Thesavalamai

Thesavalamai is the traditional law of the Sri Lankan Tamil inhabitants Jaffna peninsula, codified by the Dutch during their colonial rule in 1707. The Law in its present form applies to most Tamils in northern Sri Lanka. The law is personal in nature thus it applicable mostly for property and marriage. [http://www.austlii.edu.au/~andrew/CommonLII/LKSC/1983/28.html]

Under the this law, not all property could be given away. A person could give away only the tetiatettam; "i.e.", property acquired by either spouse during the period after married life and or the priests acquiring from such properties. Even of the tetiatettam property, the husband cannot alienate the whole property; the wife is entitled to half of it. Those properties inherited from the parents cannot be given away according to ones own wish. There are also cases of old ladies who do not have any children gifting their properties to the temple.

Thesavalamai law is applied in some parts in the Northern and Eastern of Sri Lanka.

ee also

*Mukkuva laws

References

*cite book | last = Tambiah | first = H. W | title = Laws and customs of Tamils of Jaffna (revised edition) | publisher = Women’s Education & Research Centre |date=2001 | location = Colombo | pages = 259 | isbn = 9-55-9261-16-9

External links

* [http://sooriyan.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=806&Itemid=32 Thesavalamai Law description] (Tamil)