Karaikal Ammaiyar (born Punītavatī), meaning ''"The Revered Mother of

Karaikal Karaikal (Help:IPA/English, /kʌdɛkʌl/, french: Karikal Help:IPA/French, /kaʁikal/) is a town of the Indian States and territories of India, Union Territory of Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry. Karaikal was sold to the French by t ...

"'', is one of the three women amongst the 63 Nayanmars and one of the greatest figures of early

Tamil literature Tamil literature has a rich and long literary tradition spanning more than two thousand years. The oldest extant works show signs of maturity indicating an even longer period of evolution. Contributors to the Tamil literature are mainly from T ...

. She was born in

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...

, and probably lived during the 5th century AD. She was a devotee of

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

Early life

Karaikal was a maritime trading city in

Chola Nadu Chola Nadu is a cultural region of the Tamil Nadu state in southern India. It encompasses the lower reaches of the Kaveri River and its delta, and formed the cultural homeland and political base of the Chola Dynasty which ruled large parts of S ...

. Ammaiyar, whose original name was Punitavati, was born to Dhanadattan in a merchant community known as

Nattukottai Nagarathar The Nagarathar (also known as Nattukottai Chettiar) is a Tamil caste found native in Tamil Nadu, India. They are a mercantile community who are traditionally involved in commerce, banking and money lending. They use the title Chettiar and a ...

(also known as Nattukottai Chettiar). She was married to Paramadattan, a wealthy merchant from

Nagapattinam Nagapattinam (''nākappaṭṭinam'', previously spelt Nagapatnam or Negapatam) is a town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Nagapattinam District. The town came to prominence during the period of Medieva ...

Notes

References

* Dallapiccola, Anna. ''

Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend The ''Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend'' (2002) is a book written by Anna L. Dallapiccola, and contains information on over one thousand concepts, characters, and places of Hindu mythology and Hinduism, one of the major religions of the Indian ...

'' () * Karavelane (in French). ''Kareikkalammeiyar, oeuvres editees et traduites'', institut francais d'indologie, Pondicherry (1956) * Jagadeesan, N. ''The Life and Mission of Karaikkal Ammaiyar'' Bhattacharya, N.N. d''Medieval Bhakti Movements in India'' Munishiram Manoharlal, New Delhi (1989), pages 149–161 *Rajarajan, R.K.K. (2018) Recollection of Memories: Hymns of Kāraikkālammaiyār - South Indian Śaiva Iconography. In Sudipa Ray Bandyopadhyay and Swati Mondal Adhikari, eds. ''Śaiva Iconography: A Facet of Indian Art and Culture''. Kolkata: Sagnik Books, pp. 73–92 & 141-147 (Pl.VII.1-13). . * Schouten, Jan Peter (in Dutch). ''Goddelijke vergezichten – mystiek uit India voor westerse lezers'', Ten Have b.v., Baarn, the Netherlands (1996), * de Bruijn, Peter. ''Kāraikkālammaiyār: Part 1: An iconographical and textual study; Part 2: Poems for Siva'' () 2007. 147 pp. colour, B/W plates. * Craddock, Elaine ''Śiva's Demon Devotee: Kāraikkāl Ammaiyār'', SUNY Press, Albany (2010), * McGlashan, Alastair The History of The Holy Servants of the Lord Siva, page 161 Trafford (2006), *

External links

Karaikal Ammaiyar

article in Dutch on Karaikkalammaiyar

Early life

Notes

References

External links

See also