246. Kudla : A controversy

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The word ‘Kudla’ is an ancient name and refers to the city of Mangalore.What is the meaning of this word Kudla? If you answer me that ‘Kudla’ means ‘kooDla’ or a confluence of two rivers, you may not be precisely reflecting the original meaning of this word!

Let us analyse this controversy.

A Confluence  of Rivers?

 Fluvial Geography of Mangalore city at present

Yes! Most of us, including this blogger, were under the impression that ‘kuDla’ means a confluence region of two rivers, Gurpur and Nethravati. You can also find this explanation in some of the earlier posts filed in this blog or write-ups published in periodicals.This opinion is also shared by the mighty Tulu Nighantu.

The Tulu Nighantu lists three meanings for the word Kudla (p.823):

1. Mangalore town, a confluence of two rivers.

2. Again. [The Tulu usage ‘kuDala kuDala’ means to repeat again and again.]

3. (a) a confluence of two rivers, (b) a   confluence of a stream and a river. [Latter, also known as ’KooTel’]

Thus the  cited entries 1 and 3 above suggest emphatically that kuDla means a confluence.

The assertion that KuDla= confluence is based on the word koodla as in place names ‘KooDala Sangama’ (of Basaveshwara fame, Bagalkot district) or ‘KooDali’ (a confluence of Tunga and Bhadra rivers, Bhadravati Taluk).

Paleo-geography of Mangalore:

In Mangalore we have a confluence of Gurupur and Nethravati rivers between Bengare and southwestern corner of Mangalore city.However,the confluence of Gurpur with Nethravati River occurred relatively recently ie in the year 1887.That is to say that confluence as seen now did not exist in the historical past! Thus ancient word ‘kudla’ may not be referring to any recent confluence!

Secondly, the word ‘Kudla’ even though applied at present to Mangalore as a whole in general, was originally referring to apart of present Mangalore, especially the Kodialbail area.Kudla was the Kudla bail to begin with which with passage of time changed into Kodial-bail or simply Kodial. This Kudla bail or Kodial bail is a valley region once upon a time occupied by Phalguni River which changed its course (probably around 7^th Century CE or earlier) further northwards in the course of time.

Thus the truth is that KuDla is not kooDla!

It was an fertile river plain in the antiquity that was amenable for good agricultural crops!

Let us explore the alternative explanation.

Agricultural settlement

Dr Gururaj Bhat (1963) in his work ‘Tulunadu’ passingly remarked that Kudla is not ‘kooDla’ or a confluence (p.29, 2009 edition). He pointed out that Kuduva tribes iniated agricultural practices in ancient Tulunadu.Kuduva tribes in different areas and times were also known as Kudi, Kudu, Kudubi, Kudumbi, Koda, Kunubi etc. The Munda word kuDa reffered to ‘good agricultural lands’ and those tribes associated with agriculture were known as KuDi or KuDubi.

Ku+ Da + ala. = An agricultural settlement on the river plains.

Ku=good, Da=land, earth. KuDa=good land, agricultural land. Ala= river plain or habitation on the river plain.

There are many villages in the Karavali having the prefix of KuDu.

KuDupu .(A village in eastern Mangalore on Nanthur -Vamanjur NH13 road).

KuDuma.  (Old name for Dharmastala, Belthangadi taluk).

KuDumbi hittil ( A residential area near Falnir, Mangalore).

KuDipäDi .( A village near Vamadapadavu, Bantval taluk)

Kudne, Maharastra

Kudle  beach, Gokarna, Uttar Kannada.

Note that in above place names suffixes –pu, Ne,-le etc are indicative of settlement or habitation areas.

According to Dr Padur Gururaja Bhat (ibid) ‘kuDu’ later transformed into ‘koDu’ as seen in place names KoDiala,KoDimbadi, KoDavur,KoDlaDi,KoDangala, KoDange etc.

KuDu

KuDu also represents horse gram which incidentally is the first agricultural food crop grown in southern India. Agriculture in southern Indian River plains was in vogue ca. 2000-2500 BC according to archeo-botanical studies. This takes the age of the place name Kudla to that period, ca 2000-2500BC. The word KuDäla is derived from ancient and pre-Dravidian Munda languages of southern India.

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245. Shibarur

In the northern part of Mangalore Taluk, to the east of Surathkal and to the south of Kinnigoli, we have this hamlet known as Shibarur. Shibarur (Shibar + ur) is well known for a Kodamanithaya spirit shrine which has been renovated recently in the form of temple. Shibarur is known as Tibaar in Tulu parlance. The Shibarur village is proximal to Delanthabettu hamlet which forms a part of Surinje village. The Kodamanithaya shrine of Shibarur is a popular piligrimage centre and was recently in the news on account of the religious festivities associated with the shrine.

