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Mudali (or Mudaliyar) was a colonial title and office in
Ceylon 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 ...
(now Sri Lanka) which was part of the native headman system. The Portuguese colonials created the
Mudaliyar Thuluva Vellalar (Thondamandala Tuluva Vellalar), also known as Agamudaya Mudaliars and Arcot Mudaliars, is a caste found in northern Tamil Nadu, southern Andhra Pradesh and southern Karnataka, India. They were originally significant lando ...
class in the 17th century by enlisting natives of different
castes 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 ...
from the coastal areas. The Dutch continued the practice of the Portuguese. This class used the ''Mudali'' as a hereditary title, however the British re-established a Mudaliyar class, with appointments that had the title of Mudali, this process was stopped in the 1930s when the Native Department of the British government of Ceylon was closed down. All official and titular appointments of Mudaliyars were made by the Governor of Ceylon. Appointments were non-transferable and usually hereditary, made to locals from wealthy influential families loyal to the British Crown. The members of this group formed a unique social group called the Sri Lankan Mudaliyars and associated with older
Radala Radala refers to a small minority group in Sri Lanka in the former provinces of the Kingdom of Kandy, who are either descendants of chiefs and courtiers of the King of Kandy of Nayaks of Kandy or descendants of native headmen appointed by the ...
caste. At present, the post of Court Mudliar remain in function in Sri Lankan courts.


History

Mudaliyar is a
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, nativ ...
title, derived from the word ''mudhal'', meaning "first", and the honorific suffix ''yar,'' meaning "The first" as in the person of the first rank. The position was created in the 17th century by the Portuguese to function as a link between the colonial administration and the local populace, as they had done in South India. Incumbents received payment in form of land grants and use of tenured service (Rajakariya) of the local population which they extracted for their own estates.


De Saram family

A De Saram family of Dutch and Malay ancestry had Sinhalised itself in the late 18th century by posing as the representatives of the masses and subsequently convincing the British rulers that they were from the numerous
Govigama Govigama (also known as Goyigama, Govikula, Govi Vansa or Goyi Vansa) is a Sinhalese caste found in Sri Lanka. They form approximately half of the Sinhalese population and are traditionally involved in agriculture. The term Govigama became popula ...
caste. This was a strategic move as it gave the British masters the impression that the De Saram family had the backing of a large body of natives. It was also the easiest route to
Sinhalisation Sinhalisation is a term, derived from Sinhala, that has number of meanings in Sri Lanka. it is mainly the assimilation into Sinhalese Culture in which the members of an ethno-cultural group are steadily integrated or "absorbed" into establis ...
as the peasant community was widely dispersed, still unstructured, and without inter-community networks or leaders. The first notable ancestor of the De Saram family was an interpreter who accompanied the Dutch Embassy to Kandy 1731–1732. Despite his advanced age of 71 years, this early De Saram had to make the entire journey by foot as his social status did not warrant travel in a
palanquin The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the el ...
. From there, the De Saram family progressively gained power and position by loyalty, switching religions from Dutch Protestantism to British Anglicanism and benefitting from the preference of British rulers to appoint individuals of unknown ancestry to high positions. By respectively collaborating with the Dutch and British rulers, the De Sarams succeeded in marginalizing the traditional ruling class.
Governors A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Maitland Maitland is an English and Scottish surname. It arrived in Britain after the Norman conquest of 1066. There are two theories about its source. It is either a nickname reference to "bad temper/disposition" (Old French, ''Maltalent''; Anglo Norm ...
(1805–1811),
Gordon Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...
(1883–1890) and others effectively used
divide and rule Divide and rule policy ( la, divide et impera), or divide and conquer, in politics and sociology is gaining and maintaining power divisively. Historically, this strategy was used in many different ways by empires seeking to expand their ter ...
policies and created caste animosity among the native elite. The De Saram family eventually had a strong and exclusive network of relatives as Mudaliyars by the late 19th century. Later, through marriage alliances, the network extended to the Obeyesekere, Dias-Bandaranaike, Ilangakoon, de Alwis, de Livera, Pieris, Siriwardena, and Senanayake families.


