Know the Etymology: 20
Place Name of the Day: Sunday, 02 April 2017

Ampala-veḷi, Āńḍi-ambalama

அம்பல-வெளி, ஆண்டி₃-அம்ப₃லம
Ampala-veḷi, Āńḍi-ambalama

Ampala+veḷi
Āńḍi+ambalama

The open place around the travellers' rest; or the open stretch of land having a travellers' rest

The travellers' rest that was the abode of a Śaiva mendicant or Muslim Fakir

Ampalam	a shelter for the use of public or travellers, usually an open, pillared hall, built at regular intervals by the side of highways or built at junctions and waiting places such as ferry stations (Eezham Tamil); a structure with basic facilities for public and travellers to have temporary shelter (Tamil, inscriptions, 789 CE, SII, ii, 99); hall made for a deity, open hall, hall for the public to take shelter (Tamil, Paripāṭal, 18: 27: 9; Maṇimēkalai, 13: 106-107; 14: 4); open space for the use of public, village assembly for transacting village affairs (Tamil, DED 173); place devoted for public use, assemblies etc., a temple (Malayalam DED 173); Ambala: an open shed or hall where public affairs are discussed (Kannada, DED 173); Ambila: house on village green for meetings (Kodagu, DED 173); Ambila, Ambela: the place around or in front of a temple (Tulu, DED 173); Ambalama: a kind of shed built on the roadside for travellers to rest in (Sinhala, Clough, Sorata); Ambara: circumference (Sanskrit, Pali, CDIAL 573); sky (Prakrit, CDIAL 573, Sinhala, Sorata); Amparam: a place to gather, a place to sleep (Tamil, Piṅkalam 4:260); Amai: (verb) to crowd together (Tamil, DED 164); Amal: (verb) to be close (Tamil, DED 164); Amalai: noise, din of people (Tamil, DED 166); Ampal: talk of the public, gossip, scandal (Tamil, Caṅkam diction, Kuṟuntokai, 51: 6); Ampalam-ākku: (verb) to make anything public (Tamil)
Ambalama	kind of shed built on the roadside for travellers to rest in (Sinhala, Clough); "Mẹgiyanṭa viśrāma gẹṇīma sańdahā mārgāsannayehi kala geval" (Sinhala, Sorata). See box on Ampalam in Tamil for etymology
Āṇṭi	a class of non-Brahmin Śaivas, a non-Brahman Śaiva mendicant usually dressed in yellow cloth (Tamil, DED 356); religious mendicant, worshipper of Subrahmanya, a Paṇṭāram or Śaiva mendicant (Malayalam, DED 356); Āṇḍi: a religious mendicant of the Śaivas (Kannada, DED 356); Aṇḍarulu: religious mendicant of the Śaiva sect (Telugu inscriptions, DED 356); etymology traced to, Āḷ, Āṇṭ: (verb) to rule, control (Tamil, DED 5157); Āṇmai: controlling power (Tamil, DED 5157)
Āńḍi	a class of non-Brahmin Śaivas, non-Brahman Śaiva mendicant usually dressed in yellow cloth, non-Buddhist religious mendicant, Muslim fakir, (Sinhala, Sorata). See box on Āṇṭi in Tamil for etymology.
Veḷi	open space (Tamil, DED 5498). See column 13

In the context of place names, Ampalam in Tamil listed as Dravidian (DED 173) and Ambalama in Sinhala, mean a public rest or travellers' rest built by the side of highways, junctions and waiting places such as ferry stations.

In other contexts, Ampalam in Tamil and its cognates in other Dravidian languages, mean a public hall, public place, village assembly, temple, a hall in a temple, a hall in front of a temple etc. (see box).

In meaning a public rest or travellers' rest, the use of Ampalam is widely noticed in old Tamil literature and inscriptions. But in the island, the usage is more popular with Sinhala than with Eezham Tamil. Besides place names, several hundreds of Ambalams could be found marked in the survey maps. In Eezham Tamil of the North, Maṭam is the term that is used in place of Ampalam, while the use of Ampalam is seen to some extent in the Eezham Tamil of the other regions.

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Ampalam meaning a public hall in old Tamil usage:

"மாரி நடுநாள் வல்லிருள் மயக்கத்து ஆரிடை உழந்தோர் அம்பலம் மரீஇ" (மணிமேகலை, 14: 3-4)

"Māri naṭunāḷ valliruḷ mayakkattu āriṭai uḻantōr ampalam marī-i" (Maṇimēkalai, 14: 3-4)

On a rainy midnight, travellers who suffered in the long highway by confusion caused by pitch darkness, reached the Ampalam (public hall)

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Ampalam and maintenance of Ampalam in Tamil inscriptions:

"அம்பலந் தண்ணீரட்டுவார்க்கும் தீயெரிப்பானுக்குமாகப் பங்கொன்றும்" (Tamil, inscription, 789 CE, SII, ii, 99)

