Know the Etymology: 479
Place Name of the Day: Saturday, 23 July 2016

Muk-kompaṉ, Kompu-vaitta-kuḷam

முக்கொம்பன்,
கொம்புவைத்த-குளம்
Muk-kompaṉ, Kompu-vaitta-kuḷam

Muk+kompaṉ
Kompu+vaitta+kuḷam

The tri-winged dam or the dam at the tri-junction

The tank for which a branching dam was laid

Kompaṉ1	in this context means a tank having branches of dam or a dam making branches of a river; Kompu+an affix; 1. Kompu: farthest end of a tank bund (Tamil, MTL); from the meaning, branch, (Tamil, DED 2115); related to the meaning, horn of an animal, tusk (Tamil, DED 2115); Gomuva: a small room at the end of a house formed by the roof being continued, small outer veranda (Sinhala, Clough); 2. Kommai: rampart, bulwark (Tamil, DED 2118); Komma: the upper part or coping of a fort wall (Telugu, DED 2118); may be related to Kommai meaning bulge, rotundity, elevated place, mound (Tamil, MTL); Kumi: (verb) to heap up (Tamil, DED 1741); Kumpi: heap, Tamil, DED 1741)
Kompaṉ2	tusked or horned animal (Tamil, DED 2115); from Kompu+an; Kompu: tusk, horn of an animal (Tamil, DED 2115); see column, 116, Kompaṉ-cāynta-kuḷam for usage example
Mu	(adjective before double consonants) three (Tamil, DED 5052); Mūṉṟu: three (Tamil, DED 5052)
Vaitta	(adverb) placed; Vai: (verb) to put, place, keep, lay by (Tamil, DED 5549)

The Eezham Tamil place name Muk-kompaṉ is comparable to Muk-kompu, the name of a place as well as a dam built at a tri-junction of the river Kaveri, near Trichy in Tamil Nadu.

The term Kompu in the context of these place names means a dam or the branch of a dam.

Kompu meaning a dam corresponds to the term meaning a branch, horn, tusk etc., (DED 2115), or corresponds to another term Kommai in Tamil meaning a rampart or bulwark (DED 2118), coming from the verb Kumi meaning to heap up (DED 1741).

Sinhala diction has a related word Gomuva, meaning an end-extension or outer veranda of a house, comparable to Kompu meaning branch in Tamil/ Dravidian. For Kompaṉ meaning a tusked or horned animal, see column 116, Kompaṉ-cāynta-kuḷam.

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Muk-kompaṉ is a place name noticed in Poonakari division of Kilinochchi district.

Kompu-vaitta-kuḷam is in Manthai East division of Mullaiththeevu district.

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Some related place names:

Kompā-vil: Puthukkudiyiruppu division, Mullaiththeevu district

Kompu-tūkki: Manthai West division, Mannar district

Kallak-kompu-villu: Kathiraveli Puthoor, Koralaipattu division, Batticaloa district

First published: Saturday, 23 July 2016, 18:08