1201 SL/PR - BYg 82 FAS O™ EB Early | Tamils OF Lanka ==== Ilankai (FROM EARLIEST TIMES TO CIRCA 10TH CENTURY) N. PARAMESWARAN hx Early Tamils OF Lanka ==== Ilankai (FROM EARLIEST TIMES TO CIRCA 10TH CENTURY) N. PARAMESWARAN a bXKYA CAS Za Copyright: Author All rights reserved. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research or review, no part of the publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form, or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright owner First Edition: January 1999. Second Edition (revised): October 2000. Cover and Art Design by Nandhini Printed by: DMJ Printers, No. 30-1, Jalan Vivekananda,Off Jalan Tun Sambandan 50470 Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia. Gi) NYA BAN FOREWORD It gives me much pleasure to write the foreword for this book written by my old friend and classmate, Mr. N. Parameswaran. History is a fascinating subject. Unfortunately it is also true that history is easily distorted and misinterpreted and also misunderstood. Myths can gradually assume the form of facts and whole generations of people may believe these myths for historical truth. Mr. Parameswaran’s book is therefore a welcome contribution to the cause of historical truth. 1 am impressed by the effort that the author has taken to delve deeply into the available written records as well as tangible evidence such as archaeological remains, epigraphical sources and geographical features. He has not confined his attention to the Jaffna Peninsula nor the island of Sri Lanka but has also gone into early South Indian history, usually identified with the Cheras, Cholas and Pandyas. Some of the material the author presents is inevitably a little technical but his conclusions based on cogent evidence are convincing. He has dealt not only with political developments and conflicts but also with the socio-cultural history of the Tamils and other peoples. There are references to the religious beliefs, creative arts and linguistic characteristics of the Tamils in particular. 1 feel that the author should continue from where he left off and bring the history up-to-date. I have no doubt the book will be read by numerous individuals besides the Tamil readership to whom it should be of absorbing interest. I understand that this book is his maiden effort at writing. Therefore, in congratulating him on a job well done, I also urged him to continue writing, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. John Doraisamy 20 August 2000 (iii)