Shibrikere
There is one more hamlet in Mangalore Taluk known as ‘Shibrikere’ (Shibari+kere) referring to a now dried up ‘kere’ (=pond) near Yedapadavu.
Similarly there is a village known as Shibaje in Belthangadi Taluk.
As you can see all these hamlets carry a lesser known prefix of Shiba, Shibara or Shibari. There may be many more such hamlets in other parts of Tulunadu or rest of India and these may be cited by our knowledgeable readers.Similarly,there is a locality with a large rocky outcrop known as 'Shibiri-kallu' in Maadathadka near Vitla Mudnur village, Bantval Taluk.
Let us explore and endeavor to document some of the lost strings of history and evolution connected with the habitation known as Shibarur and other 'Shiba",'Shibara' or 'Shibari' localities.
Shabara
Shibara is also the name of a mountain pass in Afghanistan where from many invaders and immigrants found their way to India in the historical past.The word Shibara also appears like a word related to ‘shibira’(= a field camp).
However, the word ‘Shibara’ could be an ancient variant of the word ‘Shabara’. Shabara signifies a tribe of hunters.Lord Shiva in the legends has been considered in the form of a Shabara or a tribal hunter. There is an estate valley known as ‘Sabarabail’ on the Bantval to Guruvayankere road. The place name Sabarbail documents the historical presence of Sabara hunter tribes in the Karavali.
Among older generation of Tulu people there is a proper name: 'Tabura' or 'Tabara' or 'Tabaranna'. This could not be the Tabur ant found on trees but a variant of the word Shabara or Shibura. Poornachandra Tejasvi wrote a novel known as 'Tabarana kathe', woven around an innocent rustic person called Tabara.
Shabari
Shabari is a well known character of an old woman, an epitome of devotion envisaged by poet Valmiki in the great epic Ramayana. The old woman from the hunter tribe was an ardent devotee of Rama. She collected various fruits from the forest and tasted each of the fruits before offering them to Rama. Mind you, she personally checked the taste and edibility of each of the fruit collected from the wild forest.Her innocent act was not to spoil the sanctity of the offering, but to verify personally if any of the wild fruits are poisonous or taste badly. Note that the poet Valmiki himself was from a tribe of hunters. The overall picture of the Shabari in Ramayana takes us back to the period of wild hunting stage in the human evolution.
Savara, Sora
The Sabara (or Shabara) tribe is also known as Savara (Orissa, Kerala, Karnataka), Severa (Assam), Sapera (Uttar Pradesh, Jamu, Maharstra), Soara or Sora (Andhra Pradesh, Orissa Bihar) tribes in other parts of India. These tribes have been considered as part of the Munda group of Austro-Asiatic tribes in India. One of the possibility is that Shibara (Karavali Karnataka), so far undocumented, was a variant of this large and wide spread tribal group of ancient hunters.
Kirata tribes
Apart from the Shabara-Sabara-Shibara-Savara- Severa-Sapera-Soara-Sora tribal hunters group, there were other hunter groups known as Kirata or Kirataka and Bhils.
Kirata (or Kiranta) tribes were the ancient inhabitants of foothills of Himalaya in northern and northeastern India and considered to be of Indo-Mongoloid or Indo-Tibetan origin. Kiranta tribes ruled ancient Tripura in northeastern India and claim that they were also part of the pre-Vedic Indus Valley civilization.The Kirata and related tribes like Yaksha and Kinnara were part of the ancient legends of India.
Shibarai - Shiva
It appears that Shibara or shibari could have been a word modified from Shibarai. Bengalis use the term Shiba for Lord Shiva.The Shibarai or Shibaroy means Lord Shiva.It is a northeast Indian equivalent of the south Indian usage of Shiva-roy. In Karavali and Kannada areas Lord Shiva was earlier also known as Shivaraya. There is Shevroy hills in Salem district of Tamilnadu.
It is well known that Lord Shiva is an anthropomorphic divinity in the form of a hunter, wearing a tiger/deer skin as loin cloth.Thus the origin of the Shiva cult clearly dates back to hunting stage of human civilization.
Lord Shiva has been variously described as Shabareswara or Kirateshwara etc implying the origin of the cult from hunting tribes.Originally the Shibarai (Shiba or Shiva) could have have been a leader of hunting tribes. Legends associated with him imply that he had ability to withstand poison (Vishakanta), tame serpents (Nagabharana) and wild life, knowledge of astronomy (crescent on head),ability to understand and utilize water resources(Ganga on the head). His exceptional qualities, talents and abilities made him a great leader who was worshipped subsequently by the communities. It is said in Puranas that Lord Shiva mastered the art of 'Yoga' first and then it is passed on to Lord Vishnu.
Kiranti people claim that Shibarai, the Shiva, hailed from their community.
The Indo- Aryan sages who composed Vedas (ca 1700-1000 BC) in northwestern India worshipped Indra Varuna Agni etc Gods who later attained the status of demigods in Indian Hindu culture.Subsequently these Indo-Aryans when migrated and settled in northern Indian Gangetic plains assimilated with pre-existing Indians and adopted their divinities and cults existing in the region. Thus Shiva and Vishnu ruled the religious spheres and Vedic Gods like Indra, Varuna, Agni etc were relegated to the staus of demigods.
Besides, Shibi is one of the male proper names used during the history. We hear legends of King Shibi.
Shibi Chakravarti
Shibi is a King in the line of Ikshwaku of Solar Dynasty (Surya Vamsha). He is the embodiment of kindness and generosity. He is kind and generous not only to his subjects but also to anybody who seeks his help when in need. His name spread far and wide as a man of benevolence and righteousness. Indra, the Lord of Heaven, and Agni, one of his Deputies, decided to test his dedication to duty (Dharma) and compassion by creating a predicament to Shibi. Indra took the form of an eagle, a bird of prey, and Agni as a dove, a prey. Being chased by the eagle, the dove took refuge in the lap of King Shibi while he was giving audience to his subjects. The dove begged for its protection. The request was readily granted. Thereupon, the eagle entered his Court, demanding him to give back its prey and raising the question of propriety of Shibi in sheltering the dove, which is a natural prey. The eagle threatened the King that he would be committing a sin by depriving its food when it was in the verge of dying by starvation. To come out of this intricate situation, i.e. clash of moral duty and promise, he decided to offer his own flesh to the eagle in equal weight of the dove. But the pan of the balance with dove would every time outweigh the pan of with King's flesh. Ultimately, Shibi offered his whole body whereupon the Gods Indra and Agni appeared in their real forms, restored his body and blessed him that his name would remain for ever as a King of Righteousness and unbounded Kindness. This story is told in Epics Ramayana and Mahabharata and also in Jataka stories of Buddhism.

