Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

inscriptions in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

date from the centuries

BCE Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the o ...

to the modern era. The vast majority of inscriptions date to the centuries following the 10th century AD, and were issued under the reigns of both Tamil and Sinhala rulers alike. p. xxiv-xxvii, p. xiii Out of the Tamil rulers, almost all surviving inscriptions were issued under the occupying

Chola dynasty The Chola dynasty () was a Tamil dynasty originating from Southern India. At its height, it ruled over the Chola Empire, an expansive maritime empire. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd cen ...

, whilst one stone inscription and

coins A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by ...

of the

Jaffna Kingdom The Jaffna kingdom (, ; 1215–1619 CE), also known as Kingdom of Aryachakravarti, was a historical kingdom of what today is northern Sri Lanka. It came into existence around the town of Jaffna on the Jaffna peninsula and was traditionally t ...

have also been found. p. 241-243 Most inscriptions are of a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

nature, or record the exploits of merchants, soldiers, officials and kings. The longest Tamil inscription in the island is from the

Lankatilaka Vihara Lankatilaka Vihara (, ) is a Buddhist temple situated in Udunuwara of Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is located on Daulagala road approximately away from Pilimatalawa junction and a few kilometres from the buddhist temple, Gadaladeniya Vihara. It is co ...

, for which historian K. Indrapala states the following:

Early Anurādhapura period (300 BC – 300 AD)

Anaikoddai seal, Jaffna

Tissamaharama coins with Tamil Brahmi legends

Tamil letters and words in Prakrit inscriptions

(The following Prakrit inscriptions are included for completion as they are related to Tamils)

Tamil house-holder inscription, Anurādhapura

Periya-Puliyankuḷam inscription 1, Vavuniya

Periya-Puliyankuḷam inscription 2, Vavuniya

Kuḍuvil inscription, Amparai

Seruwila inscription, Trincomalee

Talagahagoda Vihara inscription, Matale

Ihalagala inscription, Anurādhapura

Late Anurādhapura period (8th–9th centuries AD)

Abhayagiriya Tamil Buddhist inscription, Anurādhapura

Ruvanvalisaya Tamil Buddhist inscription, Anurādhapura

Pankuḷiya Tamil Buddhist inscription, Anurādhapura

Nānkunāṭṭār Tamil Buddhist Inscription from Anurādhapura

Two slab inscriptions from Hindu ruins, Anurādhapura

Chola period (993–1070 AD)

Nilaveli Slab Inscription in the reign of Rajaraja I, Trincomalee

Koneswaram inscription of Rajaraja I, Trincomalee

Kielekadawala Siva kovil inscription of Rajaraja I, Trincomalee

Padaviya inscription of the reign of Rajaraja I

Tirukketisvaram inscription in the reign of Rajaraja I, Mannar

Tirukketisvaram inscriptions in the reign of Rajendra Chola I, Mannar

Pathirakali Amman temple inscription of Rajendra Chola I, Trincomalee

Slab inscription of Rajendra Chola I from Trincomalee Fort

Two fragmentary Chola Inscriptions from Kayts Fort, Jaffna

Siva Devale No. 2 inscription, Polonnaruwa

Three fragmentary Chola inscriptions from Polonnaruwa

Three fragmentary Chola inscriptions from Siva Devale No. 2, Polonnaruwa

Four short inscriptions from Siva Devale No. 1, Padaviya

Kantaḷāy Chola Lankeswaran inscription, Trincomalee

Mānānkēni Chola Lankeswaran inscription, Trincomalee

Sangilikanadarawa Chola inscription, Anuradhapura

Diyavinna inscription, Sabaragamuwa

Sixteen Tamil Buddhist inscriptions from Velgam Vihara, Trincomalee

Atakada inscription recording endowment to Saiva Temple

Four pillar inscriptions from Polonnaruwa

Ainnurruvar Slab inscription from Ataragala, Puttalam

Colombo museum Rajendra Chola II inscription

Medirigiriya Tamil slab inscription, Polonnaruwa

Vanavanmatevi-isvaram inscription, Polonnaruwa

Chola inscription from Jaffna Fort

Chola era Tamil inscriptions from Thirumangalai, Trincomalee

Ainnurruvar Polonnaruva Bolappaḷḷi inscription

Polonnaruwa period (1070–1215 AD)

