Note 46 — V (continued 2)

Vellāla.—“The Vellālas,” Mr. H. A. Stuart writes,46 “are the great farmer caste of the Tamil country, and they are strongly represented in every Tamil district. The word Vellālan is derived from vellānmai [vellam, water, anmai, management?] meaning cultivation, tillage. Dr. Oppert47 considers Vellālan to be etymologically connected with Pallan, Palli, etc., the word meaning the lord of the Vallas or Pallas. The story of their origin is as follows. Many thousands of years ago, when the inhabitants of the world were rude and ignorant of agriculture, a severe drought fell upon the land, and the people prayed to Bhūdēvi, the goddess of the earth, for aid. She pitied them, and produced from her body a man carrying a plough, who showed them how to till the soil and support themselves. His offsprings are the Vellālas, who aspire to belong to the Vaisya caste, since that includes Gōvaisyas, Bhūvaisyas, and Dhanavaisyas (shepherds, cultivators and merchants). A few, therefore, constantly wear the sacred thread, but most put it on only during marriages or funerals as a mark of the sacred nature of the ceremony.”