Ponnambalam-Coomaraswamy family

As much as the De Saram family was responsible for the rise of the
Govigama Govigama (also known as Goyigama, Govikula, Govi Vansa or Goyi Vansa) is a Sinhalese caste found in Sri Lanka. They form approximately half of the Sinhalese population and are traditionally involved in agriculture. The term Govigama became popula ...
caste, the Ponnambalam-Coomaraswamy Family was responsible for the 20th century, rise of the
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, nativ ...
Vellalar Vellalar is a generic Tamil term used primarily to refer to various castes who traditionally pursued agriculture as a profession in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and northeastern parts of Sri Lanka. The Vellalar are members of sev ...
caste. The ascendance of the Ponnambalam-Coomaraswamy family commences with a Coomaraswamy (1783–1836) from
Point Pedro Point Pedro ( ta, பருத்தித்துறை, translit=Paruttittuṟai; si, පේදුරු තුඩුව, translit=Pēduru Tuḍuva) is a town, located in Jaffna District, Sri Lanka, at the northernmost point of the island. ...
joining the seminary that Governor North started for producing interpreters. Coomaraswamy passed out and served as an interpreter from 1805. He was appointed by the Governor to a Mudaliyar position at the age of 26 and became the Jaffna Tamil with the highest government appointment. He played a critical role as the Tamil-English interpreter when the Kandyan king Sri Vikrama Rajasinha of Kandy was captured in 1815. He was rewarded by Governor Brownrigg in 1819 for loyal service to the British crown. There were allegations that he was not from the Vellala caste. James Rutnam's research has shown that Coomaraswamy's Father was Arumugampillai, a South Indian, who had migrated to Gurudavil in Jaffna. (Tribune 1957). Ponnambalam was appointed cashier of the Colombo Kachcheri in 1845 and deputy Coroner for Colombo in 1847. Many leading Englishmen were his friends and it transpired in the 1849 Parliamentary Commission that he used to lend money to government officials. His three sons P. Coomaraswamy (1849–1905), P. Ramanathan (1851–1930) and P. Arunachalam (1853–1926) became national figures. This closely related and endogamous clan emerged as the pre-eminent Tamil family of the country and rose to national elite status. Despite their Anglicized background which propelled their rise, the family presented a staunch Hindu appearance and assumed the role of 'Patrons of the
Vellalas Vellalar is a generic Tamil term used primarily to refer to various castes who traditionally pursued agriculture as a profession in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and northeastern parts of Sri Lanka. The Vellalar are members of several ...
in Colombo. However many of its members; Muttu Coomaraswamy, P. Coomaraswamy, P. Ramanathan married western women.
Ananda Coomaraswamy Ananda Kentish Muthu Coomaraswamy ( ta, ஆனந்த குமாரசுவாமி, ''Ānanda Kentiś Muthū Kumāraswāmī''; si, ආනන්ද කුමාරස්වාමි ''Ānanda Kumārasvāmī''; 22 August 1877 − 9 Septem ...
was married four times to western women. They helped many young Tamils to secure employment in English Banks and Mercantile establishments. On the death of Mudaliyar Coomaraswamy's wife in 1897, the leading daily, 'The Ceylon Independent' wrote ''" to her and her husband, almost every important Hindu family in the city owes its rise".


Titular Mudaliyars

In 1853, the British Governor
George William Anderson George William Anderson (1791 – 12 March 1857) was the officiating governor of Bombay during the British Raj from 28 April 1841 to 9 June 1842. Anderson entered the Bombay Civil Service in 1806. He was responsible for drawing up the Bombay Ci ...
appointed
Jeronis de Soysa Gate Mudaliyar Jeronis de Soysa (19 April 1797 – 28 May 1862) was a pioneering Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a pioneer coffee planter and an industrialist who became the wealthiest Ceylonese of the 19th century by establis ...
, a successful merchant who had undertaken a great deal of philanthropy as a Gate Mudaliyar as an
honour Honour (British English) or honor (American English; see spelling differences) is the idea of a bond between an individual and a society as a quality of a person that is both of social teaching and of personal ethos, that manifests itself as a ...
in recognition of his philanthropic en-devours. From this point, the Governors made Mudaliyar appointments as
titular Titular may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Title character in a narrative work, the character referred to in its title Religion * Titular (Catholicism), a cardinal who holds a titulus, one of the main churches of Rome ** Titular bisho ...
honours to individuals outside the government service. This practice continued past the discontinuation of the native headman system in 1937 and into the post-independence era until
S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සොලොමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் ப ...
suspended state honours in 1956.


