Immigrants from Madurapura

This publication contains a collection of eleven Sri Lankan historical ola-leaf (palm-leaf) manuscripts known as Viththi (events) and Kadayim (demarcation of divisional boundaries) books. Most of them are rare and have never been published. This publication presents original version of these manuscripts in Sinhala language and a summary in English. They describe waves of migrations from South India, particularly from the regions of Kerala and Madurapura (Madurai) to Sath Korale and Kandyan regions in Sri Lanka, that took place during the medieval period. This information provides a fresh perspective on the evolution and the current ethnic composition of Sri Lanka, in contrast to the traditional historical records. I collected these manuscripts for my anthropological research that resulted in the publication “South Indian Brāhmins in Sri Lankan Culture: Assimilation in Sath Korale & Kandyan Regions” in 2021. I package these historical manuscripts herewith providing readers with some guidance to navigate easily through them. I start with the sources of these manuscripts. Then I provide a general introduction to the nature and tradition of ola-leaf manuscripts and finally, go into an account of the contents and common characteristics of them all. However, these manuscripts contain multifaceted historical information given in diverse narrative styles. I made an effort to summarise each manuscript to help readers despite the difficulties that arose from array of extensive information extending across many historical eras, a lack of consistent chronology, and excessive repetitions. In any event, I strongly believe that the readers and researchers in future will welcome this publication.