Muthuraja

Muthuraja or Mutharaiyar is a Tamil and Telugu[1][2][3][4] speaking Landowning community prevalent in southern India.They are believed to be the modern descendants of the Mutharaiyar dynasty.

This article is about the Indian caste called Muthuraja. For other uses, see Muttaraiyar.

Muthuraja
Regions with significant populations
Tamil Nadu , Andhra Pradesh, Telangana
Languages
Tamil, Telugu
Religion
Hinduism
Related ethnic groups
Mudiraju

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".[5] Muttaraiyar may also be derived from mundru meaning "three" and tharai meaning "earth", which was also a title of Velir chiefs.[6]

Their title Ambalakkarar is derived from the Tamil word ambalam meaning panchayat or "village council", as they served as the heads of these councils.[5]

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 is styled KalavaraKalvan in one of his inscriptions. Few historians like Rao read the epithet it as KalabhraKalvan interchanging the letter v with b.[7] According to Tamil historians, the Mutharayar are said to have invaded kingdoms in Tamilakkam (now part of Tamil Nadu) around the 2nd century CE from Erumainadu(bison country), which is identified with the area in and around modern Mysore in Karnataka.[8]

They seem to have established themselves as lords of the Thanjavur district in Tamilakkam around this time. The most famous of this Mutharaiyar dynasty were Perumbidugu Mutharaiyar, also called Kuvavan Maaran, his son Maaran Parameswaran, alias Ilangovadiaraiyan, and the latter's son Perumbidugu Mutharaiyar II, alias Suvaran Maaran.[9][10] An inscription of Suvaran Maaran is found in Sendalai, a village near Tiruchirapalli. The Sendalai inscription refers to him as the king of Thanjavur and the lord of Vallam.[11] Suvaran Maaran seems to have also held sway as far as Thondaimandalam in the north as the Jain acharya Vimalachandra from Sravanabelagola is said to have visited the court of Suvaran Maaran alias Shatrubayankaran of Thondaimandalam[12] and challenged the Saivas, Kapalikas, Pasupatas and Buddhists.[13] The Sendalai epigraph gives Suvaran Maaran the epithets, Satrukesari(lion to enemies) and Vēl-Maaran among others and describes his flag as having the Vēl or lance for emblem.

During the 7th to 8th centuries, they served as feudatories of the Pallavas and controlled the fertile plains of the Kaveri region. An inscription in the Vaikuntha Perumal temple in Kanchipuram mentions a Muttaraiyar chief receiving Nandivarman II Pallavamalla at the latter's coronation.[14] According to historian T. A. Gopinatha Rao, this chief was Perumbidigu Muthurayar II,[15] who is styled as Kalvara Kalvan in this epigraph.[16] According to historian Mahalingam, he fought along with Udayachandra, the Pallava general of Nandivarman II, in at least twelve battles against the Cheras and Pandyas.[17] When the Cholas came to power in 850, Vijayalaya Chola wrested control of Tanjore from the Urayur and turned them into vassals.[18]

The Muthuraju Cholas

In the northern dominions, the Kalamalla inscription dated to 575 AD which is considered the first stone record in Telugu refers to the donor as Chola Maharaja Dhananjaya Erikal Muthuraju. [19] Muthuraju is but a variant of Muthuraja and Muthuraiyar. Dhananjaya's father was Nandivarman Chola who was a descendant of Karikala Chola.[20] Dhananjaya's son was the more illustrious Mahendravikrama referred in records as the Chola Maharaja while his grandson was Erikal Muthuraju Punyakumara the donor of the Malepadu plates, the records that describe the raising of the banks of the Kaveri by Karikala.[21] Erikal Muthuraju Dhananjaya had two brothers namely Sundarananda and Simhavishnu. Sundarananda's descendant was the ninth century chief (about 850AD) Adhiraja Srikantha who is described as an independent sovereign and as the lord of Mylapore (Mylaikkon). It is of interest to note that in the Anbil plates of Sundara Chola, chief Srikantha is mentioned as the immediate predecessor of Vijayalaya Chola, the founder of Imperial Chola line.[22] However the plates do not mention the relationship between Vijayalaya Chola and Srikantha.[23][24]

During the reign of Rajaraja Chola III around 1243 AD, there was an officer called Mallan Sivan alias Brahmadaraya Mutharaiyan, referred to as pillai (son). He was the holder of the royal fief (arasukuru) and the governor of Urattur-nadu.[25]

Demographics

The Tamil Speaking Muthuraja are densely distributed in the Tiruchirappalli, Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Karur, Madurai, Dindigul, Perambalur and Sivagangai districts of Tamil Nadu.

The Telugu speaking Muthuraja Naidu comparatively fewer in number are mostly distributed in the Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kanchipuram, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Viluppuram and Cuddalore districts of northern Tamil Nadu.

