Chowta (also spelt Chouta) is a surname from

coastal Karnataka Kanara, also known as Karavali is the historically significant stretch of land situated by the southwestern coast of India, alongside the Arabian Sea in the present-day Indian state of Karnataka. The region comprises three civil districts, ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It is found among

Jains Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

.& Bunts.

History

It is also the name of the

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

dynasty,34:XVIII,10; Bhatt, Tuluva:68–78; Mahalingam, Mackenzie MSS:II,491-496; Ramesh, A History of South Kanara:159–160; Stuart, South Canara:257; Sturrock, South Canara:54–56,73,75,83,189 who ruled certain parts of the

Tulu Nadu Tulunad or Tulu Nadu, also called Bermere sristi or Parashurama Srishti, is a region and a proposed state on the southwestern coast of India. The Tulu people, known as 'Tuluva' (plural 'Tuluver'), speakers of Tulu, a Dravidian language, ar ...

region for several centuries (12th - 18th). The succession to the throne was as per the matrilineal custom of inheritance (

Aliyasantana Aliyasantana, literally " son in law as heir" in Kanarese, is the matrilineal system of inheritance practiced by Tuluver community in the Tulunaad area of Karnataka, India. It is similar to the ''Marumakkathayam'' system of the Malabar region. ...

). They initially ruled from their capital at

Ullal Ullal or ''Uḷḷāla'' is a City Municipality at Mangalore, educational, commercial & industrial hub in Dakshina Kannada district. It is located 10 km from the Mangalore City centre. Ullal City Municipality along with the Mangalore ...

and the first known king of the Dynasty was Tirumalaraya Chowta I (reign 1160–1179). His successor, Channaraya Chowta I (reign 1179–1219), moved it inland to Puttige. The principality of Chowta split in 1544 giving rise to two separate capitals: one at Ullala under the renowned Queen

Abbakka Chowta Rani Abbakka Chowta was the first Tuluva Queen of Ullal who fought the Portuguese in the latter half of the 16th century. She belonged to the Chowta dynasty who ruled over parts of coastal Karnataka (Tulu Nadu), India. Their capital was Puttige ...

, and another at Puttige. The Ullal branch seemed to have become extinct and 1603, the Chowta moved their capital to

Moodabidri Moodabidri ( kn, ಮೂಡುಬಿದಿರೆ ''Mūḍubidire''; also called Mudbidri, Moodbidre and Bedra), is a town and taluk in Dakshina Kannada district. It lies 34 km northeast of the district headquarters, Mangalore, in Karna ...

. In succeeding years, Chowta's power had greatly diminished due to invasions by

Hyder Ali Hyder Ali ( حیدر علی, ''Haidarālī''; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the att ...

and

Tipu Sultan Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He int ...

with whom they signed treaties. Chandrasekhara Chikkaraya Chowta V was the last Chowta king who had some authority. He reigned from 1783 to 1822. Following the conquest of

South Canara South Canara was a district of the Madras Presidency of British India, located at . It comprised the towns of Kassergode and Udipi and adjacent villages, with the capital in Mangalore city. South Canara was one of the most heterogeneous areas of ...

by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

, the Chowtas had lost all their power except for a small pension they received from the then government. Descendants of the Chowta rulers still survive today and have inhabited the ''Chowtara Aramane'' (Chowta Palace) of

, which is known for its ornate carvings such as the Nava Nari Kunjara (Nine Damsel Elephant).

Notable people

Notable people with the surname Chowta, who may or may not be members of the Jain community, include: *

, Queen of Ullal *

Sandeep Chowta Sandeep Chowta is an Indian music director who primarily works in Bollywood and Telugu cinema. He is also the head of Columbia Records in India. He has also sung some of his songs. In 2003, he produced an anti substance abuse documentary, titl ...

, Indian music composer *

D. K. Chowta Darbe Krishnananda Chowta (1 June 1938 – 19 June 2019) was an Indian businessman, writer, artist, and theatre personality. At the time of his death he was the general secretary of the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath a position he had also ser ...

, Indian writer *

Prajna Chowta Prajna Chowta (born in 1970, Accra, Ghana) is an Indian conservationist, wildlife researcher, writer and filmmaker specialised in the Asian elephant. She is the co-founder and managing trustee of the Aane Mane Foundation, founded in Bangalore, Ind ...

, Indian conservationist

References

{{surname, Chowta Indian surnames Dynasties of India Karnataka society Bunt (community) Bunt community surnames

History

Notable people

See also

References