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ArchivesRe: Kanapathippilla?
in reply to a message by Charlie Blue
it is a Tamil surname, common in Sri Lanka.
Kanapathi may be related to the name "Ganapati" another name for the Hindu god of good fortune, Ganesh. and "pillai" is the word for a Tamil land-owning fuedal caste.
so the surname may be a combination of respectful homage to a god, and a reference to one's caste.
Kanapathi may be related to the name "Ganapati" another name for the Hindu god of good fortune, Ganesh. and "pillai" is the word for a Tamil land-owning fuedal caste.
so the surname may be a combination of respectful homage to a god, and a reference to one's caste.
This message was edited 1/31/2010, 5:59 PM
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கணபதிப்பிள்ளை Kanapathippillai (note the last dipthong)
Tamil does not have voicing and aspiration as phonemic features (almost), so kaNapathi may just be Indoaryan gaNapati: in Sanskrit, gaNa (from gaN, to count) meaning masses and pati is master or husband. gaNapati or gaNesha, the elephant headed son of Shiva, the destroyer, is the leader of a host (gaNa) of demigods, and is prayed to to remove obstacles at the beginning of all major actions, including ceremonies. He may be considered the god of auspicious beginnings, and is a central figure in some sects of Hinduism: including large swaths of the West and South India.
Pillai, I believe (I know no Dravidian language), is a Dravidian origin Tamil word for small, youth, son, prince, etc., and is used as parts of names denoting various high castes.
I do not know enough Tamil to know why the extra -p- appears and whether this is the correct explanation.
Tamil does not have voicing and aspiration as phonemic features (almost), so kaNapathi may just be Indoaryan gaNapati: in Sanskrit, gaNa (from gaN, to count) meaning masses and pati is master or husband. gaNapati or gaNesha, the elephant headed son of Shiva, the destroyer, is the leader of a host (gaNa) of demigods, and is prayed to to remove obstacles at the beginning of all major actions, including ceremonies. He may be considered the god of auspicious beginnings, and is a central figure in some sects of Hinduism: including large swaths of the West and South India.
Pillai, I believe (I know no Dravidian language), is a Dravidian origin Tamil word for small, youth, son, prince, etc., and is used as parts of names denoting various high castes.
I do not know enough Tamil to know why the extra -p- appears and whether this is the correct explanation.
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