Ranks of British Mudaliyars

Mudaliyars had several classes, of which the ''official'' and ''ex-offico'' were government servants, whilst the ''titular'' was awarded as an honour. ;The order of precedence *
Maha Mudaliyar The Maha Mudaliyar ( ''Head Mudaliyar'' or මහ මුදලි) was a colonial title and office in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). Head Mudaliyar functioned as the head of the low country native headmen and native aide-de-camp to the Governor of Ceyl ...
*Gate Mudaliyar (Wasala Mudaliyar) *Atapattu Mudaliyar *Kachcheri Mudaliyar *Korale Mudaliyar *Court Mudaliyar ;Official *Maha Mudaliar (Head Mudaliyar) - head of the native headmen of the low country and native aide-de-camp of the governor. *Mudaliar of the Atapattu - in charge of jurisdiction of a District or Area *Mudaliar of the Korale – in charge of jurisdiction of a
korale A Korale or Corale was formerly a revenue district in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). During the British colonial administration, a low country korale was under the purview of a Mudaliyar while an upcountry korale came under the purview of a post that was i ...
;Awarded as an honour (Titular) *Mudaliar of the Governor's Gate (Gate Mudaliar) (Titular) – awarded as an honour *Mudaliar (Titular) – awarded as an honour ;Ex-officio *Mudaliar of the Kachcheri – head of the native staff of a
Kachcheri A kachcheri or district secretariat is the principal government department that administrates a district in Sri Lanka. Each of the 25 districts has a kachcheri. The main tasks of the District Secretariat involve coordinating communications and a ...
*Court Mudaliar-Court Clerk/Court Interpreter *Heads of minor departments of public service held the rank of Mudaliar by virtue of their office.


List of prominent Mudaliyars


Maha Mudaliyar (Head Mudaliyar)

* Maha Mudaliyar
Nicholas Dias Abeyesinghe Amarasekere Nicholas Dias Abeysinghe Amarasekere Maha Mudaliyar, ( Sinhala: නිකලස් ඩයස් අබේසිංහ අමරසේකර) (8 May 1719 - 10 May 1794) was a Ceylonese Dutch colonial administrator. He was appointed as the Maha Mud ...
(1719–1794)- Head Mudaliyar of Dutch Ceylon * Maha Mudaliyar Christoffel de Saram Wanigasekera Ekanaike (1765–1842) * Maha Mudaliyar Kaluhath Samson De Abrew Wijeyagooneratne Rajapakshe (1831-1888) * Maha Mudaliyar
Edmund Rowland Gooneratne Edmund Rowland Jayathilake Gooneratne, Gate Mudaliyar, JP, ( Sinhala: එඩ්මන්ඩ් රෝලන්ඩ් ජයතිලක ගුණරත්න) was a Ceylonese British colonial-era administrator and a literary figure. He was also ...
(1845–1914) – Acting Maha Mudaliyar and formerly Gate Mudaliyar and Atapattu Mudaliyar of
Galle Galle ( si, ගාල්ල, translit=Gālla; ta, காலி, translit=Kāli) (formerly Point de Galle) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, from Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Souther ...
* Maha Mudaliyar
Sir Solomon Dias Bandaranike Sir Solomon Dias Abeywickrema Jayatilleke Senewiratna Rajakumaruna Kadukeralu Bandaranaike, ( Sinhala: සොලමන් ඩයස් අබේවික්‍රම ජයතිලක සෙනෙවිරත්න රාජකුමාරු ...
(1862–1946) – Head Mudaliyar * Maha Mudaliyar Sir
James Peter Obeyesekere II Sir James Peter Obeyesekere II, Maha Mudaliyar, JP (1879–1968) was a Ceylonese colonial-era headmen. He was the last Head Mudaliyar and served as aide-de-camp to the British Governor of Ceylon and Governor General of Ceylon. Born to ...
(1879–1968) – last Maha Mudliyar