Shibara-Shibari
Overall analysis as above leads us to conclude that Shibara or Shibari in place names such as Shibarur and Shibrikere possibly represent a tribal sect of hunters that pervaded parts of ancient India including the Karavali. Shibarai (or Shivaray) the original form of Lord Shiva could have originally been a leader turned divinity hailing from Shibar or Shibari tribe of hunters. The term Shiba in Shibarur also hints at the cultural connection between the Karavali Karnataka and the Bengal/Assam region in the antiquity.
Besides, the word ‘shibira’ ( =camp) as used in Kannada may have been derived from the forest camps of Shibara tribes.
Readers may send in their inputs and opinions on these and related place names.
-Ravi and Vish.
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244. Eliya tribe

You might have encountered a village called Eliya Nadugodu (in Bantval Taluk) or a hill known as Elimale (in Sullia Taluk). If you are new to the field of analysis of place names you are likely to translate Eliya Nadugodu as ‘Small Mid ridge’ [because Eliya means small in Tulu] or Elimale as ‘Hill of Rats’ { because eli means rat in Tulu] !
Similarly, the place name ‘Elinje’ near Kinnigoli, Mangalore Taluk may have confusing interpretations as the prefix here might be representing either ‘El’(=seven) or ‘Eli’(=rat).
However, the words ‘Eliya’ or ‘Eli’ in the above place names represent name of a tribe which may or may not necessarily represent rats! The nature of these ethnic names are distinct when you take up a place name like ‘Eliyara padavu’ (= the plateau of Eliya people).
Eli, Eliya (or Hiliya), or Eliyar castes have been recorded in the census of southern states of India. The village name ‘Hiliyana’ near Goliangadi, Hebri in Udupi district has preserved another variant of this tribal name.
Similarly there is Hillur near Kumta in Uttar Kannada.
Apart from these, the prefix ‘Ela’ or ‘Ila’ could be another ancient variant name of these tribe. There are place names like ‘Ilantila’ (Ila+anta+ila=habitation of Ila people) in Belthangadi Taluk or ‘Ilavala’ (Ila+va+ala= habitation of Ila people), near Mysore city. There are other places elsewhere in like Elattur,Yelandur, Yellapura,... etc.
Ellamma
‘Ella’ tribe could be another variant of the Eliya group. Place names like ‘Ellur’ (Udupi Taluk), Yellapura (Uttara Kannada),‘Ellammana gudda’ (Savadatti, Belgaum) have preserved this vestiges of 'Ella' people. Proper names like Yellamma, Yellappa appear to have derived from the root ‘ella’. Ellamma or Yellamma (of Savadatti) could have been originally a tribal goddess that was absorbed into the fold of Hinduism subsequently.Ellamma also refers to Runuka Devi, a Princess married to Sage Jamadagni, and she is the mother of Parashurama.
‘Hela’ tribal caste has been recorded in Census from Rajastan, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh.Helva, Helve or Hilava have been recorded in Pondicherry and Maharastra. In Maharastra surnames like Yelkar, Yelamar, Yewale, etc are found.
Similarly,’Iliga’ and ‘Eliga’ variants considered equivalent to ‘Ediga’ or ‘Idiga’ have been documented in the census records from Karnataka. Ezhava or Ezhyva of Kerala and Tamilandu 'Hilka' of Kashmir region and Hill Reddis of Maharastra, Karnatka, Hill Pulaya of Tamilnadu may be equivalents or variants of Eliya tribe.
Kowdoor Narayana Shetty reminds the presence of "Eliyaal" in Kowdoor village of Karkala taluk. Bunts with surname "maaDa" are originally either from "Eliyaal" or from BelaDi.
Similarly, there is one 'Haliyal' near Sirsi, Uttara Kannada district. Could Haliyal be a modified variant of possible original Elihal or Helihal?