"Ampalan taṇṇīraṭṭuvārkkum tīyerippāṉukkumākap paṅkoṉṟum" (Tamil inscription, 789 CE, SII, ii, 99)

One share (of the endowment) goes for those who supply water and he who maintain fire at the Ampalam




அம்பலப்புறமாக விற்றுக்கொடுத்த நிலம் (Tamil inscription, 879 CE, SII, xiii, 187)

"Ampalappuṟamāka viṟṟukkoṭutta nilam" (Tamil inscription, 879 CE, SII, xiii, 187)

The land sold and given for the maintenance of the Ampalam

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Ambalama in Sinhala meaning travellers' rest built at regular intervals:

"Ambalama kẹḍuṇaṭa gavuva koṭa vennē nẹhẹ" (Dictionary of Proverbs of the Sinhalese, Senaveratna, 1936)

The Gavuva does not become short because the Ambalama is broken down. (Gavuva: an old measure of distance roughly equal to three and a half miles; Kāvatam in Tamil)

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Āṇṭi in Tamil means a non-Brahmin Śaiva mendicant. In Sinhala, Ańḍi/ Āńḍiyā is a non-Brahmin Śaiva mendicant as well as a Muslim Fakir. Non-Buddhist religious mendicant is the basic shade of meaning in Sinhala.

The etymology of Āṇṭi, listed as Tamil/ Dravidian (DED 356), is traced to Āḷ / Āṇṭ (verb) and Āṇmai (noun) related to the controlling power.

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Āńḍi meaning a Śaiva mendicant in a Sinhala proverb:

"Lipē aḷu gāganṭa Āńḍiyāgē avasara moṭada?" (Dictionary of Proverbs of the Sinhalese, Senaveratna, 1936)

Do you need an Āńḍiyā's permission to rub yourself with ash from your own fireplace

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Ampala-veḷi is a place in Munthal division of Puttalam district.

Āńḍi-ambalama is in Katana division of Gampaha district.

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Some related place names:

Ambalama: (Sinhala)

Aḷut-ambalama: Seethawaka, Colombo. Aḷut: new

Paraṇambalama: Paraṇa+ambalama: Wattala, Gampaha. Paraṇa: old

Gal-ambalama: Medadumbara, Kandy. Gal: stone

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Ambalan, Ambalam: (Sinhala)

Ambalan-goḍa: Homagama, Colombo

Ambalam-mulla: Katana, Gampaha

Ambalan-duva: Panadura, Kalutara

Ambalan-goḍa: Ambalangoda, Galle

Ambalan-vatta: Akmeemana, Galle

Ambalan-toṭa: Ambalantota, Hambantota

Ambalan-oya: Damana, Ampara

Ambalam-piṭiya: Dehiovita, Kegalle

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Ambala: (Sinhala; it could be shortened form of Ambalama, or could mean a plant, Limnanthemum cristatum)

Ambala: Beliatta, Hambantota

Ambalāva: Mawanella, Kegalle

Ambala-kanda: Aranayake, Kegalle

Ambala-yāya: Divulapitiya, Gampaha

Ambala-gala: Medadumbara, Kandy

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Ampalam: (Tamil)

Ampalap-perumāḷ-kuḷam: Thunukkai, Mullaiththeevu. Ampalap-perumāḷ: a personal name

Ampalavaṉ-pokkaṇai: Karaithuraippattu, Mullaiththeevu. Ampalavaṉ: probably, Aṉ affix added to Ampalam; or a personal name

Ampilan-tuṟai: Manmunai Southwest, Batticaloa. Ampilan: a form noticed in Batticaloa usage; Note the Tulu form Ambila in the box; the place is a ferry point having a shelter

Tillai-ampalap-piḷḷaiyār-kōyil: Varaṇi, Jaffna (One Inch Sheet). This is a place having a temple named after the Piḷḷaiyār deity in the Citamparam temple, where Siva dances in the hall called Tillai-ampalam

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Āńḍi: (Sinhala)

Āńḍi-mulla: Divulapitiya, Gampaha

Āńḍi-deṇiya: Udadumbara, Kandy

Āńḍiyā-tẹnna: Hatharaliyadda, Kandy

Āńḍi-gedara: Kuliyapitiya East, Kurunegala

Āńḍi-gama: Mahakumbukkadawala, Puttalam

Koyilāńḍi-gama: Kōyil-āńḍi-gama: Anaimadu, Puttalam

Āńḍiyā-gala: Palagala, Anuradhapura

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Āṇṭi: (Tamil)

Āṇṭiyā-puḷiyaṅkuḷam: Vengalachcheddikulam, Vavuniya

Āṇṭi-muṉai: Munthal, Puttalam




Revised: Sunday, 02 April 2017, 18:35

First published: Monday, 02 July 2007, 01:00