Gounder is a title used by various communities in the
Indian state of
Tamil Nadu. It may refer to communities such as the ,
Kongu Vellalars
, Kurumbas,
Tuluva Vellalars,
Uralis,
Vanniyars
The Vanniyar, also spelled Vanniya, formerly known as the Palli, are a Dravidian community or ''jāti'' found in the northern part of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. From the 19th century, peasant castes typically classified under Shudra cat ...
, Vettuvars and
Vokkaligas.
Etymology
There are number of derivations for the title. One theory derives it from the
Tamil word ''Kaamindan'', meaning "noble protector of the country", later modified as ''Kavundan'' or Gounder.
According to
S. N. Sadasivan
Sivanandamandiram Narayanan Sadasivan (1926–2006) was an Indian author. Sadasivan wrote various books on public administration, the social history of India and management. He managed the activities of the Kerala Institute of Public Administrat ...
the Tamil Kavundans or Goundans branched off from the
Vokkaligas and both might have a common origin from the
Kuruba
Kuruba is a Hindu caste native to the Indian state of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. They are the third-largest caste group in Karnataka. Traditionally, they were agriculturalists and cattle farmers. The origins of kuruba i ...
.
History
During the
British Raj era, some Gounders migrated to
Malayan rubber plantations as
Kanganis to manage the coolies.
References
Tamil society
Indian surnames
Karnataka society
Social groups of Tamil Nadu
{{India-ethno-stub