Know the Etymology: 12
Place Name of the Day: Sunday, 19 March 2017

Karaṭip-pūval, Pūvaṟ-karai, Kūvil

கரடிப்பூவல், பூவற்கரை, கூவில்
Karaṭip-pūval, Pūvaṟ-karai, Kūvil

Karaṭi+pūval
Pūval+karai
Kūvil

The waterhole frequented by bears

The bank or side of the waterhole or small pond

The waterhole or small pond

Pūval	waterhole, a waterhole burrowed in sand near a river, pond etc., to collect clean drinking water, improvised well, a small pond (Eezham Tamil, folk usage; Jaffna: Kanagasabapathy, P., "Maram, Māntar, Mirukam," 2012, p. 116-117; Batticaloa: Kandiah, V.C., 1964); well (Tamil, Tivākaram, 5: 65); dampness, moisture (Malayalam, DED 4505); possible P/ K interchange, cognate of Kūval: a well, improvised well, waterhole, hollow, hole, pit (Tamil, DED 1909, Caṅkam diction, Ku'runthokai 224: 3-5; Natti'nai, 41: 4; Pathittuppaththu, 51: 4); Kuva: shallow well where water can be dipped by hand (Kodagu, DED 1909); Guvelū: a well (Tulu, DED 1909); Guvil: as in Gedi-guvil: a large long pond near a house (Sinhala, Clough); Kū: well, hole, hollow, pit; "Kūpa, Vaḷa" (Sinhala, Sorata, app.); Kūpa: hole, hollow, cave (Sanskrit, Rig Vedic, CDIAL 3400, note the root Ku/ Kū corresponding to Dravidian); pit, well (Sanskrit lexicons, Pali, CDIAL 3400); Kūva: pit, well (Prakrit, CDIAL 3400); possible K/ C/ S/ J change; Juva: a well (Parji, DED, App 38); Sūve: a well (Gadba, DED, App 38); Cuvā, Suva: a well (Gondi, DED App 38); Cua: well in sand (Gondi, DED App 38); Cuva: a well (Pengo, Maltese, DED, App. 38); Huva: a well (Manda, DED, App 38)
Kūvil	probably from Kūval; or from Kū+vil. See box on Pūval above and column 10)
Karaṭi	bear, sloth bear, Indian black bear (Tamil, DED 1263); cognates found in Malayalam, Kota, Toda, Kannada, Kodagu, Tulu and Telugu (DED 1263); probably from the black colour (Karu, DED 1278), strength (Karumai, DED 1287) or rugged appearance (Karadu, DED 1265)
Karai	means bank, side or edge in the context of the place name (Tamil, DED 1293). See column 353

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Pūval is especially a word of Eezham Tamil folk usage, meaning a waterhole, improvised well, a waterhole burrowed in sand to collect drinking water, or a small pond. The usage is noticed throughout the Eezham Tamil part of the island.

The word is not commonly found in standard Tamil literary usages, but in the meaning of a well it is listed and equated to Kūval by the earliest Tamil lexicon Tivākaram, dated to c. 8th century CE.

Unless some other etymon is behind the word form, Pūval seems to be a variation of Kūval in Tamil through K/ P interchange. In this connection, note the form Huva meaning a well in Manda (see box).

Kūval, seen from the times of Caṅkam literature in Tamil usage, and meaning a well, improvised well, waterhole, hollow, hole or pit, is listed as Dravidian (DED 1909).

A Kūval-related cognate, Guvelū in Tulu has a close parallel Guvil in Sinhala, meaning a large, long pond. Kū itself means a well or pit in Sinhala (see box). Sanskrit has a cognate Kūpa, but the root Ku/ Kū, related to curvature, pit etc., is generally taken as Dravidian.

The term Kūvil, noticed in two place names in Jaffna, seems to be another Eezham Tamil variation of Kūval.

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Pūval equated to Kūval:

"கூவலும்…பூவலும் கேணியும் துரவும் கிணறே" (திவாகர நிகண்டு, 5: 65)

"Kūvalum…pūvalum kēṇiyum turavum kiṇarē" (Tivākaram, 5: 65)

Kūval…Pūval, Kēṇi and Turavu mean a well (Kiṇaṟu)


Kūval meaning un-walled well or waterhole:

"கூவல் குரால் ஆன் படு துயர்" (குறுந்தொகை, 224: 3)

"Kūval kurāl āṉ paṭu tuyar" (Kuṟuntokai, 224: 3)

The misery of a cow fallen into a Kūval (unprotected well)


Kūval meaning a waterhole found with drinking water in the arid tract:

"சுரன் முதல் வருந்திய வருத்தம் பைபயப் பா-அர் மலி சிறு கூவலின் தணியும்" (நற்றிணை, 41:4)

“Curaṉ mutal varuntiya varuttam paipayap pā-ar mali ciṟu kūvalin taṇiyum” (Naṟṟiṇai, 41: 4)

To be relived from the sufferings of traversing the arid land, he would quench his thirst at the small waterhole found there in the mass of rocks


Kūval meaning a pit found with water:

"கூவல் துழந்த தடந்தாள் நாரை" (பதிற்றுப்பத்து, 51: 4)

