Valikamam
Valikamam
வலிகாமம் වලිකාමම් | |
|---|---|
Region | |
  Valikamam | |
| Coordinates: 09°45′N 80°01′E / 9.750°N 80.017°E | |
| Country |  Sri Lanka |
| Province | Northern |
| District | Jaffna |
| Largest city | Jaffna |
| Divisional Secretariats | |
| Area | |
• Total | 344.2 km2 (132.9 sq mi) |
| Population (2007) | |
• Total | 358,991 |
| • Density | 1,000/km2 (2,700/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+05:30 (Sri Lanka) |
Valikamam (Tamil: வலிகாமம், romanized: Valikāmam; Sinhala: වැලිගම, romanized: Væligama) is one of the three historic regions of Jaffna peninsula in northern Sri Lanka. The other two regions are Thenmarachchi and Vadamarachchi. Alternative spellings include Valikaamam or Valigamam.
Etymology
[edit]The name Valikamam (Tamil: வலிகாமம், romanized: Valikāmam) translates to "the sandy village", whereas Tamil: மேற்கு, romanized: Mēṟku, lit. 'West' denotes the geographical marker.[1][2]
It is derived from the words:[1]
- Tamil: வலி, romanized: Vali, lit. 'Sand or sandy land'
- Tamil: காமம், romanized: Kāmam, lit. 'Village'
The word காமம், Kāmam is no longer in common use but was historically found in Eezham Tamil place names. It shares linguistic roots with Sanskrit: ग्राम, romanized: Grāma, Pali: गाम, romanized: Gāma, and Sinhala: ගම, romanized: Gama.[1] The word has been found in early Tamil inscriptions, including an 11th-century record at Velgam Vihara, Trincomalee, and a 12th-century Chola inscription at Thiruvalangadu, where Valikamam is explicitly mentioned as a village.[1]
The name Valikamam is also linguistically equivalent to Manaltidar or Manarridal, the ancient Tamil names for Jaffna, which carry the same meaning of "sandy land."[3]
According to the 16th-century Tamil literary work Santiago Kumara Ammanai, Valikamam was historically referred to as well as: வல்லி கிராமம், romanized: Valli Kiraamam, lit. 'The village of the Tinospora cordifolia plant.'[3]
The village Mallakam (Tamil: மல்லாகம், romanized: Mallākam), located in Valikamam North, derives its name from: - மல்ல, Malla – a personal title associated with royalty or warriors, originating from the Sanskrit Sanskrit: मल्ल, romanized: Malla, meaning wrestler or great person. This term was commonly used by Pallava rulers and medieval Sri Lankan kings, such as Nissanka Malla (12th century).[4]
Geography
[edit]Administrative Divisions
[edit]Valikamam is currently divided into 6 Divisional Secretariats, each of which is further subdivided into 190 Grama Niladhari (GN) divisions. Every Divisional Secretariat has its own Divisional Council, which is elected every four years through local government elections.[5][6][7][8][9][10][11]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Indrapala, Karthigesu (2006). The Evolution of an Ethnic Identity. South Asian Studies Centre. p. 389.
- ^ Fabricius, J. P. (1972). "J. P. Fabricius's Tamil and English dictionary. 4th ed., rev.and enl". dsal.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
- ^ a b Ragupathy, Ponnampalam (1987). Early Settlements in Jaffna: An Archaeological Survey. University of Jaffna: Thillimalar. p. 211.
- ^ CDIAL (2006). Comparative Dictionary of Indo-Aryan Languages. Royal Asiatic Society.
- ^ a b "Administrative Structure - Jaffna DS". Jaffna Divisional Secretariat. Archived from the original on 2021-04-21. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
- ^ a b "Administrative Structure - Nallur DS". Nallur Divisional Secretariat. Archived from the original on 2020-06-30. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
- ^ a b "Administrative Structure - Valikamam East DS". Valikamam East Divisional Secretariat. Archived from the original on 2020-10-24. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ a b "Administrative Structure - Valikamam North DS". Valikamam North Divisional Secretariat. Archived from the original on 2020-07-22. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
- ^ a b "Administrative Structure - Valikamam South DS". Valikamam South Divisional Secretariat. Archived from the original on 2020-02-03. Retrieved 2020-02-03.
- ^ a b "Administrative Structure - Valikamam South West DS". Valikamam South West Divisional Secretariat. Archived from the original on 2019-04-22. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
- ^ a b "Administrative Structure - Valikamam West DS". Valikamam West Divisional Secretariat. Archived from the original on 2020-01-30. Retrieved 2020-01-30.