These varying names could be the variants of the same ancient tribe that lived in different parts of southern India and Srilanka. The ‘Eliya’ word can also be seen frequently in Srilankan place names.

Mushaka: Rat people?
The word ‘Eli’ means rat (or mouse) in Tulu. The place name Elinje, near Kinnigoli in Mangalore Taluk. Apart from ‘Elimale’ in Sullia, Dakshina Kannada, there is a similar ‘Ezhimalai’ in Kerala. Also there is an equivalent meaning place called Cherakkal in Kerala which means 'Rat hill' in Malayalam and Tamil!
Added to this, the great Epic Mahabharat mentions the existence of ‘Mushaka’ kingdom in southern India which has been interpreted as apart of present Kerala State. The Sanskrit word ‘Mushaka’ means the rat. The ‘Mushaka’ apparently was the translation or Sanskritization of the word local Eli. Yet the Sanskrit word Mushaka in Mahabharat identifies the existence of a ruling class of people that can be considered as ‘rat people’.
Civilized
The royal tag to this tribe also hints at civilized features of the Eliya community and it is possible that the ‘eli’, the rat, could have been the totem of these tribes. Note that the tiny animal rat has been adopted as official vehicle for Lord Ganesha in our legends.Further researchers may look for totem insignia of these people. Implication of civilization is also hinted, in Srilankan place names where the word Eliya is applied to towns and cities.
Possible evolutionary trends
Some of the possibilities that have taken shape during the course of evolutionary trends can be outlined for the benefit of those who pursue further research on these lines:
Yadava community is a well known and dominant community in northern India since or even prior to Vedic times (ca.2000 BC and earlier). They were basically cowherds and shepards. Later they also have been soldiers and rulers in different parts of India. Legendary hero Lord Krishna has been considered to be the famous icon from Yadava (Jadhav) community.Variants or several earlier forms of the word ‘Yadava’ can be found in southern India.
Yadava: Yedea, Ediya, Yada, Eda, Yedi, Edi, Ida, Ideya, Yeya, Yagava,. . etc are found as variants in ethno-toponyms of Tulunadu and other parts of southern India.(Check for example, the place names like Yadapadavu,Yadamangala, Yedatore, Yediyur, Iddya, Idakki, Yeyyadi Yagavakote etc. discussed in older posts.)
Apparently ‘Ida’ (pron: ‘iDa’) word was taken into Sanskrit from pre-existing native word ‘Ida’ or ‘Eda’ to signify the left or the sinistral part.
One of the possibilities is that word ‘Eliya’ was another variant of the word ‘Ediya’. And the word Eliya could have been later modified to Eli or Ela. If rats were not the totem of these tribes then the ‘rat ‘ Eli tag might have been the nick name given by other tribes.
In Kerala and other parts of south India tribe ‘Ezhava’, ‘Erava’, ‘Eravlliar’, ‘Illava’, etc have been noted in the census records. Erva and Irava tribal signatures are found in the place names of Tulunadu also. Whether these are all spatio-temporal variants of Eliya is to be studied further.

Mahabharat
Many writers have speculated on existence of ‘Mooshika kingdom’ based on the reference given in the mighty Mahabharat. While the reference documents the existence of a dominant tribes who had a nick-name of ‘rats’ during the period of compilation of Mahabharat (ca 500 BC), the actual size of the qualifier ‘kingdom’ has to be taken with a pinch of salt, in the absence of verifiable historical data, since the great epic is well known for poetic licenses and exaggerations.

Ezhimalai
Confusion regarding the meaning of the word 'Eli' (or Ezhi in Malayalam)can be understood by the lack of unanimity and different meanings attributed to the name of this hill in Kerala. Ezhimalai has been translated by various authors as :1. Rat mountain, 2.Seven hills and 3. High hills.

Mountain Rat
Guerrilla fighters were commonly known as rats. Shivaji Maharaja, who founded the Maratha Kingdom, was nick-named as 'Mountain Rat' by Western Historians. He was skillful in ambushing and attacking Forts in Hill tops, under Mogul's sway.
Thus, it seems the original meaning of the word Eliya or Hiliya may not have been rat! The word Eliya/Hiliya could have been a non-Dravidian word probably from Apabramsha or similar pre-Dravidian tribal language.


Further detailed studies on these aspects and the genome studies on the tribes would be desirable. In the meanwhile readers may send in tidbits of connected data available at their disposal.

