Pungudutivu or Pungai Idu Tivu ( ta, புங்குடுதீவு si, පුවඟු දිවයින) is a small island composed of number villages that is just west of the Jaffna Peninsula in

Sri Lankan Tamil Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Pr ...

dominated Northern Province. It is divided into 12 wards internally, each corresponding a major settlement. Nearly 15 Tamil schools exist there for the benefits of the place. Government hospitals and some private clinics are also available. Pungudutivu is connected by road with mainland Jaffna. SLTB and private buses travel through the island along the Jaffna - Kurikattuvan route. People take a boat from Kurikattuvan to reach Nainativu, which is celebrated for its religious popularity.

History

The island was named as Middleburg by the Dutch colonial rulers during their occupation of then Ceylon.

Hindu Temples

Most of the residents of the Island are Tamils with majority being

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

and a minority of

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

. There are a lot of Hindu temples in this region along with some Christian churches. The island is also home to the famous Kannaki ambal temple (Recently renamed and rebranded as Sri Raja Rajeshwari ambal). The temple's history dictates that on one fateful day, a box floated towards the island and settled toward the shore. Cows began to crowd around the box and seeing this, local fishermen went near to the box and discovered an idol of the goddess

Kannagi Kannagi ( ta, கண்ணகி) sometimes spelled Kannaki, is a legendary Tamil woman who forms the central character of the Tamil epic ''Cilappatikaram''. Kannagi is described as the chaste woman who stays with her husband despite his unfai ...

. The fishermen lifted the idol out of the box and as they were carrying it, the idol began to get heavy. Sensing the idol's divinity, the fishermen placed it near a hibiscus tree. Despite numerous attempt to lift the idol, the fishermen were unsuccessful. News regarding the mysterious idol began to spread like wildfire within the village. Village members and heads gathered to examine the idol and suddenly an old woman amongst the crowd entered a trance and revealed the following. "I am

Kannaki Amman Kannaki Amman ( ta, கண்ணகி அம்மன், IAST: , si, පත්තිනි දෙවියෝ, ml, കണ്ണകി ഭഗവതി ''kaṇṇaki bhagavati'') is the deified form of Kannagi, the heroine of the Tamil epi ...

, I have come to this island with the protection of goddess bhadrakali. I have incarnated myself into seven and will travel to other regions in Sri Lanka, while I the main form, will reside in this village. Build me a temple and seek my grace, I will protect you all as a mother." Hearing this the villagers decided to build a temple for the goddess and another temple for goddess

Bhadrakali Bhadrakali (IAST: Bhadrakālī; ), also known as Mahakali and Kali, is a Hindu goddess. According to Shaktism, she is one of the fierce forms of the Supreme Goddess Shakti, or Adi Parashakti, mentioned in the Devi Mahatmyam. In Vaishnavism, ...

. Over time, the temple has continued to grow in name and fame. The goddess is considered to be a very powerful deity and those who venerate her with full devotion have asserted that she never fails to listens and respond to her devotees plight.

Sri Lankan Civil War

It has been the subject and victim of

wartime sexual violence Wartime sexual violence is rape or other forms of sexual violence committed by combatants during armed conflict, war, or military occupation often as spoils of war, but sometimes, particularly in ethnic conflict, the phenomenon has broader ...

by members of the Sri Lankan Navy who used sexual violence as a means of war during the Sri Lankan Civil War. Prominent cases include

Sarathambal Sarathambal Saravanbavananthatkurukal or better known as Sarathambal was a minority Sri Lankan Tamil woman who was gang raped and killed on 28 December 1999. This became an internationally known incident of the Sri Lankan Civil War. Incident ...

and

Ilayathambi Tharsini Ilayathamby Tharsini (also Tharsini Ilayathamby) was a minority Sri Lankan Tamil woman who was raped and killed in her home town of Pungudutheevu on December 16, 2005. Incident On 16 December 2005 Tharsini Ilayathamby was on her way to her aun ...

. The civil war has also led a large number of people to migrate out of the Island throughout the world.

References

External links

Map of Pungudutivu

Pungudutivu Welfare Association UK

Pungudutivu Temples
{{coord, 9, 36, N, 79, 50, E, display=title Islands of Jaffna District Island South DS Division