Flags of Tamils

This is a list of Historical and Modern flags used by the Tamil People.

Historical Tamil flags

State	Flag	Description
Pandya Dynasty	Twin fish	According to legend, the goddess Meenakshi was born as the daughter of a Pandya king. Her eyes had the shape of a fish and remember the emblem of the Pandyas.[1]
Chola Dynasty	Jumping Tiger	The tiger flag of Chola is mentioned in Periya Puranam.[2][3]
Chera Dynasty	Bow and Arrow	The Chera kings had the title Villavar Kon, the Villavar clan founded the ancient Chera Kingdom. Villavar means archer in Tamil.[4]
Pallava Dynasty	Nandi and Simha	The Pallava royal insignia was the Simha (lion) and Nandi (bull) which was changeable. Narashimavarman used the lion as his emblem and Nandivarman preferred the Nandi. Under the reign of Parameswaravarman was Khatvanga (Skull mace) added to Pallava emblem.[5]
Ay Kingdom	Elephant	The Cheras took over the elephant emblem after the conquest of Ay Kingdom.
Aryacakravarti dynasty	Nandi	The emblem of Aryacakravarti depicting a white Nandi with sun and moon on a traditional yellow background.[6][7]
Vanniar (Chieftain)	Crossed Swords	The flag of Pandara Vanniyan the Last Tamil Ruler of Vannimai was Crossed Swords.The Vanniyar Caste used crossed swords and Agni Kundam as their emblem.
Pudukkottai state	Lion	The emblem of Pudukkottai state was a Lion with Hanuman flag in its right fore paw on a green background.

Modern Tamil flags

Sri Lankan Tamil flags

Name	Image	Description
Sri Lankan Tamil Ethnic flag		The Sri Lankan Tamils use a horizontally split flag in red and yellow. These colors are considered as the national color of the unrecognized state of Tamil Eelam.[8]
Flag of Tamil Eelam		Another famous flag of Sri Lankan Tamils is the Puli Kodi (tiger flag). The flag has emblem depicting a tiger jumping through a circle of bullets, with crossed black bayonets on a red background. This flag has its origin from the Tamil separation movement in Sri Lanka. The tiger symbol was adopted from the emblem of the Chola Empire, it should reflect the martial history (Veera varalaru) and the national upheaval of the Tamils. The crossed bayonets were based on the historical crossed sword emblem of Vannimai and represent the armed resistance. This flag was created by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 1977 and was later in 1990 designated as the National flag of Tamil Eelam. Today, the flag is often seen in Tamil diaspora protests all over the world.[9]

References

1. "Sri Meenakchi (Parvathi)". Hindu Society of Minnesota. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
2. Sekkizhar: “Chola of Cauvery country
3. Glimpses of life in 12th century South India
4. R. Leela Devi, History of Kerala (1986), p.106
5. R. Rajalakshmi (Ph. D.), Tamil Polity, p50
6. Perera, H., Ceylon & Indian History from Early Times to 1505 A. D, p353
7. Coddrington, H., Ceylon Coins and Currency, p74-75
8. Guha, Ramachandra. An Anthropologist Among the Marxists and Other Essays. p. 108.
9. "Tamil Eelam National Flag". Retrieved 31 July 2014.