There's Lot in a Name
Finding the Rebel Dewan in Archives
Keywords:
Velu Thampi, Vallay Tomby, identity, anglicisation, archival recordsAbstract
Digital archives have tried to “democratise knowledge” by facilitating easier access to records. They have facilitated the introduction of several features like catalogue lists, indexes, timeline filters, and in-text search options. But what happens when the catalogue uses the lesser-known, Anglicised spelling of a native figure? This article tries to answer this through the simultaneous absence and presence of the figure of Velu Thampi in the archive. Thampi was a rebel dewan of Travancore, and issued a proclamation in Malayalam in 1809, urging the people of the state to unite against the British.
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