Following the expulsion of the Cholas, Vijayabāhu I retained their administrative structure and made significant changes only at the top. The reference to a register of Tamil clerks (''Demaḷa lesdaru pota'') in Vijayabāhu's Panakaduva Copper Plate inscription points to his employment of Tamil officers in the administration. Possibly many of them continued in service from the time of Chola rule. p. 251

Vēḷaikkārar slab inscription of Vijayabahu I, Polonnaruwa

Palamottai slab inscription in the reign of Vijayabahu I, Trincomalee

Padaviya Virasasana inscription

Kulnoor potters' inscription, Trincomalee

Budumuttava Virakkoti inscription

Vahalkada slab inscription, Anurādhapura

Viharehinna merchant inscription, Dambulla

Kodaliparichan inscription of Vēḷaikkārar Mūvēntavēḷān in the years of Jayabahu I, Vavuniya

Kantaḷāy inscription in the years of Jayabahu I, Trincomalee

Kantaḷāy gal āsana inscription, Trincomalee

Mankanay pillar inscription of Gajabahu II, Trincomalee

Mayilankulam Vēḷaikkārar inscription in the years of Jayabahu I, Trincomalee

Budumuttava pillar inscriptions in the years of Jayabahu I, Kurunegala

Puliyankulam pillar inscription of Jayabahu I, Anurādhapura

Rankot Vihara Velaikkaran inscription of Jayabahu I, Polonnaruwa

Mailawewa Vēḷaikkārar pillar inscription, Trincomalee

Moragahavela inscription in the reign of Gajabahu II, Polonnaruwa

Mahakirindegama pillar inscription in the reign of Gajabahu II, Anurādhapura

Hingurakdamana pillar inscription in the reign of Gajabahu II, Polonnaruwa

Kantaḷāy pillar inscriptions of Gajabahu II, Trincomalee

Polonnaruwa pillar inscription of Gajabahu II

Galtampitiya Virakkoṭi inscription

Nainativu Tamil inscription of Parakramabahu I, Jaffna

Panduvasnuvara inscription of Nissanka Malla

Jetavana Nānādesi bronze image, Anurādhapura

Ridiyegama Nānādesi Bronze seal, Hambantota

Transitional period (1215–1619 AD)

Gomarankadawala rock inscription of Magha, Trincomalee

Thampalakamam Slab inscription of Magha, Trincomalee

Rankot Vihara Vēḷaikkāran Matevan inscription, Polonnaruwa

Villunti Kantucuvami Koyil inscription of Buddhapriya, Trincomalee

Welikanda Ainnurruvar slab inscription

Dediyamulla Virakkoti slab inscription, Kurunegala

Mahiyalla Tamil inscription, Kurunegala

Perilamaiyar inscriptions of Padaviya

Fragmentary inscription from Anurādhapura museum

(The following three

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

inscriptions have been included for completion, as they were issued by Tamils.)

Padaviya Sanskrit bronze seal

Vēḷaikkārar Sanskrit Buddhist inscription of Padaviya

Sanskrit inscription of Codaganga from Trincomalee

Fragmentary inscription from Periyapuliyankulam, Vavuniya

Kankuveli inscription, Trincomalee

Kotagama slab inscription of Arya Chakravarti, Kegalle

Lankatilaka Vihara inscription of Bhuvanaikabahu IV

Galle trilingual inscription of Zheng He

Thirukkovil pillar inscription, Amparai

Munnesvaram inscription of Parakramabahu VI

Fragmentary Jaffna inscription of Parakramabahu VI

Naimmana inscription of Parakramabahu VI, Matara

Kalutara pillar inscription

Kankuveli Agasthi Stapana Kovil inscription, Trincomalee

Tamil pillar inscription in the reign of Vijayabahu VI

Thambiluvil inscription of Vijayabahu VI, Amparai

Coins of the Jaffna Kingdom

Trincomalee Fort Koneswaram inscription

Tamil inscriptions from Thirumangalai, Trincomalee

Late Kandyan period (1619 - 1815 AD)

Thirumangalai Temple Bell inscription, Trincomalee

Tamil conch inscription

Veeramunai Copper plates in the reign of Senarat, Amparai

Sammanthurai Copper plates in the reign of Rajasinghe II, Amparai

Verugal Copper Plates of the Vanniyar, Trincomalee

References

{{Commons category, Tamil inscriptions in Sri Lanka Sri Lanka inscriptions Sri Lankan Tamil history Tamil inscriptions Tamil language-related lists