Velar 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, nati ...

artisan caste whose members traditionally pursued

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...

and

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

in the Indian state of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

. They are officially classified as

Kulala Kulala is a Hindu caste whose traditionally pursued pottery trade and farming as a profession commonly found in the Indian states of Andhra pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and southern parts of Tamilnadu. They belong to the Other Backward Class gr ...

or Velar. They belong to the

Other Backward Class The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, S ...

group.

Etymology

The word ''Vel'' refers to earth. Velar means "those of the earth".

History

Velars are the descendants of the three sons of their original ancestor Kulalan, who was the son of

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

. Kulalan prayed to Brahma to be allowed to create and destroy things daily, so Brahma made him a potter.

Titles

They are subdivided into numerous clans based on Koottamam or Kulam. Some Tamil-speaking Velar in northern Tamil Nadu and Kongu regions use the title Udayar Telugu-speaking Kummaras in southern Tamil Nadu use the title Chettiyar. They are relatively recent migrants in the southern region of Tamil Nadu from old Andhra region.

References

{{Reflist Tamil people Indian castes Ethnic groups in India Social groups of Tamil Nadu Other Backward Classes

Etymology

History

Titles

See also

References