Page:The Aristocracy of Southern India.djvu/171

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S. R. J. R. V. Ettappa Nayakar Bahadur.
131

with blood to the point of a lance, and with these things presented himself before the King, who, admiring the valour of Nallama Nayakar welcomed him to his court, and presented him with a gold head to be worn as a badge on his left leg, and allowed him to use the blood-stained cloth as a banneret. To commemorate the fact of his having spared the lives of the eight brothers of Soman, the King conferred on Nallama Nayakar the title of Ettappan (meaning father of eight), and also presented him with two state fans, besides lands and villages. By the special order of the King, Nallama Nayakar was taken round in procession before he left the place. From that time forward the appellation "Ettapan" has been used by all the successive Zemindars of Etaiyapuram. The gold head, on the occasion of the installation ceremony, is tied to the left leg of the installed Zemindar by the descendants of Soman referred to above, and the blood-stained banneret is also carried.

Kumara Muttu Ettappa Nayakar, the fourteenth in descent, migrated to Madura with a number of his kinsmen owing to disturbances and insurrections by Mahomed Alaudin, and paid his respects to Adi Vira Parakrama Pandian, the Rajah of Madura, who, on hearing the antecedents and noble ancestry of Kumara Muttu Ettappa Nayakar granted him and also his followers extensive lands and villages, such as Anaiyur and Karukotanpatti, and they settled down there. Kumara Muttu Ettappa Nayakar brought order out of the chaos then existent and engaged himself in useful pursuits. As he had no issue for a long time he built a temple and dedicated it to (Kumara) Subramaniaswami. Shortly after this, he was blessed with a son, who was named Kumara Ettappa