தமிழ்த் தேசியம்

"To us all towns are one, all men our kin.
Life's good comes not from others' gift, nor ill
Man's pains and pains' relief are from within.
Thus have we seen in visions of the wise !."

- Tamil Poem in Purananuru, circa 500 B.C 

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Last updated
18/09/07

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Personal Development
Organisation & Leadership
Spirituality
International Relations
Nations & Nationalism
Fourth World
Conflict Resolution
Human Rights
Manufacturing Consent
Politics
War - A Continuation of Politics
Tamils - a Trans State Nation
History & Geography
Caste
Language
Literature
Dictionaries & Reference
Learning Tamil
Culture
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Tamils & the Digital Revolution
Economy
Eelam
Women

 


TAMIL NATION LIBRARY
History & Geography

 "...The rediscovery of the Cankam works and the revival of Tamil language and literature revealed the richness and antiquity of Tamil culture which was proclaimed to be distinct from and superior to northern Sanskrit-Aryan culture. Along with this cultural awakening came a new sense of Dravidian self-consciousness and cultural pride..." K.Nambi Arooran  - Tamil Renaissance and Dravidian Nationalism,  1980

[see also The Tamil Heritage - the Tamils are an ancient people...]

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C. Brito - Yalpana Vaipavamalai.Or The History of the Kingdom of Jaffna  Translated from the Tamil with an Appendix and a Glossary. Reprint. New Delhi, AES, 1999, 65 p., cxII, ISBN 81-206-1362-7.

Contents:  Appendix: 1. Iradchathar. 2. The Nagas. 3. Kasi Kandam. 4. Thiruvathavurar puranam. 5. Skanda-purana. 6. Thirikonasala-puranam. 7. Yalpanach-chariththiram. 8. Puthaththampi-nadakam. 9. The Vinea Taprobanea. 10. The Kalveddu. 11. The Kayilaya malai. 12. The origin of the Singhalese, Tamil, Moorish and Malay inhabitants of Ceylon. 13. The Moors. 14. The Colombo Chetties. 15. The Tamils of Jaffna. 16. The Pagnchangkam. 17. Glossary and index.

Childe, G. 'The Most Ancient East', 1928.

Coedes, M. - 'Indian Art and Letters'.

Dixon - Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, V. 639, 1930.

Durant, Will  - Our Oriental Heritage, 1942

Elmore, W.T. Dravidian Gods in Modern Hinduism. Published in 1913, ISBN - 81206-0136-X

Fries,Yvonne and Bibin, Thomas. The undesirables : the expatriation of the Tamil people "of recent Indian origin" from the plantations in Sri Lanka to India. Calcutta : K P Bagchi, 1984.

Guilmoto, Christophe Z. -  A century of Tamil demography: the development of the population of Tamil Nadu from 1871 to 1981., Centre Francais sur la Population et le Developpement [CEPED]: Paris, France.1992

Guilmoto, Christophe Z, and S. Oliveau, with S. Vingadassamy and R. Amuda - South Indian Population System CD ROM published by French Institute, Pondicherry, 2000

"...the CD-ROM includes a database along with a mapping software. It is a user-friendly population and infrastructure database of villages and towns in South India which can be easily visualized through maps. With the help of a customized software included in this CD, you will be able to explore the region at different scales of analysis ( districts, taluks, villages, towns). You may also consult and map out data of your choice, as well as save and print maps. Available data include population and other socio-economic statistics, health and education infrastructures, communication and transportation facilities, as well as maps of land use, elevation or irrigation...  SIPIS covers the South Indian States and will comprise four volumes (Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala). The first SIPIS volume available is for Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry..."

Hanumanthan, K.R. - Untouchability: a historical study upto 1500 A.D.: with special reference to Tamil Nadu - Madurai: Koodal Publishers, 1979, 282p

Heras, H. Studies in Proto-Indo- Mediterranean Culture. Vol.1. Bombay, 1953.

Hall, J.A.W. - Eminent Asians, 1929.

*Eugene F. Irschick - Dialogue and History: Constructing South India, 1795-1895,1994

"Eugene Irschick deftly questions the conventional wisdom that knowledge about a colonial culture is unilaterally defined by its rulers. Focusing on nineteenth-century South India, he demonstrates that a society's view of its history results from a "dialogic process" involving all its constituencies. For centuries, agricultural life in South India was semi-nomadic. But when the British took dominion, they sought to stabilize the region by inventing a Tamil "golden age" of sedentary, prosperous villages. Irschick shows that this construction resulted not from overt British manipulation but from an intricate cross-pollination of both European and native ideas. He argues that the Tamil played a critical role in constructing their past and thus shaping their future. And British administrators adapted local customs to their own uses."
 

Larke, Sir William  - Bulletin of the British Iron and Steel Federation, 1949

Marshall , J. Ed. Mohenjadaro and Indus Civilization. 3 Volumes.London 1931.

