Ellalan
King of Anuradhapura from 205 BCE to 161 BCE
Ellalan (Tamil: எல்லாளன், romanised: Ellāḷaṉ; Sinhala: එළාර, romanised: Eḷāra; 235–161 BCE), also referred to as Elara the Pious, and by the honorific epithet Manu Needhi Cholan, was a member of the Tamil Chola dynasty in Southern India, who upon capturing the throne became king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom, in present-day Sri Lanka, from 205 BCE to 161 BCE.
Ellalan is traditionally presented as being a just king even by the Sinhalese. The Mahavamsa states that he ruled 'with even justice toward friend and foe, on occasions of disputes at law', and elaborates how he even ordered the execution of his son for killing a calf under his chariot wheels.
Ellalan is a peculiar figure in the history of Sri Lanka. He is often regarded as one of Sri Lanka's wisest and most just monarchs, as highlighted in the ancient Sinhalese Pali chronicle, the Mahavamsa.
According to the chronicle, even Ellalan's nemesis Dutugamunu had a great respect for him, and ordered a monument be built where Ellalan was cremated after dying in battle. The Dakkhina Stupa was believed to be the tomb of Ellalan. Often referred to as 'the Just King', the Tamil name Ellāḷaṉ means 'the one who rules the boundary".
Birth and early life
Ellalan is described in the Mahavamsa as being "A Damila of noble descent . . . from the Chola-country"; In that work, he is mentioned as Elara. Little is known of his early life.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Ellalan” is king of Anuradhapura from 205 BCE to 161 BCE. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Ellalan, King and Anuradhapura, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “king of Anuradhapura from 205 BCE to 161 BCE” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q540008. VIAF identifies the subject as 67670109. The Library of Congress control number is n85105839. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
Public reputation and documentary evidence do not always develop together; absence from a summary is not evidence of historical absence. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.
- Establishing names and roles
- Building a first chronology
- Locating cited institutions
Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Ellalan”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Ellalan primary sources, Ellalan archive and Ellalan research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Ellalan”?
- How has the subject’s reputation changed across later accounts?
- Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Ellalan” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.