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{{About||the film|Chekavar (film)}} |
{{About||the film|Chekavar (film)}} |
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The '''Chekavar''' (also Chekava, Chekavan, Chekon) were warriors of the |
The '''Chekavar''' (also Chekava, Chekavan, Chekon) were warriors of the Thiyyar community in Kerala, India. They are also known as Thiyyas.<ref name="mathew"/> |
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==Etymology== |
==Etymology== |
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Chekavar is derived from the Sanskrit words ''Sevakar'', ''Sevakan'' or ''Sevaka'', which means soldiers in service or soldiers in royal service.<ref name="mathew">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1TuPeXFP0WgC&pg=PA30|title=Communal Road to a Secular Kerala |page=30|first=George |last=Mathew|publisher=Concept Pub.Co, 1989|isbn=81-7022-282-6}}</ref><ref name="smith">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xNAI9F8IBOgC&pg=PA27|title= Religion and Social Conflict in South Asia |page=27|first=Bardwell L. |last=Smith|publisher=BRILL |year=1976|isbn=90-04-04510-4}}</ref> [[Hermann Gundert|Hermann Gundert's]] English-Malayalam Dictionary, defines the term as militiaman and warrior.<ref>{{cite book |title=Malayalam-English Dictionary |first=Herman |last=Gundert |origyear=1872 |edition=3rd |publisher=Sahythia Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham, Kerala |year=2000}}</ref> |
Chekavar is derived from the Sanskrit words ''Sevakar'', ''Sevakan'' or ''Sevaka'', which means soldiers in service or soldiers in royal service.<ref name="mathew">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1TuPeXFP0WgC&pg=PA30|title=Communal Road to a Secular Kerala |page=30|first=George |last=Mathew|publisher=Concept Pub.Co, 1989|isbn=81-7022-282-6}}</ref><ref name="smith">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xNAI9F8IBOgC&pg=PA27|title= Religion and Social Conflict in South Asia |page=27|first=Bardwell L. |last=Smith|publisher=BRILL |year=1976|isbn=90-04-04510-4}}</ref> [[Hermann Gundert|Hermann Gundert's]] English-Malayalam Dictionary, defines the term as militiaman and warrior.<ref>{{cite book |title=Malayalam-English Dictionary |first=Herman |last=Gundert |origyear=1872 |edition=3rd |publisher=Sahythia Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham, Kerala |year=2000}}</ref> |
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According to George Mathew, "In the south and in some parts of central Travancore |
According to George Mathew, "In the south and in some parts of central Travancore this warrior community has been merged with Ezhava & Chovan communities.<ref name="mathew"/> by government caste categorisation declared post independence. |
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==Origin== |
==Origin== |
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[[Sangam literature]] and [[hero stone]]s found in Tamil Nadu show that Chekavar were engaged in combat, often on behalf of a lord. On these hero stones, Chekavar are generally depicted by an image of an armed man along with a Shiva [[Linga]]. Hero stones were erected to commemorate men who had fallen in battle or cattle raids and were traditional during the [[Sangam period]].<ref name="chekaSang01">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=py50jfBsv_kC&pg=PA113&dq=cevakan&lr= |title=Women's Lives, Women's Rituals in the Hindu Tradition |chapter=Domesticity and Difference/Women and Men: Religious Life in Medieval Tamil Nadu |page=113|first=Leslie C. |last=Orr |editor-first=Tracy |editor-last=Pintchman|publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2007|isbn=0-19-517706-1|accessdate=2008-12-13}}</ref> |
[[Sangam literature]] and [[hero stone]]s found in Tamil Nadu show that Chekavar were engaged in combat, often on behalf of a lord. On these hero stones, Chekavar are generally depicted by an image of an armed man along with a Shiva [[Linga]]. Hero stones were erected to commemorate men who had fallen in battle or cattle raids and were traditional during the [[Sangam period]].<ref name="chekaSang01">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=py50jfBsv_kC&pg=PA113&dq=cevakan&lr= |title=Women's Lives, Women's Rituals in the Hindu Tradition |chapter=Domesticity and Difference/Women and Men: Religious Life in Medieval Tamil Nadu |page=113|first=Leslie C. |last=Orr |editor-first=Tracy |editor-last=Pintchman|publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2007|isbn=0-19-517706-1|accessdate=2008-12-13}}</ref> |
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Military exploits of the |
Military exploits of the Chekavars are recorded in folk songs such as the "Vadukkan Pattukal".<ref name="smith"/> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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Revision as of 15:58, 2 September 2019
The Chekavar (also Chekava, Chekavan, Chekon) were warriors of the Thiyyar community in Kerala, India. They are also known as Thiyyas.[1]
Etymology
Chekavar is derived from the Sanskrit words Sevakar, Sevakan or Sevaka, which means soldiers in service or soldiers in royal service.[1][2] Hermann Gundert's English-Malayalam Dictionary, defines the term as militiaman and warrior.[3]
According to George Mathew, "In the south and in some parts of central Travancore this warrior community has been merged with Ezhava & Chovan communities.[1] by government caste categorisation declared post independence.
Origin
Sangam literature and hero stones found in Tamil Nadu show that Chekavar were engaged in combat, often on behalf of a lord. On these hero stones, Chekavar are generally depicted by an image of an armed man along with a Shiva Linga. Hero stones were erected to commemorate men who had fallen in battle or cattle raids and were traditional during the Sangam period.[4]
Military exploits of the Chekavars are recorded in folk songs such as the "Vadukkan Pattukal".[2]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Mathew, George. Communal Road to a Secular Kerala. Concept Pub.Co, 1989. p. 30. ISBN 81-7022-282-6.
- ^ a b Smith, Bardwell L. (1976). Religion and Social Conflict in South Asia. BRILL. p. 27. ISBN 90-04-04510-4.
- ^ Gundert, Herman (2000) [1872]. Malayalam-English Dictionary (3rd ed.). Sahythia Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham, Kerala.
- ^ Orr, Leslie C. (2007). "Domesticity and Difference/Women and Men: Religious Life in Medieval Tamil Nadu". In Pintchman, Tracy (ed.). Women's Lives, Women's Rituals in the Hindu Tradition. Oxford University Press. p. 113. ISBN 0-19-517706-1. Retrieved 2008-12-13.