-Ravi and Vish.
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243. Kom tribes in Tulunadu

The word ‘kom’ or ‘komu’ in many of the south Indian languages like Kannada means tribe or caste. Origin of the word is generally traced to the Arabic word ‘quom ‘. It seems the Arabic word ‘quom’ (or kom) was derived from the name of an ancient tribe called Kom.(Besides, consider the possible relation and analogy between the words 'kom' and 'community'.)
The Kom tribes inhabited in parts of southern India in the antiquity.They were farmers, artisans and soldiers.The Koms were known as 'Komme' or 'Komar' in Kannada. There is an area called 'Komarbeedu' in the outskirt of Mysore city.
Similarly,'Komarpanths' form a significant population in present coastal Uttara Kannada and Goa. In British records they were known as 'Comarapeca', the 'peca' (or 'paika') being equivalent word for soldier.Thus Komarpanths of Uttar Kannada consider themselves as Kshatriyas.
The great reformer Basavanna is said to have been from 'Komme' caste. In Andhra Pradesh there is a community known as 'Komma' or 'Kamma'. One of the regions in Andhra is known as 'Khammam'.

However, there are no direct evidences of existence of Kom tribes in present Tulunadu or in other parts of southern India, except recent migrants from Uttara Kannada and Goa region. However, there are a number of village names in Tulunadu that carry the signatures of the ancient Kom tribes and these place names start with the prefix of ‘kom’.

Kompadavu
Kompadavu ( d, pronounced mild as in English ‘the’)is a large village, covered with hard outcrops of laterite, near Mucchur and Niddodi. The village name Kompadavu (kom +padavu) means the plateau of Kom tribes.
Komdodi
Komdodi is a hamlet near Yedapadavu and Kuppepadavu. The place name can be split into Kom +da +oDi or the habitation of Koms.
Kombār
Kombar is a village in Puttur taluk. Kom+bār means the area of Kom tribes.
Kammaje
Kammaje is a hamlet in Karopadi village, Bantval Taluk.
Konchadi
‘Konchādi ‘(pron: kon-chāDi ) forms a large village, now amalgamated into the city in the northern part of Mangalore. Konchadi, the western part, can be accessed partly from Bijai Derebail road and the eastern part from Kadri -Yeyyadi road. The place name Konchadi can be analysed as follows: Kom+cha+aDi. (=Village of the koms).The ‘kom’ is the name of the tribe that inhabited in this area probably in the antiquity (ca 200BC-200 CE?). The suffix ‘-aDi ‘refers to habitation or a village. The modifier ‘cha’ = of, in Prakrit group of languages( Or was it a word from Kom language?).'Koncham' were also recognized as a tribe or caste in south Indian census records.
Kom-jaal guttu. This is the name of a 'guttu' located in Elinje village, East of Mulki, Mangalore Taluk.
Kom-da-Odi. Komdodi is a hamlet east of Yedapadavu on the way to Kuppepadavu, in Mangalore Taluk.

Ancient Kom tribes
The’ kom’ is the name of a tribe (and language) of Northwestern Cameroon, Africa. The Cameroon Kom language is a member of African Bantu language family. According to prevalent legends they came from northern Africa to Cameroon following trails of a python.
Similarly, there are ‘kom’ tribes in northeastern States of India especially Manipur. They also speak Kom language, a member of Tibeto-Burmese language family. Legends among the ‘Kom’ people of Manipur suggest that they came from a large cave located in China. One of their leader ancestor who rescued these tribal people from a tiger was known as ‘Saichepa’. Another legend suggests that these tribes came from Middle East. Probably these two legends suggest dual origin of these tribes. Kom tribes from Africa possibly migrated in segments to Asia and parts of northeastern India.
Sajipa
The Kom tribes that inhabited coastal Tulunadu in the antiquity could have been from North eastern India, as can be deduced from the following possible legendary link.
Sajipa is a large village on the southern bank of River Nethravathy in Bantval Taluk. The exact meaning of the word ‘Sajipa’ is not known now as it has been lost in the wilderness of obscure past history.
It is possible that the word Sajipa is a variant of the word ‘Saichepa’. Saichepa was an ancestor of Kom people, as indicated by the legends of Manipur.
Therefore one of the possibility is that the village name ‘Sajipa’ represents the name of one the ancestor of Kom tribes. Saichepa is also one of the sub-tribes of Koms in Manipur. The Kom tribes who inhabited in Tulunadu once upon a time could have designated the place name 'Sachepa' (later modified to 'Sajipa') in honour of one of their their forefather and a sub-tribe.
Manipur link ?
There are several 'Mani'villages in Tulunadu such as 'Manipur', Manipal(Udupi Taluk), 'Mani-Nalkur' and MaaNi (Bantval Taluk). These village names have been generally unexplainable.
It needs to be explored whether these place names suggest vestigial emotional links introduced by immigrant tribes to Tulunadu from Manipur region in the antiquity.
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242. Sharing the bounty

Archeo-botanical evidences suggest the existence of agricultural practices in the major river basins of southern India since ca.3000 BC. Before the well developed farming cultures, early tribes resorted to hunting operations on a community scale as a means of earning food for the tribes.

