Paluvettaraiyar
| Official language | Tamil |
| Family name | Paluvettaraiyars |
| Capital | Paluvur |
The Paluvettaraiyar were feudatories of the medieval Cholas. They ruled over the areas of Kila-Paluvur, Mela-Paluvur and Keezhaiyur in the Udaiyarpalayam taluk of the Tiruchirapalli district.[1] They were responsible for a number of benefactions to the temples at this place and were known to have been related to the Cholas by marriage.[2]
Origin
According to the Anbil plates of Sundara Chola, his paternal grandmother, that is the queen of Parantaka I and the mother of Arinjaya Chola was of Paluvettaraiyar family.[3] She is therein described as the daughter of a Kerala prince called Paluvettaraiyar. So it can be safely concluded that they were of Kerala origin. However it is not clear if they were already in possession of the areas of Kilapaluvur, Melapaluvur and Keezhaiyur or if they were granted these dominions after their alliance with the Cholas.[2]
Reference in South Indian inscriptions
About a dozen records pertaining to this dynasty have been found. Paluvettaraiyar was a Chera Mutharayar who figures largely in the inscriptions copied at Kila-paaluvur and Mela-paluvur in Tiruchirapalli district A.R. No. 231 of 1926 dated in te 12th year of Paranthaka. One of the records (A.R. No. 231 of 1926) dated in the 12th year of Parantaka, states that Paluvettaraiyar Kandan Amudanar fought, on behalf of his Chola overlord, a victorious battle at Vellur against the forces of the Pandya king and his Ceylonese ally, in which the Pandya lost his life. To commemorate this success the Commander Nakkan Sattan of Paradur made a gift of a perpetual lamp to the temple of Tiruvalandurai-Mahadeva at Siru-Paluvur.
It is perhaps this Amudanar who is referred to in the Anbil Plates of Sundara Chola as a Kerala prince whose daughter was married to Parantaka I and bore him prince Arinjaya. The term ‘Kerala prince’ probably meant that he was a relative of the Chera king.[4]
Other chiefs from this family include Kumaran Maravan and Kumaran Kandan.[5] They are credited with the building of the Twin Temples of Keezhaiyur, a 9th century temple complex.[6]
Paluvettaraiyar Regiment
The Paluvettaraiyar regiment was a military regiment maintained by the Paluvettaraiyar. It comprised soldiers in the regiment of Paluvettaraiyar were involved in the invasion of Sri Lanka by Cholas in the 10th century.
References
- ↑ S. Swaminathan. The early Chōḷas history, art, and culture. Sharada Pub. House, 1998. p. 64.
- 1 2 Bhulabhai Memorial Institute, Bombay. The Heritage of Indian Art Series. N.M. Tripathi Private., 1963. p. 29.
- ↑ S. Swaminathan. The early Chōḷas history, art, and culture. Sharada Pub. House, 1998. p. 78.
- ↑ "South Indian Inscriptions Volume 13". Archaeological Survey of India. Retrieved 2008-11-09.
- ↑ History of People and Their Environs: Essays in Honour of Prof. B.S. Chandrababu. Bharathi Puthakalayam, 2011 - Tamil Nadu (India) - 767 pages. p. 142.
- ↑ http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/9th-century-twin-temples-of-keezhaiyur-all-set-for-facelift/article7446286.ece