Kūval tuḻanta taṭantāḷ nārai (Patiṟṟuppattu, 51: 4)

The wide-footed Nārai (pelican, crane, stork or heron) that was stirring the pit of water (for food)

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The usage of the word Pūval in Jaffna Tamil:

"எங்களை கண்ணகை அம்மன் கோவில் பூவலுக்குக் கூட்டிச்சென்று நீச்சலடிக்கப் பழக்கிவிடுவதாகக் கூறினார்" (கனகசபாபதி. பொ. "மரம், மாந்தர், மிருகம்", 2012, p. 116-117)

"Eṅkaḷai kaṇṇakai ammaṉ kōvil pūvalukkuk kūṭṭicceṉṟu nīccalaṭikkap paḻakkiviṭuvatākak kūṟiṉār" (Kanagasabapathy, P., "Maram Māntar, Mirukam," 2012, p. 116-117)

He said that he would take us to the pond of the Kaṇṇaki temple to train us in swimming [The place is in Caṇṭilippāy, Jaffna district]


The usage of the word Pūval in Batticaloa Tamil folk poetry:

"பூவலடிக்கு மச்சான் பொழுதுபட வந்திடுங்கோ" (V.C. Kanthaiya, 1964, p. 29)

"Pūvalaṭikku maccāṉ poḻutupaṭa vantiṭuṅkō" (V. C. Kanthaiya, 1964, p. 29)

My lover, come to the site of the waterhole at dusk. [The girl tells her lover who is also her cross cousin]


"பூவலைக் கிண்டி புதுக் குடத்தைக் கிட்ட வைத்து ஆரம் விளுந்த கிளி அள்ளுதுகா நல்ல தண்ணி"(V.C. Kanthaiya, 1964, p. 34)

"Puvalaik kiṇṭi putuk kuṭattaik kiṭṭa vaittu āram viḷunta kiḷi aḷḷutammā nalla taṇṇi" (V. C. Kanthaiya, 1964, p. 34)

Burrowing the waterhole further and keeping the new pot by the side, the parrot with the necklace (means the girl here) draws drinking water.

[The poem records the practice of freshly burrowing sand at the bottom of a Pūval (waterhole), every time the drinking water is collected. The water oozing out is allowed to settle, then drawn with the help of a ladle and is filtered through a piece of cloth kept at the pot's mouth. It usually takes some time to collect a potful of water.]

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Karaṭi is a common Tamil word meaning a bear (DED 1263). It is usual to name water sources after the animals that frequent them. But it seems that bears were a popular subject matter in naming waterholes used by people. The toponym Karaṭip-pūval is found in six places and there is one place Karaṭik-kuḻi, meaning the same.

See column 353 on Karai meaning a bank, side or edge in Tamil (DED 1293).

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Karaṭip-pūval comes as a place name in Puthukkudiyiruppu East division of Mullaiththeevu district; Karaithuraippattu division of Mullaiththeevu district; Manthai West division of Mannar district; Vannaththivillu division of Puttalam district; Manmunai West division of Batticaloa district and Trincomalee Town and Gravets division of Trincomalee district.

Pūvaṟ-karai is a locality in Vatiri, Vadamaratchi, in Jaffna district (V. Almanac, 2013-14, p. 96, notes a temple there called Pūvaṟ-karaip Piḷḷaiyār)

Kūvil is a locality in Kīrimalai in Valikamam North division of Jaffna district. There is another Kūvil in Pulōli South of Vadamaratchi in Jaffna district (the latter one noted by Balasundaram, p. 103).

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Some related place names:

Pūval:


Marutam-pūval: Puthukkudiyiruppu, Mullaiththeevu. Marutu: a tree

Muruṅkaiyaṭip-pūval: Poratheevuppattu, Batticaloa. Muruṅkai: a tree

Karaṭip-pūval-putuk-kaṇṭam: Karaithuraippattu, Mullaiththeevu. Putuk-kaṇṭam: new cultivation field

Kāraiyaṭip-pūval: a locality north of Nuraiccōlai, in Kaṟpiṭṭi Peninsula, Puttalam (One Inch Sheet). Kārai: a shrub

Viṉilaiyaṭip-pūval: near Paṭṭippaḻai, Manmunai Southwest, Batticaloa (One Inch Sheet). Viṉilai: may be a tree or shrub; or from Vini: thicket, forest

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Karaṭi:


Karaṭiyaṉ-āṟu: Eravurppattu, Batticaloa.

Karaṭiyaṉ-kuḷam: Eravurppattu, Batticaloa.

Karaṭit-tōṭṭam: Kaaraitheevu, Amparai district

Karaṭik-kuḻi: Musali, Mannar (It is now named as Zaam Nagar)

Karaṭip-pōkku: a locality in Parantaṉ in Kilinochchi district. Pōkku: passage, route

Karaṭik-kunṭu: Poonakari, Kilinochchi. Kuṇṭu: waterhole, small natural pond

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Revised: Sunday, 19 March 2017, 21:30
Revised: Saturday, 01 November 2014, 13:07

First published: Sunday, 24 June 2007, 01:00