Abstract
This paper presents the evidence for determining the age and origin of suranga irrigation found mainly in southern Karnataka and northern Kerala in the foothills of the Western Ghats of south India. It draws on on-going research that has attempted to use an interdisciplinary approach to date the system using Indian Archives, British and Portuguese colonial archives, etymology, oral testimony archaeology, phenology and palaeo dating techniques. The results from this study put the origins of the system at around 1900–1940 CE. These results are compared with the current academic discourse that supports the view that the system originates from ancient Persia and qanat technology, because of the long established trade links with Persia and the Arabian Peninsula in the Malabar region. We argue that a new ‘origin discourse’ should be framed around these much more recent dates. The methodological constraints behind both theories are discussed throughout to enable the reader to appreciate the limitations of both arguments.
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Archives consulted
India
Karnataka state archives, Vidhana Soudha – Madras catalogue – forest and settlement reports
Tamil Nadu State Archives in Chennai – Revenue, agriculture, and irrigation catalogue
Goa State Archive Panaji – Ponda
Murva Mahabal Bhat personal archive
UK
British Library India Office Records and Private collection Madras
National Archive, Kew - Maps and Plans
Kew Gardens Archive – Madras Records
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We thank and are extremely grateful to Sue Rouillard at the University of Exeter for producing figures 1 and 2.
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Crook, D., Tripathi, S. & Jones, R. An investigation into the age and origin of Suranga in the foothills of the Western Ghats of India. Water Hist 7, 253–270 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12685-015-0125-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12685-015-0125-y