Matakal Mayilvakanap Pulavar - The Yalpana-vaipava-malai, or, The History of the Kingdom of Jaffna

C.Meenakshi, Dr  - Administration and social life under Pallavas

* Nilakanta Sastri - The Colas: With over 100 illustrations (Madras University historical series)

Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. A History of South India. Third Edition.Bombay: Oxford University Press, 1966. 521 pages.

Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. South Indian Influences in the Far East, 1949

Neelakanda Sastri, K.A. - Theninthiya Varalaaru - Volumes I, II

Oppert, Gustav. On the Original Inhabitants of India - The Dravidians.  Published in 1888, ISBN - 81-206-0356-7 2. 

*Påa. Cupramaòniyaön - Social History of the Tamils, 1707-1947

**Padmanabhan, R.A. -  V.V.S.Aiyar. National Book Trust, India, 1980

*Jacob Pandian Caste, nationalism, and ethnicity : an interpretation of Tamil cultural history and social order, 987

Panikkar, K.M. - A Survey of Indian History, 1954;

Panikkar, K.M - India and China', 1957.

Parpola, A.et al. Decipherment of the Proto-Indian Inscriptions of the Indus Civilization: A First Announcement.Copenhagen: Scandinavian Institute of Asian Studies, 1969.

Parpola, A. et al. Further Progress in the Indus Script Decipherment.Copenhagen: Scandinavian Institutte of Asian studies, 1970.

Parpola, A. The Situation at the end of 1969, Journal of Tamil Studies. Vol. 2, no. 1, April 1970, pp. 89 - 109.

Piggott, Stuart - Prehistoric India' (Pelican Book), 1952.

Quaritch Wales, H.G. - The Making of Greater India, 1957

Quaritch Wales, H.G - Siamese State Ceremonies, 1931.

Raghavan, M.D. - Tamil Culture in Ceylon, Kalai Nilayam Ltd, Colombo 1964

*Raghubir Singh, R. R. Narayan (Introduction) Tamil Nadu / Hardcover / Published: May 1996

Navaratna S. Rajaram and Davis Frawley - Vedic "Aryans" and the Origins of Civilization: A Literary and Scientific Perspective 1995.Quebec. W.H.Press,. ISBN 1-896064-00-00. Pp163.

Rajayyan, Dr.K. Selections from History of Tamil Nadu, Madurai Publishing House, Madurai, 1978

Rajayyan, Dr.K. History of Tamil Nadu 1565 - 1982 - Raj Publishers, Madurai, 1982

Rajayyan, Dr.K. History of Tamil Nadu 1736 - 1801, Madras University Historical Series, Sangam Printers, 1974

Rajayyan, Dr.K South Indian rebellion: the first war of independence, 1800-1801

Rajayyan, Dr.K Administration and society in the Carnatic, 1701-1801 (Sri Venkateswara University publications. Historical series, no. 7)

Rajayyan, Dr.K Rise and fall of the poligars of Tamilnadu (Sir William Meyer Endowment lectures ; 1972)

Rajayyan, Dr.K Historiography: History in theory and method

Rajayyan, Dr.K A history of British diplomacy in Tanjore

Rajayyan, Dr.K History in theory and method: A study in historiography

Ramasamy, Rajakrishnan . Sojourners to Citizens : Sri Lankan Tamils in Malaysia, 1885-1965 

*Velcheru N. Rao, David Shulman,Sanjay Subrahmanyam Symbols of Substance : Court and State in Nayaka Period Tamilnadu Paperback /Published: February 1998

Mudaliyar C. Rasanayagam - Ancient Jaffna (being a Research into the History of Jaffna from very early times to the Portugese Period) Asia Educational Services, New Delhi, 1984 (first published 1926)

Reginald Le May - The Culture of South East Asia, 1954.

*A.L.Rowse - Use of History (History and Historiography Series) , published by Hodder & Stoughton, 1946

"... The general conclusion I draw from European history is that no one power is strong enough to rule all the rest. Therefore the sensible thing (i.e. what the sense of history indicates) is some federal system that may enable us to work together in co-operation. On the basis of a knowledge of history we can look into the nearer future and see something of the shape of things that is emerging. And that knowledge is the best aid to knowing what we can usefully achieve in our turn…"

Sangarapillai, Ponnambalam - நாம் தமிழர்: We Tamils  English Translation by Dr.Manoharan

Sathasivam, A. Sumerian, A Dravidian Language (mimeo). Berkely:1965.

Sathasivam, A. Dravidian Origin of Sumerian Writing. Proceedingsof the First International Conference- Seminar of Tamil studies. Vol. 2.Kuala Lumpur, 1966.

Sathasivam, A. Extra Dravida Affinities - Affinities between Dravidian and Sumerian. International Seminar On Dravidian Linguistics. AnnamalaiUniversity, 1969.

