAVE INSCRIPTIONS IN TAMILNADU
28. South Indian shrines: illustrated By P. V. Jagadisa Ayyar, page 57

External links

• T.P. Sankaran Kutty Nair. Agenda. Sanskrit in South India

• Tamil history
• History of Kerala
• History of Tamil Nadu
• Sri Lankan Tamil history