Gate Mudaliyar

* Gate Mudaliyar
Arumugampillai Coomaraswamy Arumugampillai Coomaraswamy ( ta, ஆறுமுகம்பிள்ளை குமாரசுவாமி; 1783 – 7 November 1836) was a Ceylon Tamil member of the Legislative Council of Ceylon. Early life and family Coomaraswamy was ...
(1784–1836) of Point Pedro * Gate Mudaliyar
Jeronis de Soysa Gate Mudaliyar Jeronis de Soysa (19 April 1797 – 28 May 1862) was a pioneering Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a pioneer coffee planter and an industrialist who became the wealthiest Ceylonese of the 19th century by establis ...
Dissanayake (1797–1862) – First Gate Mudaliyar outside of government service * Gate Mudaliyar
Arunachalam Ponnambalam Gate Mudaliyar Arunachalam Ponnambalam, JP, UM (1814 – 4 September 1887) was a Ceylonese colonial-era government functionary, businessmen and philanthropist. He was the cashier at the Colombo Kachcheri and was appointed to the titular rank of ...
(1814–1887) of Manipay * Gate Mudaliyar
James Edward Corea Gate Mudaliyar James Edward Corea was a Ceylonese colonial-era headman. Early life Corea was born in Chilaw, on the west coast of Sri Lanka, on 2 December 1865. His father was Johannes Christoffel Corea who was a Mudaliyar of the Chilaw Di ...
(1865– 1955) of Chilaw * Gate Mudaliyar Alexander Edmund De Silva Wijegooneratne Samaraweera Rajapakse, OBE (1866–1937) of Negombo * Gate Mudaliyar
Abraham Mendis Gunasekera Gate Mudaliyar Abraham Mendis Gunasekera (1869–1931) was a leading literary figure in Ceylon. He had served as an Interpreter Mudaliyar to the Registrar General of Ceylon. Gunasekera produced a Sinhalese Sinhala may refer to: * Something o ...
(1869–1931) * Gate Mudaliyar
Edmund Peiris Gate Mudaliyar Edmund Peiris, JP, UM was a Ceylonese colonial-era headman and philanthropist. He was the Mudaliyar of Kalutara and was appointed as a Mudaliyar of the Governor's Gate. His father was Mudaliyar Romanis Peiris, Customs Mudaliyar. ...
, JP, UM of Kalutara * Gate Mudaliyar
A. C. G. S. Amarasekara Gate Mudaliyar Abraham Christopher Gregory Sooriyarachchi Amarasekara (2 March 1883  – 29 March 1983) was a Sri Lankan painter. He is considered one the important Sri Lanka artists of the Ceylon Society of Arts of the mid 20th century. ...
, OBE (1883 – 1983) * Gate Mudaliyar Baba Hakim Muthaliph (1779–1839) of Magampattuwa * Gate Mudaliyar Baba Thajul Arifin Doole (1834–1909) of Hambantota * Gate Mudaliyar Muhammad Samsudeen Kariapper (1899–1989) of Akkaraipattu * Gate Mudaliyar Manueltamby St. John Puvirajasinghe of Karaiyur,
Jaffna Jaffna (, ) is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a peninsula of the same name. With a population of 88,138 in 2012, Jaffna is Sri Lanka's 12th mo ...
. * Gate Mudaliyar Don Gabriell Kumarasinghe Jayakody (1871-1951) of Jayakody Walawwa - Ganemulla * Gate Mudaliyar Tuder Dedrick Nathaniel De Abrew Wijeyagooneratne Samaraweera Rajapakse (1867-1959) of Maha Kappina Walawwa - Balapitiya


