Valvettithurai

History

According to folk etymology, was the foundation of the village laid by a Maravar chieftain known as Valliathevan, who was given the land by the founder of the Jaffna Kingdom. The clans of the Maravars of southern Tamil Nadu and the Karaiyars of Valvetthithurai have long had coastal military alliances through trade and marriage. Both clans have long engaged in seatrade, with Valvettithurai being a prominent seaport in the northern Jaffna region. The coastal clans of Valvettithurai were involved in warfare. The coastal chiefs of Valvettithurai fought under the leadership of Migapulle Arachchi and fought on the side of Jaffna king Cankili II in the Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom. The population of the coastal town are predominantly Shaivites. The Kadalodiekal own the major temples such as the famous Vaitheeswaran Sivan kovil. The Kadalodikal (Tamil name for mariners) of Valvettithurai, the wealthier clan of the Karaiyars were specifically involved in the seatrade between Jaffna region and the Coromandel Coast, including up to the coasts of Myanmar. The Japanese occupation of Burma, hindered the seatrade of the Kadalodiekal. Their situation was deteriorated with the colonial independence of Sri Lanka, and many of the Kadalodiekal got engaged in large-scale smuggling between Sri Lanka and India. The town also produced the renowned brigantine known locally as Annapoorani Ammal. This native vessel known as a thoni, built with a blend of Jaffna and European tradition, sailed from Valvettithurai to Gloucester in Massachusetts of United States in 1937. Built in 1930 by native traditional shipwrighters for the purpose of serving as a cargo ship in the Indian rice trade, the vessel was bought by an American known as William C. Robinson. Robinson, changing the name of…

Geography

Valvettithuri is a coastal town bounded by the Indian Ocean to its north. It is situated at the tip of the northern province and is considered as a place of strategic importance due to the presence of the Palk Strait and its close proximity to the coast of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The temperature varies from 25 to 34 °C. The town experiences a moderate climate in September–January. It receives much of its rainfall during the North East monsoon between October and December. Being a coastal town, the weather is also influenced by cyclones and tropical currents.

Most-observed species

• Brahminy Kite

  Haliastur indus (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  193
• House Crow

  Corvus splendens Vieillot, 1817 · Aves
  174
• Common Myna

  Acridotheres tristis (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  173
• Asian Palm-Swift

  Cypsiurus balasiensis (J.E.Gray, 1829) · Aves
  157
• Glossy Ibis

  Plegadis falcinellus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  156
• Eurasian Collared-Dove

  Streptopelia decaocto (Frivaldszky, 1838) · Aves
  147
• Great Egret

  Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  144
• Red-wattled Lapwing

  Vanellus indicus (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  136