Schweitzer, A. Indian Thought and its development. English translation.London. 1936.

Karthigesu Sivathamby - Literary History in Tamil [a historiographical analysis], Thanjavur Tamil University Publication no:68, 1986

Scott, J.G. - Burma from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, 1924

Sivaratnam, C. The Tamils in Early Ceylon,Colombo 1968

Subramaniam Dr.S.V. and Vijayalakshmi Dr.R. Philosophical Heritage of the Tamils, International Institute of Tamil Studies, Madras, 1983

Narendra Subramanian - Ethnicity and Populist Mobilization: political parties, citizens and democracy in South India

*Sundararajan Dr.S. Ancient Tamil Country : It's Social and Economic Structure   Navrang, New Delhi, 1991

Thani Nayagam, Rev. Fr. - 'Tamil Culture', Vol V, No. 3, July, 1 1955

Veluppillai, A. The Significance of the Syrian Christian Inscriptionsin Tamil from Kerala. Seminar Paper of the department of the historyof Religions, Uppsala University in January 1994.

Vaiyapuri Pillai, S. History of Tamil Language and Literature -Beginning to 1000 A.D., New Century Book House, Madras, India, 1956

Veluppillai, A. A Study of the Nadukal Inscriptions through a Tabulationof Relevant Material. Seminar paper of the Department of the historyof Religions. Uppsala University in October 1994.

Venkata Ramanayya, N. - Cuddapah inscriptions: Kadapa Silasasandmulu Vagayara. [Madras: Government Oriental Manuscripts Library], 1972 1 v. (various pagings); 25cm

Wheeler, M. Civilization of the Indus Valley and Beyond. London,1966.

 

Tamil Renaissance
and Dravidian Nationalism

*Civattampi, Kåarttikåecu  - Understanding the Dravidian movement : problems and perspectives
*Daniel, E. Valentine - Fluid Signs : Being a Person the Tamil Way  / Paperback / Published: August 1987
*Diehel, Anita - E. V. Ramaswami Naicker-Periyar : a study of the influence of a personality in contemporary South India
*Karunanithi, G. - Caste and class in industrial organisation : a case study of two industrial units in Tamil Nadu
*Kuppu Subramaniam - Brahmin priest of Tamil Nadu
**Irschick,  Eugene F. - Tamil Revivalism in the 1930s  Hardcover / Published 1986
Nambi Arooran  - K. Tamil Renaissance and Dravidian Nationalism, Koodal Publishers, Madurai, 1980 "...The rediscovery of the Cankam works and the revival of Tamil language and literature revealed the richness and antiquity of Tamil culture which was proclaimed to be distinct from and superior to northern Sanskrit-Aryan culture. Along with this cultural awakening came a new sense of Dravidian self-consciousness and cultural pride..." more
*Pi. Råamamåurtti - The freedom struggle and the Dravidian movement
Pandian, Jacob - Caste, nationalism, and ethnicity : an interpretation of Tamil cultural history and social order, 1987

".... in defining ethnicity it is necessary to make a distinction between the symbols of cultural boundaries that are transmitted from one generation to the next, and the use of these symbols - the explanations and interpretations of these symbols in the construction of group or ethnic identity....."

*Pfaffenberger, Bryan - Caste in Tamil Culture : The Religious Foundations of Sudra Domination in Tamil Sri Lanka published 1982
*Rajagopal, Indhu -Tyranny of Caste : The Non-Brahman Movement and Political Development in South India, Published 1985 
*Rajendran, N - The national movement in Tamil Nadu, 1905-14 : agitational politics and state coercion
*Rudner, David West - Caste and Capitalism in Colonial India : The Nattukottai Chettiars  Paperback,  Published 1994
*Sivagnanam, M.P. - History of freedom movement in Tamil Nadu - Vidutalai poril Tamilakam
*Subramanian, Narendra -  Ethnicity and Populist Mobilization: political parties, citizens and democracy in South India, Assistant Professor of Political Science, McGill University, Montreal, Canada; Ph.D.: Massachusetts Institute of Technology.; M.A.: Massachusetts Institute of Technology; B.A.: Princeton University

"This is an outstanding study of Dravidian politics, the first to do full justice to the complexities and nuances of the subject, and should become the standard reference work for years to come. But, Narendra Subramanian's book is also much more. It pioneers new approaches to the study of Indian politics and contributes new insights into the comparative study of ethnicity, populism, pluralism and democracy. In its light, many conventional understandings of India's recent political history will have to be revised.' - David Washbrook, Professor of History, Oxford University

*Templeman, Dennis - The Northern Nadars of Tamil Nadu : An Indian Caste in the Process of Change
**Visswanathan, Dr.E.Sa - The Political Career of E.V.Ramasami Naicker Ravi & Vasanthi Publishers, Madras

 

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