Literature

One of the most notable Muthuraja people was Peru Mutharaiyar, who was known for his great wealth and grand feasts. Two stanzas (200, 296) of Nālaṭiyār, a Jain work of ancient Tamil literature, is dedicated to him.[26] Another work called Muttolaayiram which is part of the Tamil anthology lauds the exploits of the Mutturaja chieftains.[8] Yet another work that is now lost is the Muttaraiyar kovai which is mentioned in the commentary of Yaapparungalam.[27]

See also

References
  1. Athreya, Venkatesh B.; Djurfeldt, Göran; Lindberg, Staffan, eds. (1990). Barriers broken: production relations and agrarian change in Tamil Nadu. Sage Publications. p. 25. ISBN 9780803996397. The Muthurajas are descendants of the soldiers which the poligars recruited in their homeland, the Telugu-speaking areas of contemporary Andhra Pradesh, north of Tamil Nadu. Like other castes originating from Andhra, they are bilingual, often speaking Telugu in family circles and Tamil outside the house
  2. Eveline Masilamani-Meyer, ed. (2004). Kattavarayan Katai. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 19. ISBN 9783447047128. Among the Telugu castes that came to Tamilnadu were the Mutturajas or Mutrāchas.
  3. K. M. Venkataramaiah, ed. (1996). A handbook of Tamil Nadu. International School of Dravidian Linguistics. p. 425. ISBN 9788185692203. Muthuracha: A Telugu caste found in some districts of Tamil Nadu, the Muthuracha (muthurācha) is also called Muttaraiyan. Some are talaiyāris or watchmen of villages. They seem to be a major sect in the coastal villages of Andhra Pradesh
  4. L. D. Sanghvi; V. Balakrishnan; Irawati Karmarkar Karve, eds. (1981). Biology of the People of Tamil Nadu. p. 21. Mutracha (MT) Mutracha is primarily a Telugu caste found in the southern districts of Andhra Pradesh. They were employed by the Vijayanagar kings to defend their frontiers when they entered Tamil Nadu and were honoured with the title of Paligar. They speak Telugu. In Tamil Nadu
  5. Kent, Eliza F. (26 March 2013). Sacred Groves and Local Gods: Religion and Environmentalism in South India. Oxford University Press. pp. 33–34. ISBN 9780199895472.
  6. "A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the Tamil Language". www.tamilvu.org. Government of Tamil Nadu. p. 200. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  7. Parmanand Gupta. Geography from Ancient Indian Coins & Seals. Publisher: Concept Publishing Company. p. 24.
  8. Anthropological Survey of India. Bulletin, Volume 3, Issue 2. India. Dept. of Anthropology. p. 8.
  9. Ve Pālāmpāḷ (1978). Feudatories of South India, 800-1070 A.D. Chugh Publications. p. 135.
  10. Naṭan̲a Kācinātan̲ (1978). Hero-stones in Tamilnadu. Arun Publications. p. 20.
  11. T. V. Mahalingam. A Topographical List of Inscriptions in the Tamil Nadu and Kerala States. Indian Council of Historical Research. p. 589.
  12. Dharmacandra Jaina, R. K. Sharma (ed.). Jaina Philosophy, Art & Science in Indian Culture. Sharada Publishing House. p. 59.
  13. H.S. Bhatia. Political, Legal And War Philosophy In Ancient India. Deep and Deep Publications, 2001. p. 180.
  14. Gupta, Parmanand (1977). Geographical Names in Ancient Indian Inscriptions. Concept Publishing Company. p. 55.
  15. N. Subrahmanian (1993). Social and cultural history of Tamilnad, Volume 1. Ennes. p. 66.
  16. Parmanand Gupta (1977). Geographical Names in Ancient Indian Inscriptions. Concept Publishing Company. p. 55.
  17. D Dennis Hudson (2008). The Body of God: An Emperor's Palace for Krishna in Eighth-Century Kanchipuram. Oxford University Press. p. 541.
  18. Kesavan Veluthat. The political structure of early medieval South India. Orient Longman, 1993. p. 112.
  19. Kamalakar. G. Temples of Andhradesa Art, Architecture & Iconography : with Special Reference to Renandu (Cuddapah) Region. Sharada Publishing House. p. 14.
  20. Eṃ Kulaśēkhararāvu. A History of Telugu Literature. p. 11.
  21. M. D. Sampath. Chittoor Through the Ages. B.R. Publishing Corporation. p. 16.
  22. K. R. Subramanian. The Origin of Saivism and Its History in the Tamil Land. Asian Educational Services. p. 66.
  23. T. V. Mahalingam. Readings in South Indian History. B.R. Publishing Corporation. p. 63.
  24. T. V. Mahalingam. Kañcipuram in Early South Indian History. Asia Publishing House. p. 192.
  25. S. Sankaranarayanan, S. S. Ramachandra Murthy, B. Rajendra Prasad, D. Kiran Kranth Choudary. Śāṅkaram: recent researches on Indian culture : Professor Srinivasa Sankaranarayanan festchrift. Harman Pub. House, 2000. p. 119.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  26. M. S. Ramaswami Ayyangar, B. Seshagiri Rao (1982). Studies in South Indian Jainism: South Indian Jainism. Sri Satguru Publications. p. 56.
  27. Es Vaiyāpurip Piḷḷai, S. Vaiyapuri Pillai. History of Tamil Language and Literature Beginning to 1000 A. D. New Century Book House. p. 89.
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