by N. Malathy, November 12, 2025
Sociological study of Jaffna Tamils is not extensive. We have not had a well-known academic among us in this area. Karthikesu Sivathamby’s books (“யாழ்ப்பாண சமூகத்தை விளங்கிக் கொள்ளல்,” கார்த்திகேசு சிவதம்பி, 1990; “Sri Lankan Tamil Society and Politics”, Karthikesu Sivathamby, 1995) about us are the best I have seen. All are available at the Noolaham site. The first one in Tamil gives an overview of the Jaffna society. He starts this Tamil book as follows:
யாழ்பாணத்தின் பண்பாட்டு அமிசங்களில் “கண்டதுண்டு கேட்டதில்லை” யாகவுள்ள ஒன்று, யாழ்பாண சமூகத்தின் யதார்த்தபூர்வமான சித்தரிப்பு ஆகும். நம கண்முன்னே குத்திட்டு நிற்கின்றதும், நமது சமூக நடைமுறைகளைப் பெரிதும் ஒழுங்கு படுத்திக் கட்டுபடுத்துவமான இந்த விடயம் பற்றி நாம் பேசுவதும் இல்லை, பேசமுயல்வதும் இல்லை. இந்த மௌனம் இந்தச் சமூகத்தின் ஆரோக்கியமான வளர்ச்சிக்கு குந்தகம் விளைவிக்கின்றமையால், புலமை நிலையிலாவது இதனை அகற்ற வேண்டும் என்பதற்காக இந்த உசாவலை மேற்கொள்கிறேன். நமது சமூகம், அதன் வரலாற்றில் எதிர்நோக்கிய மிக முக்கியமான நெருக்கடி வேளைகளில் ஒன்றான இன்றைய காலகட்டத்தில், நமது சமூக பெருமாற்றத்தினுக்கு உட்பட்டு நிற்கும் இவ்வேளையில், நமது சமூகத்தின் அடிப்படைகள், எடுகோள்கள் பற்றி சில ஆரம்ப மட்டத்தரசுகளையும் சிந்தனைகளையும் முன்வைப்பது, சமூகபுலமையின் குறைந்தபட்சக் கடமையென்றே கருதுகிறேன்.
Dr. Karthigesu Sivathamby in about 2010 from The Hindu
Translation:
“One of the aspects of Jaffna culture that has remained seen but unspoken is a realistic description of this society. This aspect that stares at us and regulates us is neither spoken nor is an attempt made to speak about it. Because this silence has detrimental influence on the healthy development of this society, I have taken up this task to remove this silence at least at the academic level. At this time in our history, when our society is facing one of its most important challenges, and is subjected to great upheaval, I believe it is the basic duty of the intellectuals to put forward at least some basic facts and examples.”
He goes on to describe the “Thesa Valamai” system which was put into writing by the Dutch colonizer but was practiced long before that by Jaffna Tamils. This document is essentially based on ownership of land and the families that serve the owners. What is established by the Thesa Valamai system is that Jaffna society was centered on private land ownership from very early times. Changes over time in the economic status of other castes have recently shifted land ownership to other castes as well. This also has resulted in the elimination of ownership of families to serve higher caste owners. With this broad description of Jaffna Tamils, we can study his second book.
The second book in English is a collection of academic papers which the author had written over a period during the 1980’s. He identifies three main intertwined aspects of Jaffna society: its caste system, the centrality of temples and its Saiva-Tamil ideology. In three separate chapters he explores these three aspects.
The first chapter studies the enduring Jaffna caste system which many others have also written about. Even young Eelam Tamil academics including some among the Eelam Tamil diaspora continue to write about it. This caste-based consciousness, though it has morphed over time during major societal shifts, persists and resides among all Jaffna Tamils in various forms. Caste hierarchy was initially challenged during colonialism with the introduction Christianity. Policy of education for all that was introduced later should have made a big dent in its practice. Karthikesu Sivathamby also observes that the upward economic mobility, resulting from war related displacement of those communities that were oppressed in the earlier period, had resulted in the amalgamation of certain castes to form mega castes. Despite these changes, caste consciousness continues, which is best illustrated in the novel by K Daniel[i].
The second chapter in Sivathamby’s book deals with the importance of temples in Jaffna culture. This can be observed even among the Jaffna Tamil diaspora. Location of the temple in a village, the architectural form it takes, its main deity, its management, and its festival formats are all intertwined with caste practice. While this may differ slightly among the diaspora, the underlying features remain but are masked at the observable level. The scale of Jaffna Tamil diaspora temples varies and some have been built at huge cost usings funds collected among the diaspora itself. Who dominates at a diaspora temple will give away some underlying notions which are more readily observable in the homeland temples.
Struggles against colonialism, first against the English version and later against the Sinhalese version have produced different strands of opposition among Eelam Tamils. The first of its kind was the Saiva Tamil Ideology closely linked with Arumuga Navalar of the 1930’s. Saiva-Tamil identification entered the Jaffna Tamil psyche in opposition to the Christian English education. Overlapping this period,arose the movement of the Jaffna Youth Congress with more progressive ideology of equality among all. This ideology did not openly reject the Saiva Tamil ideology and it took Mahatma Gandhi’s movement for Indian independence as its guiding force. It should be noted that even the progressive Jaffna Youth Congress did not adopt the foremost Indian anti-caste activist and intellectual Ambedkar as one of its leaders. Ambedkar had been critical of Gandhi on many occasions during the Indian independence struggle and beyond. The Federal Party led by SJV Chelvanayagam that came later followed in the footsteps of the Jaffna Youth Congress in the ideology of equality but focused more on self-governance. Due to Sinhala colonialism, the Federal Party gained the most widespread support among all Eelam Tamils. The support it enjoyed in the 70’s has not been equaled until today.
The armed struggle that followed invariably split the support among Jaffna Tamils due to the nature of violent struggle. The armed struggle was launched with the primary motive of self-rule and it drew support from all sections of society. Out of necessity it also practiced anti-caste ideology. It created a refreshing societal base in Vanni, the area it controlled. It was very unlike the Jaffna society, drawing its population from all over Tamil Eelam. This ideology proclaimed during the armed struggle dissipated once the armed movement was destroyed in 2009. Instead, the Jaffna society and its diaspora is left with deep wounds of war. Jaffna society and its diaspora have taken up commemorating Mullivaikal Day, Maveerar Day, Black July and so many other commemorative days. The energy of Jaffna Tamils has been spent mostly in commemorations and yearnings for self-rule. Beyond these two, it has remained a traumatized and politically divergent society to be tossed around by the whims of external forces. Jaffna society in the homeland and diaspora do not exhibit the progressive ideologies essential for political struggle.
Where to go from here is a question that looms large for the diaspora and homeland community. Internalizing the paths we have travelled over centuries, our past oppressive social formations, and the limited efforts we have taken so far, and realizing the centrality of social justice which stands in total contrast to individual grandiose habits will provide some answers. In this regard the homeland community is faced with limitations due to Sinhala colonialism. It is the diaspora community that can lead the way to build a social justice-based solidarity.
Three locations where this new effort can be actively promoted are: commemorative events connected to armed struggle, the Tamil schools, and the Temples. It would also be more appropriate for Jaffna Tamils everywhere to adopt the following motto:
“Caste is antithetical to homeland liberation” instead of the old motto of “The Thirst of Tamils is Tamil Eelam homeland.”
[i] Panchamar, a Novel by K Daniel, 1970 – which accurately describes the agrarian caste practices during the 60’s