The Hindu : National : Chola, Pandya ‘nagarams’ similar to European towns

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jul 26, 2007
ePaper

National

National

Chola, Pandya ‘nagarams’ similar to European towns

T. Ramakrishnan

Noboru Karashima

CHENNAI: Changes in the characteristics of ‘nagarams’ (towns) and commerce in Tamil country during the late Chola and Pandya period were somewhat similar to what was witnessed in Europe and Japan, according to Noboru Karashima, professor emeritus in the University of Tokyo and professor of Indian studies in Taisho University, Japan.

Professor Karashima, who was here on Wednesday at the end of his three-week-long trip to south India, told The Hindu that between 850 and 1200 A.D., there was no difference between villages and towns. In both, people were broadl y land owners. They took part in community work and were under the control of the state. But after the 12th century, ‘nagaram’ became a promoter of commerce by associating itself with ‘ainnurruvar’ (merchant guild of 500 people), an institution that had been conducting itinerant trade from the 10th century. ‘Jati’ formation also accelerated the development. Towns became important, powerful and independent.

Professor Karashima, together with Y. Subbarayulu from the French Institute of Pondicherry and P. Shanmugam from Madras University, has completed a study of ‘nagarams’ appearing in Tamil inscriptions from 850 to 1350 A.D. (basically the Chola and Pandya period).

Pointing out that there was no linkage between ‘nagaram’ and ‘ainnurruvar’ during the early and middle periods, the historian said the two became symbiotic later (between 1201 and 1350 A.D.) to a certain extent in the wake of the economic growth brought by the East-West maritime trade and the disappearance of powerful states such as the Cholas.

Asked if there was any evidence of interaction between Europe, the Tamil country and Japan then, he replied in the negative. However, within each region, interactions took place.

New theory

Professor Karashima explained that contrary to the conventional theory, the new theory in European studies highlighted common features between towns and villages even before 13th century.

The 74-year-old expert said that in the Tamil country, the whole situation had begun to change around the end of the 15th century during the Vijayanagar Nayaka rule, which strongly controlled the towns. Emphasising that brisk trading with Arabs, the Southeast Asian nations and China took place in the later part of the study period, Professor Karashima said Tamil inscriptions were found in Takuapa (Thailand), Pagan (Myanmar) and Sumatra (Indonesia), which talked about the merchant guilds. The inscriptions belonged to the 9th-12th century period.

Referring to a 13th century Tamil inscription in Quanzhou, a southern port of China, he said it talked of the plans of the Tamil community to build a Shiva temple there. He emphasised the need for publication of the numerous Tamil inscriptions.

Prof. Karashima, also president of the International Association of Tamil Research, appealed to the authorities to make public the proceedings of the World Tamil Conference held at Thanjavur in 1995, which had been printed.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National