Iyotheethasariyam—A Historiography of the Marginalized People

Abstract

Pandit C. Iyothee Thass, better known as Iyothee Thass Pandithar (1845–1914), was a social thinker who lived in Tamil Nadu and has now become a part of the social academic discourse of contemporary times. He is well-read in various disciplines like sociology, politics, religion, culture, medicine and journalism. His way of thinking is known as Iyotheethasariyam. Instead of the traditional Vedic history that focused on Brahmins and Hinduism, he created an alternative history named ‘Indra Desa Sarithiram’ by focusing on Buddhism and the oppressed people, which is considered the first subaltern history written in Tamil from the perspective of the oppressed. The article discusses the inadequacies of traditional histories and the need for alternative histories. Furthermore, it enquires about the importance of oral data in reconstructing the histories of the oppressed and neglected people by the ruling class, the methods of writing alternative histories, and the historiographical strategies that help the oppressed communities to reconstruct their histories through the thoughts of Iyothee Thass.