72. Tiruvail

Tulu people in the past history have paid devoted attention to their natural geographic environs and the changes in it. Changes in the natural river morphology have been recorded and preserved for posterity in the respective place names, in the sheer absence of written historical records or popular epigraphs. The village name ‘Tiruvail’ represents one such documentation of the natural phenomenon of historical drift in the drainage course of the River Gurupur (or Phalguni).
Tir(g)-voil
The name Tiru-vail appears like a name of Tamil origin for casual glance, something like Tiru Vale. (‘Tiru’ in Tamil represents the title ‘Shri’ and the Tamil word ‘Vale’ stands for ‘lance’ as in Velayuda. However, this may not be Shri lance as it appears.)
Geological evidences collated (by this author) reveal that River Gurpur was flowing in the Tiruvail -Vamanjoor - Kudupu valley during the Alupa period. Sometime in the early centuries of the Christian Era due to earth movements, the River Gurupur abruptly changed the orientation of its flow-path and began flowing along westerly course. The people living at that time in the area recognized this event and renamed the area as Tirugina voil or Tir-voil. The Tulu compound word Tiruvoil can be split as follows: Drifted/Turned(= Tirgina/Tirchina) + Flow (=Voi) of + the River (=Al).The Tulu word ‘voi-il’ (<. voi+al ) is normally used to describe the river flow.
Old river valley
The old fluvial course of the River Gurupur(shown in light blue shade in the above map)has totally dried up now and the only evidence remaining is that of a beautiful old river valley abandoned by the former course, but the name 'Tir(g)-Voil' still remains for the posterity to be reminded of the past historical event.
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