Mudaliyar

* Mudaliyar Deraniyagala Louis Pieris Samarasinghe Siriwardena (1680–1746) * Mudaliyar Deogo Kurukulasuriya Arasunilayitta of Karaiyur,
Jaffna Jaffna (, ) is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a peninsula of the same name. With a population of 88,138 in 2012, Jaffna is Sri Lanka's 12th mo ...
(1790s) . * Mudaliyar Yakunduwe Dharmasena Hitiralalage Don Richard Perera Wimalasekara (Honorable)(1750s) Waskadu Badda Pothupitiya Pattikarawasala Walauwa *Mudliyar Dharmasena Hitiralalage Don Devid Perera wimalasekara (1805-1860s)(Honorable) Waskadubadda Pothupitiya Pattikarawasala Walauwa * Mudaliyar
Don Spater Senanayake Mudaliyar Don Spater Senanayake (1847–1907) was a Ceylonese, an entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a successful graphite mine owner and was given the titular title of Mudaliyar for social service by the British colonial administration. He ...
(1848–1907) of Botale * Mudaliyar John De Silva Wijegooneratne Rajapakshe, J.P. (1841-1909) of Negombo * Mudaliyar Ahamath Ibrahim Jainu-Deen (1864–1924) of Badulla * Mudaliyar Sinathamby Somasundara Aiyer (1881–1953) of Punnalaikkadduvan * Mudliyar Nanayakkara Rajawasala Appuhamilage Don Arthur de Silva Wijesinghe Siriwardena (1889–1947) of
Richmond Castle, Kalutara Richmond Castle is an Edwardian mansion, located near Kalutara. Built between 1900 and 1910, it was formally the country seat of Mudaliyar Don Arthur de Silva Wijesinghe Siriwardena. The building is currently owned by the Public Trustee and ope ...
* Mudaliyar Aboobucker of Galle * Mudaliyar
Ahamed Lebbe Sinne Lebbe Mudaliar Ahamed Lebbe Sinne Lebbe, also known as Ahamedlebbe Sinnalebbe (born 2 June 1902), was a Ceylonese merchant and former Member of Parliament representing Batticaloa District. At the 1st parliamentary election held in 1947 Sinne Lebbe r ...
(b 1902) of Batticaloa * Mudaliyar Don Peiris Weerasinghe – of Nugegoda * Mudaliyar Shanmugam Tambyah Mudaliyar of Manipay * Mudaliyar Richard Jayawickrama Wijetunga of Elgiriya * Mudaliyar Jayasena Madanayake of Peliyagoda * Mudaliyar Baba Junoor Haji Bahar * Mudaliyar Komanda Mudali of Kandy * Mudaliyar Thenahandi David Mendis of Negombo (1904–1977) * Mudaliyar Kanaharaaya of Karaveddy, Jaffna. * Mudaliyar William Mohotti Munasinghe, Aide-de-camp to the British Governor and Mudaliyar of Negombo (1902-1962) * Chief Mudaliyar Sheikh Abdul Cader Marikar Muhammad Cassim Lebbe Marikar (1805–1877) – Chief Mudaliyar Eastern Province


See also

*
Kastane Kasthane is a short traditional ceremonial/decorative single-edged Sri Lankan sword. The sword is featured in the Flag of Sri Lanka Design Kastanes often have elaborate hilts, especially shaped and described as a rich mythical style inherited fr ...
*
Muhandiram Muhandiram ( si, මුහන්දිරම්, ta, முகாந்திரம்) was a post in the native headmen system in the lower-country (coastal districts) of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) during the colonial era. It was awarded as a title o ...
*
Native headmen of Ceylon Native headmen system was an integral part of the administration of the island of Ceylon (now known as Sri Lanka) under the successive European colonial powers, namely the Portuguese Empire, the Dutch East India Company and the British Empire. N ...
*
Radala Radala refers to a small minority group in Sri Lanka in the former provinces of the Kingdom of Kandy, who are either descendants of chiefs and courtiers of the King of Kandy of Nayaks of Kandy or descendants of native headmen appointed by the ...
*
Raja of Chettinad ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in history of South Asia, South Asia and History of ...
*
Rao Bahadur __NOTOC__ Rao may refer to: Geography * Rao, West Sumatra, one of the districts of West Sumatra, Indonesia * Råö, a locality in Kungsbacka Municipality, Halland County, Sweden Transport * Dr. Leite Lopes–Ribeirão Preto State Airport , ...
*
Walauwa Walauwa or walawwa is the name given to a feudal/colonial manor house in Sri Lanka of a native headmen. It also refers to the feudal social systems that existed during the colonial era. The term walauwa is derived from the Tamil word ''valavu ...


Further reading

* *


References

*{{cite web, title= Village notables in colonial Ceylon - The Village Headman was the uncrowned king of the village. He was appointed by the Government Agent from a traditional leading family in the area, in order to ensure that he received customary respect from villagers , url= http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=177002 M Titles in Sri Lanka Defunct government positions in Sri Lanka