Placement of Vanniars in Lankan History
 In Part four of his series on the history of Vanni, Aruna Selladurai
focuses on Maapaana Vanniyar and Madappalli Vanniyar (A D 16251800)
The author is not an academic but an independent researcher of his
own. But he is also a well known writer, playwright, and producer of
plays for the stage, radio, and TV. He had been a newscaster in Thamil
for the Rupavahini then and an operational assistant/producer for the
SLBC then and presently he works for the Thamil News Management for
Shakthi TV. He has won many awards from the State for his contributions.
Selladurai hails from Mulliawalai in the Vanni and therefore interested
in searching for is roots. The book contains 12 chapters within 142
pages, with maps and photographs.
In Chapter one he informs that the Vanniyars and others belonging to
different castes also reigned up to the end of British period. They were
Vellalas and Mudali Vellalrs. The research on Adanka Pattu (Vanni)
relates to the region during 15th to 17th centuries.After the reign of
South Indian Vanniyars, Maapaanars took over the administration. The
Vellala Maapaanars were given administrative authority as "Vanniyan"
When Mannar came under the foreign rule, the Madapalli Velalars were
appointed as heads of Elephant hunters in Poonahari. Later through
marriage with people in Panankamam, they were appointed Vanniyars There
was a tussle between the two Vanniyars and resulted in Vanni becoming a
jungle area.
In support of his explanation, the author quotes from the following
sources:
Mannua of the Vanni Districts -J. P. Lewis (1895), Manual of the
North Central Province-R .E. Ivers (1899), Yaalpaana Charithram - A
Muththambipillai (1915), Yaalpaana Vaipava Kaumuthi -Mel. K. Velupillai
(1918), Notes on Jaffna -R.G. Anthonisz (1929), Yaalpaana Charithram- S.
Rasanayagam (1933), The Chieftains of Ceylon - J.C. Van Sanden (1936),
RAS Journal- Rev. Fr. S. Gnanaparagaasar (1936), Vanniyar- Prof S
Pathmanathan (2003)
The other chapters discuss the following: Boundaries and Vanniyars,
Maapaanar in Adanka Pattu, the Portuguese period, the Portuguese and
Maapaanar, the Dutch period, Madapalliyars in History, Maapaanar and
Madapplalliyars in Panankamam, the Dutch in Mannar, Christian names, the
Honour for Vanniyars and evidence in research.
The writer says that the history of the Vanniars extend to not only
to Adanka Pattu but also to Yaalpaanam, Nuarakalawella, Thirukoanamalai
and Mahanuwara regions. From what Ibn Battuta A D 1344) had written
during the reign of some Aryachakravarthis not only the whole of Vanni
but also western coastal areas from Puttalm had been annexed with
Yaalpaanam.
This compendium as well as the other parts of the series s merely
documentation from various sources which are not available to scholars
and researchers in other parts of the country as most of them are
written in Thamil. It is the task of impartial historians to rewrite
Lankan history taking into account not only the Mahavamsa and Chulavamsa
but also source books and documents written in Thamil to understand the
whole and not the parts.
Whatever attempts Aruna Selladurai has made towards writing the
threadbare of the history of the Vanni have not been in vain.
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