Muthuraja

This article is about the Indian caste called Muthuraja. For other uses, see Muttaraiyar.

Muthuraja (also known as Mutharaiyar) is a Tamil and Telugu^[1] speaking community found in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

Muthuraja
Classification	Backward caste
Religions	Hinduism • Jainism
Languages	Tamil • Telugu
Country	India
Populated states	Tamil Nadu
Region	Central Tamil Nadu

Etymology

The etymology of the community name is unclear. The names Muthuraja and Muthuraiyar may be derived from two words, the Tamil name muthu meaning "pearl" and raja or raiyar both meaning "king".^[2] Muttaraiyar may also be derived from mundru meaning "three" and tharai meaning "earth".^{[citation needed]}

Titles

Their title Ambalakkarar is derived from the Tamil word ambalam meaning panchayat or "village council", as they served as the heads of these councils.^[2]

Demographics

The Tamil Speaking Muthuraja are densely distributed in the Tiruchirappalli, Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Karur, Madurai, Dindigul, Perambalur and Sivagangai districts of Tamil Nadu.^{[citation needed]}

The Telugu speaking Muthuraja Naidu comparatively fewer in number are mostly distributed in the Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kanchipuram, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Viluppuram and Cuddalore districts of northern Tamil Nadu^{[citation needed]}