Demalagattara are a social group or

caste Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...

amongst the

Sinhalese Sinhala may refer to: * Something of or related to the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka * Sinhalese people * Sinhala language, one of the three official languages used in Sri Lanka * Sinhala script, a writing system for the Sinhala language ** Sinha ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. Demalagattara are Theravada Buddhists by religion. They are ethnically Sinhalese but proclaim their

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

ethnic origins, whereas all other South India-derived castes such as Karave, Salagama, Durave and Berava do not emphasise their Tamil links as part of their assimilation into Sinhalese society.

Origins

As the mainstream Sinhalese speakers claim North Indian ethnic origins the presence of many South Indian type Jatis like the Demalagatara indicate a complex migration history from India to Sri Lanka. Demalagatara do not indicate any tribal origins like the other, formerly untouchable, caste of

Rodiyas Rodi or Rodiya are reported to be an untouchable social group or caste amongst the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka. Their status was very similar to all the Untouchable castes of India with segregated communities, ritualised begging, economically ...

. Their place in the caste structure is related to a primary function associated with formerly martial origins. They were classed as a sub-caste of the Govigama during the British period. Many are agriculturalists and workers throughout the country.

South Indian roots

Some anthropologists believe that the early society of Sri Lanka has looked to neighboring South India for manpower to fulfill functional needs as land was cleared and many new villages found. Demalagatara are believed to be descended from Maravar or Kallar like martial castes of South India who also play an important role as mercenaries medieval Sinhalese kingdoms. Similar caste exist in Kerala as Tamil padai nayar has roots from Maravar caste of Tamil Nadu.

Etymology of Demalagattara

‘Demala’ is the Sinhala word for

and ‘Gattara’ is the word used in ancient Sri Lankan rock inscriptions and literature to refer to

serfs Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism, and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery, which developed ...

. Thus Demalagattara translates into English as ‘Tamil serfs’. ‘Agricultural serfs’ were part of the feudal land tenure system of Sri Lanka. There were also ‘domestic serfs’.

Origin myths

The community says that they descended from soldiers who accompanied a 2nd-century BCE Tamil

Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...

King named as Ellara. But in reality the story is partly true, they are South Indian soldiers who got to settle down due royal grants but the actual time and the king(s) who granted them these privileges happened much later than indicated by their origin myth. Research on origins was carried out during the British

Colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 a ...

period and is dated. (See Caste in Sri Lanka)

References

* Bryce Ryan, Caste in Modern Ceylon, Rutgers University Press, 1953. Sinhalese castes Sri Lankan Tamil society