Tamil inscriptions in Sri Lanka date from the centuries before Christ[1] to the modern era. The vast majority of inscriptions date to the centuries following the 10th century AD, and were issued under the reigns of both Tamil and Sinhala rulers alike.[2] Out of the Tamil rulers, almost all surviving inscriptions were issued under the occupying Chola dynasty, whilst one stone inscription and coins of the Jaffna Kingdom have also been found.[3]
Most inscriptions are of a Hindu or Buddhist nature, or record the exploits of merchants, soldiers, officials and kings.
The longest Tamil inscription in the island is from the Lankatilaka Vihara, for which historian K. Indrapala states the following:
"The status of the Tamil language in the Sinhalese kingdom in the pre-colonial period would be an eye-opener to many. Where necessary, Sinhalese kings or other authorities used the Tamil language for their epigraphic records. In the fourteenth century, a record inscribed in Sinhala on the walls of the Lankatilaka Temple was provided with a full Tamil translation on the same walls, as if setting an example to future rulers of the country. This Tamil inscription, incidentally, is the longest Tamil epigraph in the island."[4]
A steatite seal from a signet ring found in an early Iron Age burial in Anaikoddai, Jaffna.
The seal contains both Brahmi and megalithic graffiti symbols arranged in a way that suggests that they may be a translation of each other.[5]
The legend is read as ‘Ko Veta’. Ko means 'King' in Tamil and refers to a chieftain here. It is comparable to such names as Ko Ataṉ and Ko Putivira occurring in contemporary Tamil Brahmi inscriptions of ancient South India.[6][7][8] The Trident symbol is also found after a Tamil Brahmi inscription of the Chera dynasty supporting this interpretation.[9]
Locally produced coins with Tamil Brahmi legends were found in the southern town of Tissamaharama. They are dated to between 200 BC - 200 AD. The coins are thought to have been issued by Tamil traders settled in Sri Lanka.[10]
