Padmasaliyar History

Who are the Padmasaliyar?

The Padmasaliyar are an important community connected with the ancient weaving traditions of South India. Historical traces of the community are found especially in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Weaving is the foremost of their traditional occupations, but the history of the Padmasaliyar is not confined to weaving alone. It extends across many fields: family tradition, the gotra system, religious beliefs, temple worship, handloom and cloth production, trade, education and community organisations.

Among the important works that recorded the communities of South India in the 19th and 20th centuries, Castes and Tribes of Southern India by Edgar Thurston and K. Rangachari stands out. It is an ethnographic study published in seven volumes by the Government Press, Madras, in 1909.

How to read this page

This history contains two kinds of information. We always show them separately.

• Kulapurana / traditional account
• Written record / research evidence

Weaving — an ancient craft tradition

Weaving and cloth production are closely bound up with the history of the Padmasaliyar community.

In South India, weavers’ settlements, handloom production, garments for temples, and cloth supplied to kings and merchants were part of social and economic life in many periods.

So when we study the history of this community, the craft tradition, the history of migration, the religious tradition and the family/gotra system must all be looked at together.

The name “Padmasaliyar”

In community tradition the name “Padmasali / Padmasaliyar” is connected with two words.

Padma

Lotus

Sali

A word explained as being connected with the weaving tradition

The Kulapurana tradition of the Padmasaliyar

In the traditional Kulapuranas of the Padmasaliyar community, the great sage Markandeya and Bhavana Rishi hold an important place.

History and purana

Accounts such as Bhavana Rishi, Markandeya, the lotus fibre and the origin of the 101 gotras belong to the Padmasaliyar Kulapurana and traditional lore.

They are very important for understanding the cultural memory and identity of the community. But they should not be presented on their own as historical events proved by archaeology or inscriptions. For that reason, on this site they will always be marked as “Kulapurana tradition”.

The Padmasaliyar in the wider South Indian weaving tradition

The history of the Padmasaliyar is joined to the wider history of weaving in South India.

Historical studies contain references that connect this community with the Telugu-speaking weaving communities. Studies note that over time members of the community migrated from the Andhra regions to other regions, including Tamil Nadu.

Even when the families that moved settled in new places, they continued to preserve their identity through occupation, language, family tradition, gotra, worship of their deities and community ties.

The Padmasaliyar in old records

When writing the history of the Padmasaliyar, it is necessary to look at old records along with oral traditions.

How we understand our history

We see the history of the Padmasaliyar not as a single story but as a history with many layers.

1. 1
   Kulapurana traditionMarkandeya – Bhavana Rishi – the gotra tradition
2. 2
   Craft traditionWeaving – handloom – cloth production – trade
3. 3
   Historical recordsInscriptions – government records – old books – ethnographic accounts
4. 4
   History of migrationThe spread of the community from the Andhra and Telangana regions to many regions including Tamil Nadu
5. 5
   Cultural traditionGotra – family – family deity – temple – festival – community organisation