Muthuraja or Mutharaiyar is a Tamil and

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

speaking community prevalent in southern India.

Etymology

The etymology of the community name is unclear. The names Muthuraja and Muthuraiyar may be derived from two words, the Tamil name ''muthu'' meaning "pearl" and ''raja'' or ''raiyar'' both meaning "king". ''Muttaraiyar'' may also be derived from ''mundru'' meaning "three" and ''tharai'' meaning "earth". Their title Ambalakkarar is derived from the Tamil word ''ambalam'' meaning

panchayat The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical menti ...

or "village council", as they served as the heads of these councils.

History

The origin of the Muthuraja people is shrouded in mystery. Historian T. A. Gopinatha Rao equates them with the Kalabhras as Suvaran Maaran, a prominent 8th century Muthuraja king of

Thanjavur Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the ...

is styled ''KalavaraKalvan'' in one of his inscriptions. Few historians like Rao read the epithet it as KalabhraKalvan interchanging the letter ''v'' with ''b''. According to Tamil historians, the Mutharayar are said to have invaded kingdoms in Tamilakkam (now part of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil languag ...

) around the 2nd century CE from ''Erumainadu''(bison country), which is identified with the area in and around modern

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Kar ...

. British record them as belonging to Telugu origin and migrated to Tamilnadu along with Vijayanagaram dynasty.

Demographics

The Tamil Speaking Muthuraja are densely distributed in the

Tiruchirappalli Tiruchirappalli () ( formerly Trichinopoly in English), also called Tiruchi or Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with bei ...

, Pudukkottai,

, Karur,

Madurai Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...

Dindigul Dindigul, also spelt Thindukkal (), is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Dindigul district. Dindigul is located southwest from the state capital, Chennai, away from Tiruchirappalli, away ...

, Perambalur and Sivagangai districts of

. The

speaking Muthuraja Naidu comparatively fewer in number are mostly distributed in the

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of ...

, Tiruvallur, Kanchipuram, Vellore,

Tiruvannamalai Tiruvannamalai ( Tamil: ''Tiruvaṇṇāmalai'' IPA: , otherwise spelt ''Thiruvannamalai''; ''Trinomali'' or ''Trinomalee'' on British records) is a city, a spiritual, cultural, economic hub and also the administrative headquarters of Tiruva ...

, Viluppuram and

Cuddalore Cuddalore, also spelt as Kadalur (), is the city and headquarters of the Cuddalore District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Situated south of Chennai, Cuddalore was an important port during the British Raj. While the early history of Cudda ...

districts of northern

References

{{Reflist Pudukkottai state Social groups of Tamil Nadu

Etymology

History

Demographics

See also

References