Kongu Vellala Gounder History and other Details

கொங்கு என்றால் தேவர்கள் தேன் சொறிந்த நாடு என பொருள்


தலை சிறந்த தமிழகத்தில் சேர,சோழ,பாண்டியர் எனும் உற்ற சகோதரர்கள் ஆட்சியில் சமதர்மம் , ஜனநாயகம், சன்மார்கம் யாவும் தலைத்தோங்கி நின்ற காலத்தில் ஒரே குலம் ஒருவனே தேவன் என உலகை படைத்த பார்வதி பரமசிவன் நாமம் பாடி உழவு துறைக்கு முதலிடம் கொடுத்தார்கள்.

வடக்கு நந்திகிரி வராககிரி தெற்கு
குடக்குப் பொறுப்பு வெள்ளிக் குன்று கிடக்கும்
களித்தண்டலை மேவு காவிரிசூழ் நாட்டுக்
குளித்தண்டலை யளவு கொங்கு


Origin of Kongu and Kongunadu:

Lessons from the Mahabharatam :

The region of Kongunadu originally belongs to the Kurinji (tropical evergreen mountainous) and Mullai types (tropical deciduous plateau) which were originally densely to medium sparsely forested. The Gounders have in living memory, the very different days from now, when people moved around far and wide but within the forested Kaveri catchment valley with their cow herds. These people did not settle down at a single major point in history. There are such cowherds even to be found today in the remote forests of the Sathiyamangalam ghats for example. The herds were vast and mostly belonged to the Bargur cattle type. This is reflected in the Mahabharata references in the Kongunadu where Bhisma and the Kauravas came for a cattle raid which is in the pattern called Vetchi (Tam:வெட்சி) in Sangam literature, where cattle, the primary wealth of the people is taken as stake to initiate a war. Kongumandalasatakam says that the cattle raid was sucessfully repelled by Arjuna (Bruhannala) with Uttarakumaran, the son of the King Viratarayan of Ladapuram (modern Dharapuram) at a skirmish at the banks of the Kanchi (Noyil) (dates: 3100 B.C, Mahabharata). This place was named Tiruppur or the place where the cattle were rerouted back to Ladapuram. These shifting farmer-cattleherd villages were called pattis after the cow pens. The main food products were cow milk and dry crops like Aariyam (Varaku or Ragi), Kambu, Cholam and Tinai. They also exchanged these produce for rice from marginal settled farmers. Many clan or kootam names remind of such great cowherds and marginal landlords.
Kootams / Kulam

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The Gounders are followers of the traditional form of Tamil Hinduism. In earlier times a sizeable population followed seems to have followed Jainism (Vijayamangalam, Jinapuram)and later reconverted by the Siddhar traditions (most of the Siddhars lived in Kongunadu). The Gounders follow the system of Gotram, popularly called “Kootam/Kulam” in which persons from the same Kootam do not marry one another as they are considered to have descended from the same ancestor. Each Kootam has its own Kulaguru (or popularly saamiar- for example, the kulaguru of melkarai poonthurai nadu kootams is Pasur Akilanda Dikshitar), who is traditionally respected. (This fact is cleverly skipped by Dravidian historians). Every Kootam also has one or more Kuladeivams or a Clan Deities. Some of the Kootams/Kulams are:

•Adhitreya Kumban
•Aadai
•Aanthai
•Aadhi
•Adhirai
•Aavan
•Andai
•Agni
•Aavan
•Anangan
•Andhuvan
•Ariyan
•Alagan
•Bharatan
•Bramman
•Cheran
•Devendran
•Dananjayan
•Danavantan
•Eenjan
•Ennai
•Indran
•Kaadan
•Kaadai
•Kaari
•Kaavalar
•Kadunthuvi
•Kalinji
•Kambakulathaan
•Kanakkan
•Kanavaalan
•Kannan
•Kannandhai
•Karunkannan
•Kauri
•Kavalan
•Kiliyan
•Keeran
•Kodarangi
•Koorai
•Kuruppan
•Kotrandhai
•Kottaarar
•Kovar
•Koventhar
•Kumarandhai
•Kundali
•Kungili
•Kuniyan
•Kunnukkan
•Kuyilan
•Kuzhlaayan
•Maadai
•Maadhaman
•Maathuli
•Maavalar
•Maniyan
•Mayilan
•Mazhluazhlagar
•Medhi
•Meni
•Meenavan
•Moimban
•Moolan
•Mooriyan
•Mukkannan
•Munaiveeran
•Muthan
•Muzhlukkadhan
•Naarai
•Nandhan
•Neelan
•Neerunni
•Neidhali
•Neriyan
•Odhaalar
•Ozhukkar
•Paaliyan
•Paamban
•Paanan
•Paandian
•Paadhari
•Padaithalaiyan
•Padhuman
•Padukkunni
•Paidhali
•Panaiyan
•Panangadai
•Panjaman
•Pannai
•Pannan
•Paamaran
•Pavalan
•Payiran
•Periyan
•Perunkudi
•Pillan
•poondhai
•Podiyan
•Ponnan
•Poochadhai Poodhiyan
•Poosan
•Porulthantha or Perizhanthan
•Punnai
•Puthan
•Saakadai
•Sathandhai
•Sathuvaraayan
•Sanagan
•Sedan
•Sellan
•Sempoothan
•Semvan
•Sengannan
•Sengunni
•Seralan
•Sevadi
•Sevventhi
•Sevvayan
•Silamban
•Soman
•Soolan
•Sooriyan
•Sothi
•Sowriyan
•Surapi
•Thanakkavan
•Thavalayan
•Thazhinji
•Themaan
•Thodai
•Thooran
•Thorakkan
•Thunduman
•Uvanan
•Uzhavan
•Vaanan
•Vannakkan
•Veera Kumar
•Veliyan
•Vellamban
•Vendhan
•Venduvan
•Viliyan
•Villi
•Vilosanan
•Viradhan
•Viraivulan