cAkrika and cakkiliyar

[N. Ganesan]

>Is Arundathiyar of Tamil Nadu same as Cakkilliar ?

I think their communty sangham is called Arundathiyar sangham.

Read that Sri Lankan kings had been from Madurai Nayak dynasty from
the book:
Holt, John, / The religious world of Kirti Sri : Buddhism, art, and politics
in late medieval Sri Lanka / John Clifford Holt.
New York : Oxford University Press, 1996.

Regards,
N. Ganesan

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In Sri Lanka they were are mostly  brought to work as scavengers
although many have found independent occupation as cobblers. A
tradition, which has historic precedence. According to Mahavamsa,
scavengers (Chandalas) were brought in by the original colonists from
India (North or South ?) to keep the capital city of Anuradhpura clean
and were settled in a village nearby named appropriately as Chandala
Grama.

Nowadays many Cakkiliar have converted to Buddhism or Christinanity
and their unique Telugu dialect is giving away to Sinhala just like
another uniquely Telugu speaking group in Sri lanka, namely the
Kurava "gypsies".

Raveen
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