Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of figures, chart and maps
- List of tables
- Preface
- Glossary
- List of abbreviations
- Map 1 The Kingdoms of Kotte and Kandy
- Map 2 Some physical features and place names
- Map 3 Present administrative divisions and the contemporary migration patterns of fishermen
- Map 4 The coastal waters of Sri Lanka and southeastern India
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Karāva in the past
- 3 Caste among the Sinhalese
- 4 Economic opportunities and social relations, 1500s–1790s
- 5 The British period: the economic advances of a Karāva elite
- 6 Social competition, caste conflict and manifestations of Karāva power
- 7 Casteism in South Asian politics during British times: emergent cultural typifications or elite fictions?
- 8 Causal factors in the moulding of Karāva entrepreneurship and the emergence of a Karāva elite
- 9 Concluding remarks
- Tables
- Appendix 1 Problems and cautionary notes concerning the information derived from the plantation directories in the sequential series known as Ferguson's Ceylon Directory
- Appendix 2 A contemporary newspaper account of the reception provided for a Karāva notable on his receiving the title of ‘Mudaliyar of the Governor's Gate’ in 1853
- Appendix 3 A list of caste pamphlets and caste literature in chronological order, 1864–1930
- Select bibliography
- Index
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of figures, chart and maps
- List of tables
- Preface
- Glossary
- List of abbreviations
- Map 1 The Kingdoms of Kotte and Kandy
- Map 2 Some physical features and place names
- Map 3 Present administrative divisions and the contemporary migration patterns of fishermen
- Map 4 The coastal waters of Sri Lanka and southeastern India
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Karāva in the past
- 3 Caste among the Sinhalese
- 4 Economic opportunities and social relations, 1500s–1790s
- 5 The British period: the economic advances of a Karāva elite
- 6 Social competition, caste conflict and manifestations of Karāva power
- 7 Casteism in South Asian politics during British times: emergent cultural typifications or elite fictions?
- 8 Causal factors in the moulding of Karāva entrepreneurship and the emergence of a Karāva elite
- 9 Concluding remarks
- Tables
- Appendix 1 Problems and cautionary notes concerning the information derived from the plantation directories in the sequential series known as Ferguson's Ceylon Directory
- Appendix 2 A contemporary newspaper account of the reception provided for a Karāva notable on his receiving the title of ‘Mudaliyar of the Governor's Gate’ in 1853
- Appendix 3 A list of caste pamphlets and caste literature in chronological order, 1864–1930
- Select bibliography
- Index
Summary
This book can be said to have its roots in a contretemps between university students and army personnel at Peradeniya Campus in February 1969: for this conflict provided an unexpected vacation which enabled me to write up a seminar paper on the rise of a Karāva elite which was then presented before the Ceylon Studies Seminar. Since then progressively modified versions of this paper have been presented at various times at the Center of Asian Studies at the University of Chicago, at Harvard University, at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London and at the Südasien Institut of the University of Heidelberg. I have profited from every one of these discussions. In the course of re-directing my research and expanding my findings into a book-length analysis, I have also been fortunate in receiving advice and assistance in various forms from numerous individuals. At the risk of courting charges of invidious distinction, I take this opportunity to acknowledge the assistance received from the late G. C. Mendis and the late Shanti Sri Chandrasekera and to thank Paul Alexander, Maren Bellwinkel, Barney Cohn, C. R. de Silva, K. N. O. Dharmadasa, Hans-Dieter Evers, Sena Jayasuriya, V. Kanapathypillai, Bruce Kapferer, Gananath Obeyesekere, Patrick Peebles, L. S. D. Pieris and Dietmar Rothermund for their encouragement and aid. In its final stages the anonymous referees of the Cambridge University Press helped me to bring this production into more readable shape. Despite this imposing list of support, and the equally imposing history of this publication, shortcomings must remain. I claim the right to be criticised for these.
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- Information
- Caste Conflict Elite Formation , pp. xiii - xivPublisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1982