Know the Etymology: 396
Place Name of the Day: Wednesday, 18 March 2015

Theakkam, Theakkam-A'naikkaddu, Tha'n'neerth-thaangki

தேக்கம், தேக்கம் அணைக்கட்டு, தண்ணீர்த்தாங்கி
Tēkkam, Tēkkam-aṇaikkaṭṭu, Taṇṇīrt-tāṅki

Theakkam
Theakkam+a'naik+kaddu
Tha'n'neer+thaangki

The place where the river water stagnates by a barrage (for diversion into a canal)

The dam or barrage causing the river water to stagnate

The water tank

Theakkam	obstruction of the flow of water, being brimful (Tamil, DED 3453); stagnation of water, storage of water (Tamil usages); from Theakku: (verb) to stop the flow as of water, to dam up (Tamil DED 3453); Theangku: (verb) to stagnate, to fill, become full, rise to the brim (Tamil, DED 3453); Thangku: (verb) to stay, sojourn, abide, remain, hold (Tamil, DED 3014); Thangkal (noun) staying, stopping (Tamil, DED 3014)
A'naikkaddu	dam, barrage (Tamil, DED 122+DED 1147); A'nai: (verb) to come near, touch, come in contact with (Tamil, DED 120); (noun) embankment, dam, ridge for retaining water in a field, bank of river or sea (Tamil, DED 122); Kaddu: (verb) to tie, fasten, build; (noun) building, dam, causeway (Tamil, DED 1147). See column on Udaiyaar-kaddu
Thaangki	water tank (Tamil); support, prop, one that holds, (Tamil, DED 3153); from Thaangku: (verb) to uphold, bear up, support, bear, endure (Tamil, DED 3153); Thaangkal: small pond (Tamil, inscription, 1285 CE, SII, vii, 818); Thaangngu: support, a vault (Malayalam, DED 3153); Thangngal: reservoir, support (Malayalam, DED 3153); further cognates found in Kota, Toda, Kannada, Kodagu and Tulu (DED 3153); Thangku: (verb) to stay, sojourn, abide, remain, hold (Tamil, DED 3014); Thangkal: (noun) staying, stopping (Tamil, DED 3014); Tank: a reservoir, an artificial pond or lake, made either by excavation or by damming (Anglo Indian, Hobson Jobson);

Theangku is a common Tamil verb meaning to stagnate or to retain water. Theakkam as noun means a place of stagnation or retention of water (DED 3453). The words are related to another set of Tamil/ Dravidian words, Thangku and Thangkal, which as verb and noun mean respectively to hold and staying (DED 3014)

Related to Theangku/ Theakkam and Thangku/ Thangkal are yet another set of Tamil/ Dravidian words, Thaangku (verb) and Thaangki/ Thaangkal (noun), respectively meaning to hold and a small pond or tank holding water (DED 3153).

The above Tamil/ Dravidian words have cognates such as Taankh in Gujarati and Tanka in Rajastani/ Marathi, meaning an artificial pond.

The Anglo-Indian word tank, meaning an artificial pond, reservoir or any structure for water storage, seems to be of Dravidian origin, most probably borrowed from Tamil/ Malayalam by the Portuguese.

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Tank is a commonly used word in the English usage of South Asia, to mean a storage pond, artificial lake or a reservoir of water. But it is not an English word. The Concise Oxford Dictionary marks the word Tank, in the above shades of meaning, as Indian English.

Hobson Jobson, a glossary of Anglo-Indian words, prepared by Col Henry Yule and renowned epigraphist Dr A C Burnell in 1886, gives the following meaning for the word Tank: “A reservoir, an artificial pond or lake, made either by excavation or by damming.”

According to Hobson Jobson, Tank “is one of the perplexing words which seem to have a double origin, in this case one Indian, the other European.”

Tracing the Indian origin of the word, Hobson Jobson brings out the usages Taankh in Gujarat and Tanka in Rajasthan and Maharashtra. Possibly, the word is related to Tadaaga in Sanskrit, the glossary says.

On the other hand, a word Tanque was used by the Portuguese from the very beginning of their contact with India, and this word is a form of Stagnum in Latin, Hobson Jobson notes, adding examples of derivatives such as Estang in old French and Estanque in Spanish.

However, passages from early writings cited by Hobson Jobson show that the Portuguese were using the word Tanque as early as in 1498 CE, to mean stone-built ponds they found in Kerala.

Early lexicons and inscriptions in Tamil amply attest to the usage Thaangkal in Tamil, from the Dravidian root Thaangku/ Thangku, meaning a pond or reservoir.

The word Thaangkal is also noticed in the place names of Tamil Nadu, meaning a reservoir of water. One well-known example is the lake Veadan-thaangkal near Chennai, which is also a bird sanctuary.

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Thaangkal in Tamil lexicons 8 -10 century CE meaning pond or reservoir:

“Ilagnchi thaangkal chunai ealvai oadai eari kayam payam uva'lakam, vaavi” (c. 8th century CE, Thivaakara Nika'ndu 5:61)

“இலஞ்சி தாங்கல் சுனை ஏல்வை ஓடை ஏரி கயம் பயம் உவளகம், வாவி” (திவாகர நிகண்டு 5:61)

Ilagnchi. Thaangkal, Chunai, Ealvai, Eari, Kayam, Payam and Uva'lakam (are words for) Vaavi (reservoir of water)


“Kuddam thaangkal…ku'lam neer nilaip peyarea” (c. 10th century CE, Pingkala Nika'ndu 4:157)

“குட்டம் தாங்கல்…குளம் நீர் நிலைப் பெயரே” (பிங்கல நிகண்டு 4:157)

Kuddam, Thaangkal…and Ku'lam are names for a reservoir of water


Thaangkal in Tamil inscriptions:

“Ivvoorka'l thaangkal pattukka'lum udpada vi'lai nilamum” (1285 CE, South Indian Inscriptions vii, 818)

“இவ்வூர்கள் தாங்கல் பற்றுக்களும் உட்பட விளை நிலமும்” (1285 CE, South Indian Inscriptions vii, 818)

The cultivation fields, including the Thaangkal (tanks) and adjacent lands of this village

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A'naik-kaddu in Tamil means a dam, literally meaning, embankment structure. The phrase is made of two components: A'nai as verb (DED 120) meaning to embrace (as bank); as noun meaning a dam (DED 120), and Kaddu as verb and noun respectively meaning to construct and construction (DED 1147). Kaddu also independently means a dam. See column on Udaiyaar-kaddu

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Theakkam is a place in Madu division of Mannaar district, where the Aruvi-aa'ru River is obstructed by a barrage for the diversion of the river water into a canal leading to the Giant's Tank.

Theakkam A'naikkaddu is the name of the dam or barrage that causes the Aruvu-aa'ru River water to stagnate at Theakkam in the Madu division of Mannaar district (One Inch Sheet)

Tha'n'neer-thaangki is a place in Naanaaddaan division of Mannaar district.

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Some related place names:

A'naikkaddu: The dam; Koara'laippattu West division, Batticaloa district

Karai-a'naikkadduk-kiraamam: The village of the dam at the bank; Ka'ndaava'lai division, Ki'linochchi district

First published: Wednesday, 18 March 2015, 21:18