Merchants Communities

Next to the Vellalas, the merchant class formed the vital link in the economy of the period. The merchants were wealthier and more influential than the artisans. They often acquired lands by purchase and made expensive gift to the temples. The Viyapari and Chetti, were the different communities who played vital role in the Chola period.

Viyapari is otherwise called Vanigan, associated with merchant community.^[1] Of the trading communities, the Viyaparis spread sporadically all over Madurantakam region and also engaged in charitable and pious activities. There are four references about Viyapari from his lithic records. A lithic record described the gift of 15 Kalanju of gold for a lamp by a Viyapari Chaturvedimangalam.^[2] Another lithic record mentioned the donor as the wife of Viyapari^[3] and finally two lithic records denoted that donor father as Mayilatti (oil Merchant)^[4] and other denoted that the donor as the son of a Viyapari.^[5]

Chettis was another notable mercantile community during the Chola Period. The term “Chetty” derives from the Sanskrit word “Shreshti” meaning wealth. They come under vaishya group in Varna system. The term, Chetti is used to denote both a distinct caste, and also a title, and people bearing this title described themselves loosely as belonging to the Chetti caste and it means traders.^[6]

There are inscriptions that revealed different kinds of Chettis such as Nattu Chetti, Kavara Chetti, Piritirama-Setti and Alankara Chetti and mentioned the gift of sheep, land, gold, money and oil made by them. This was elaborately described. A lithic record referred a gift of 15 Kalanju of gold for a lamp by Alankara Chetti.^[7] A hero stone inscription cited the name Dinmachetti and other inscription denoted gift of 96 sheep by Chetti, The other inscriptions registered a gift of 1 ½ ma of land as tax free for a lamp in the temple of Madurantakam by the Aiyaran alias Nurrenmak-Kavarasetti^[8] and Kavara Chetti means Telugu trading community^[9] and another inscription also mentioned a similar gift of land for a lamp in the temple by Tiruvadigal alias Piritirama-Chetti and it identified boundary as North west, east and north of Nattu Chetty Pulam (land),^[10] and the same person Tiruvadigal alias Piritirama-Chetti has donated money and oil for burning a perpetual lamp.^[11]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Subbarayalu,Y., Tamil Kalvettu Sollagarathi, op.cit., Vol. II., Chennai, 2002, p.559.

[2]:

A.R.E., 223 of 1915.

[3]:

A.R.E., 246 of 1923.

[4]:

A.R.E., 48 of 1938-1939.

[5]:

A.R.E., 247 of 1938-1939.

[6]:

Ramaswamy Sastri, K.S., op.cit., p.38; Edgar Thurston., op.cit., Vol. II, pp.93-94.

[7]:

A.R.E., 223 of 1915; S.I.I., Vol. XXXII, No.67.

[8]:

A.R.E., 247 of 1938-1939.

[9]:

Edgar Thurston, op.cit., p. 95.

[10]:

A.R.E., 248 of 1938-1939.

[11]:

A.R.E.,267 of 1938-1939.