After the hunting expeditions involving the able bodied hunters from the community, the ancient tribes apparently devised procedures of sharing the bounties among the beneficiaries to overcome unwarranted disputes and hassles.

Apparently, the Divine forces were invoked to oversee such arbitrations of sharing the bounties collected during hunting or fishing expeditions.

Panjikall

Panjikall is a village in Bantval Taluk on Bantval- Mudabidri   road. There several are other hamlets in the Karavali carrying this place name besides this village. Writer Ravi Anchan describes in one of his essays the significance of Panjikall. The Panji-kall (=boar+stone), according to him, is a large stone named after Panjurli, the Boar Spirit, where the ancient tribes shared their bounties collectively after an hunting or fishing expedition. The Boar Spirit of Panjurli is one of the oldest Spirit deities believed by the ancient tribes of Karavali.

It seems the original significance of the Panjikall or the boar stone has been forgotten in some areas and replaced by an alternate legend conceived later .in many areas. In some areas for example near Vitla, Bantval Taluk, there is another hamlet known by the same name of Panjikall. Here the local people ascribe the said ‘boar stone’ as vestige of the site where the Boar Spirit vanished.

Ajakall

Another place- name and word known as ‘Ajakall’ is also associated with the above described custom of sharing the hunting/ fishing bounties. Tulu Lexicon states that the origin and meaning of the word ‘aja’ in ‘Ajakal’ is not clearly known. However under the word entry in the same lexicon ‘aja’ we find that Aja=Brahma. Brahma or the Bermer is one of the earliest Gods worshipped by Tulu and other Dravidians. Evidences of Brahma worship may have been lost in other parts of southern India, but is still live in the Tulunadu. Even today the main deity in Garodies (ancient Gymnasia) of Tulunadu is the God Bermer  or the ancient form of Brahma I, a warrior seated on horse.

(Brahma I, represents the original concept of Brahma (Bermer) prevalent among ancient Indians. It was derived from the legend of Abraham that prevailed in the northwestern India during ca. 2000 BC. The Indian ‘Brahma’ was modeled after the legendary hero ‘Abraham’. Abraham was also considered or revered as forefather of Jews and Moslems in Arab countries. Later in the history probably after 500 BC the concept of Brahma II was evolved to represent four headed creator God seated on giant lotus emanating from the navel of Lord Vishnu.)

Thus we can conclude that in southern India ‘Ajakal’s devoted to Lord Brahma. The hunting or fishing bounties were shared among the members of the community invoking the name of popular God of that time period.

Azhikkal

Ajakal concept was not exclusive to Tulunadu or Karavali. It was prevailing in other parts of southern India also. For example, Azhikkal is a coastal port and fishing harbor near Kannur in Kerala. The name Ajakal has been slightly modified to ‘Azhikkal’ in Malayalam.

There may be similar place-names all over India, whose original meaning and significance has been long forgotten!

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241. Mysterious mountain of Meru

The migration of human tribes from Africa to Asia, India ( and other countries ) since ca. 50,000 years ago and later have been confirmed by genetic studies. Along with the migrating tribes many primitive words have migrated to different countries. We have shown in some of the past posts, the existence of several African words remaining as obscure and strange remnants in the place names in Tulunadu.
Yet, the concept of migration of words from African to Dravidian and other Indian languages during the historical period appear strange and unbelievable to many. The skeptics point out that the languages of Africa and India are distinctly different. It is true that the languages were different. However, the fact is that the words, only the words, have been absorbed by the recipient land and not the language. The languages have grown in the land according to a destined pattern determined by the dominant majority of the population. The migrating people being in smaller number have not been able to impose their language patterns on the recipient land, but strange foreign words introduced by them have been seamlessly absorbed, in some cases temporarily, by the recipient language. Strangely, our place names have faithfully preserved some of the temporarily accepted foreign words. These words can be considered ‘temporary’ absorption because we have lost the meaning of those words due to disuse.
For the benefit of skeptics, we shall give a glowing example that has been entrenched in many of the Indian languages and epics.
Mt. Meru
The mountain of Meru (or ‘Sumeru’) has been a prominent geographic feature in several Hindu, Buddhist and Jain mythologies. The ‘Meru Parvat’ is considered to be the centre of ‘Jambu dwipa’(peninsula) and abode of Brahma and other Gods. Ancient Indian texts described to be about 84,000 ‘yojana’ high or so.
Mt. Meru, is a conical shaped volcanic mountain, 4,566 m high, located in Tanzania at the border of Kenya, Africa. It is located on the equator, which compares well with the Indian descriptions of ‘centre of the Jambu-dwipa’!. Even though now it is considered as the fourth highest mountain in Africa geological studies have shown that it was about 6000m during the ice ages (period of glaciation) and the height was reduced subsequently on account of erosion. Volcanic mountains are generally conical in shape being wide at base with a narrow summit. Indian texts describe the Meru mountain precisely as wide at base and narrow at top.

The word ‘Meru’ in Sanskrit means ‘high’, possibly after the Meru mountain.
Why an African mountain finds respectful mention in ancient Indian epics?
It can only mean that people from Africa were frequenting India during the period ca 1700 BC to 500 CE when most of the Indian scriptures and epics were considered to have been composed. Either the composers of these epics had first- hand knowledge about these African places or they envisaged the features based on the descriptions of the immigrants.
Mt. Meru was considered as abode of Gods by African tribes. Even the origin of African God ‘Murunga’ has been traced to the Mt. Meru. The ancient cult of African God Murunga has entered south Indian theology as Muruga!
The word ‘Meru’ has entered Indian languages as an expression of greatness. In Kannada, the phrase ‘meru nata’ means a great actor.
Mt. Kenya
Mt. Kenya is another African mountain. Kenya is also the name of an East African State, bordering Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan and Tanzania. The African (Kikuyu) word ‘Kenya’ means the abode of Gods. Several districts and regions within Kenya have been named after Meru. In Tulunadu, there are at least two places known as ‘Kenya’ (Sullia Taluk) or ‘Kinya’ (Mangalore Taluk). However, the local people have lost the original meaning and significance of these place names after the passage of time.
And many now unknowingly resort to misinterpretation of these toponyms as ‘small’ (=‘kinya’) or ‘listen’(=‘kenya’)!
Meru Peak in Gharwal Himalayas
An anonymous recent comment has provided information on the Meru Peak in Gharwal Himalayas, Uttar Khand State,India.This information is likely to have disputes with the data discussed in this post.
However we find several African place names repeated in Indian subcontinent.
We shall discuss these things more in the forthcoming blog posts.
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Previous Posts

TULU RESEARCH : Serial List of older POSTS
1. Tulu language: Origin & Evolution
2. Traces of Tulu-Kannada-Dravida words in Early Sumerian languages
3. Pirak, Prak and Prakrit
4. Brahma worship: Brahma and Bermer
5. Mundkur, Munder
6. Bermer II
* Language and Culture
7. Banta, Bantu
8. Bantu,Bant’ II
9. The Moolasthana concept
* Random ruminations
10. Evolution of Culinary habits
11. Boiled grains to Steam cooked idlis.
12. Rotis: Early oil-free roasted vegetarian food
13. The Tulu script: Origin and revival
14. Evolution of the Kannada script.
15. A charming Tulu word ‘naDeer’
16. Mangalore: Kudla and Nitria
17. Historic Mangalore: Port of Bukkapatna
18. Location of Moolasthanas in Dakshina Kannada
19. Moolasthana
20. Earliest popular fruit in Indian subcontinent
21. The Taste of Tulunadu
22. The Taste of Tulunadu II
23. Boiled grains to.. Idlis.II. An Update
24. Chakku Palam > Jack Fruit
25. Pala and antiquity of Tulu words
26. The origin of the concept of Brahma
27. The Sweet Potato
28. Significance of the Brahma
29. The Rice: Vrihi and Arih
30. Multan and Moolasthana
31. Tulu tribes Migration from Pirak:1000-600 BC
32. Origin of Animal and Spirit worship
33. Brahma-Vishnu-Mahesh
34. Ten incarnations of Vishnu
35. Ancient Spirit worship: Horse mounted heroes
36. Planets as Tulu proper names
37. Early Human migrations.
38. Earliest Indian Tribes
39. One human family with many variations
40. Early evolution of words and languages
* A Tulu stage play: Kariajjerna Kathekulu
41. Origin of the word Tulu I
42. Origin of the word Tulu II
43. Evolution of Tulu language
44. The scale of human migration
45. Origin of the word Bant.
46. Proto Tulu migration Stage I
47. Mundevu (Pandanus)
48. Early Tulu: Stage II 2000-800 BC
49. Early human settlements in South India
50. The legend of Rama
51. Stage III: Migration from Pirak 800-500 BC
52. Munda aborigines of Karavali
53. More on Munda influence on Tulu
54. The legend of Bali
55. Identity of Neolithic South Indians
* Nature-scape of Tulunadu 1
56. Assimilation of Indo-Aryans
57. A word that traveled: Ayana
* Nature-scape of Tulunadu 2
58. Evolution of Early Communities
59. The less evolved ancient tribes
60. The Original Rama
* Nature-scape of Tulunadu 3
VOLUME 2
61. Native Tubers
62. Characterization of Spirits of Tulunadu
63. Baikampadi
64. Puraal and Polali
65. Mayi Kala at Mangalore
66. Tharavada
67. Bunts and Nairs
68. Pandavara kallu: A burial structure
* Nature-scapes … 5
69. Kaipunjal and Kapu
70. Mayi-Kala in Ancient Mangalore II
71. Barakur
72. Tiruvail
73 Satiaputo
74. Alupa kings
75. Nitria
* Abstracts
76. Bhagavathi
* Nature-scapes … 5
77. Natha cult at Mangalore
78. A special word: ‘MuTTukaDi’
79. The name –Kadri
80. Macchendra, Goraka and Pingala
81. Barakur II
82. Buddhism in Karnataka
83. Buddhism vs. mainstream Hinduism
84. The Mogaveera community
* Nature-scapes … 6
85. Kadire Manjunatha
87. Mangaruth, the ancient Mangalore
88. The Mystery of Manjunatha
89. Keddasa
90. Mangala
91. Govinda Pai on Alupe
92. Avalokitesvara @ Kadire
93. Pedestrian journeys
94. Antiquity of Siri
95. Chenne or Mangala games
96.Samana-samani-savana
97.Siri paDdana : A Tulu Sangham Epic
98.Changes in Gurupur River mouth, 1887
99.Kundapura
100.Kadamba Dynasty
101.Early dormant Jainism
102.Legends of Parashurama
103.Rituals that remind the religious transitions
104. Formation of Barrier Spits
* Let the Studies..
105. Mārigudis of Kapu
106.Mārigudi II
107.Nagara at Panambur
108.Koraga language: A primer
109.Odipu- the Udupi
110.Mukka
111.Swirling waves of Surathkal
* Nature-scapes…7
112.The Temples of Karavali: Early phase
113.Maravoor, Maroli
114.Ayikala
115.Extradition of Maari
116.The Saliana lineage
117.Panambur II
118.Iddya to Yedapadavu
119.Kadaba to Kalavar
120.Bayalare
121.Kota and Kotian
122.Irvattur, Iruvail Iraa
123.Strange words!
124.Disecting strange words
125.Kepula
126. Totems in our antiquity
127.Ancient proper names
128.Bairas and Mundas
129.Puttur
130.Todar
131.Belman to Bellarapadi
132.Sooda to Surinje
133.Kantavara-Kanajar
Debacle of verdant a land:Bailare at Posodi
136.Kukkian lineage
137.Chitrapu
138.Mandekolu
139.Cluster villages
140.Uchila1
141.Village name suffixes
142.Pandeswara, Manjeswara
143.Billadi
144.Mabukala
145.Partheno
146.Kudroli to Katapadi Enagudde
147.Kodanjikall to Konaje
148.Sanur
149.Yeyyadi
150.Bondel
151.Paduvare to Parivara Bunts
152.Derebail
153.Ambalamogaru
154.Sin to Chennaitodi
155.Lathande
156.Bondantila
157.Panemangalur
158.Pandyas & cargo boats
159.Airodi
160.The Pandi culture
161.Antiquity of Shira
162.Evolution of Tulu language
163.Tulu prefixes & words
164.Belthangadi, Uppinangadi
165.Pangala and Bangla
166.Tulu Onamastics
167.Padubidri: A relict river
168.Baindur, Bayandar
169.Aroor:A cluster village
170.Inna
171.Banna
172.Andhra and Dravida
173.Toadu
174.Mudarangadi
175.Nanthur
176.Alevoor
Green flowers
177.Yenagudde
On history and historians
178.Pithrodi in Udyavara
179.Chakana
180.Javagal
181.Vanished port of Udyavara
182.Uliyargoli to Malpe I
183. Uliyargoli to Malpe II
184.The Magic of Malpe
185.The spatial suffix:ānu: Muddanu
186.Traces of common regional lingual history in Tulu place-names
187.Immigrant red tribes: ‘Kemm’s!
188.Kudupu: layers of history
189.Kuduma
190.Neria: on the brink
191.Udupi: An additional note
192.Eri and Neria
193.Ku: A root word
194.Jambal: an archaic Tulu word.
195.Madarangi
196.Mandarthi
197.Dravidian spatial suffix -va
198.Bridge on mud crack.
199.Mane: An earthen podium
200.Kakke tribes: Totem crow
201.Aya: the space.
202.Madhva Vijaya: places and names
203.Heskattur
204.Agricultural sttlements
205.Harvesting sites
206.Poli Poli
207.Tottam remors
208.Murudeshwara
209.Dravidian place name cognates
210.Palli
211.Gotra, Bari: Genetic tags
212.PāDi
213.Kotrupadi
214.Patna
215.Manchakall
216. Permanki
217. Kenya.
218. Mungo,the rain God.
219. PaDdana
220. Vasudeva Laila
221.TalakāDu
222. Nadava Evolution : An outline
223. Okku in Tulu
224. Mitta bagilu
225. Mura, the laterite
226.Ter, the idol car
227. Tondru adde: another Iddli
228. Beeri, Kotekar
229. MUNDKŪR: Obscure pages of history
230. Fossil words
231.Sajipa
232.Evolution of word Structure
233.Panjurli
234.Padavu and PaDavu
235.Maroon leaves of Chakote
236.Large Villages
237.Madhu and Maddu
238.Dark,forest and bay
239.Kar and bar in place names.
240.Kabaka: Imported word?