நற்றிணையில் சமூகக் கூறுகள்: சங்ககாலத் தமிழ்ச் சமூக வாழ்வியலின் வரலாற்றுப் பகுப்பாய்வு

Social Elements in Narrinai: A Historical Analysis of Sangam Tamil Social Life

Abstract

Narrinai, praised as the first among the Ettuthokai (Eight Anthologies) of Sangam literature, primarily focuses on inner life (Akam theme). Nevertheless, it stands as a social historical document that meticulously records the cultural excellence, economic structure, family system, women's social agency, occupational practices, and ethical principles of the Tamil society from two thousand years ago.
This paper comprehensively analyzes the social elements embedded in the songs of Narrinai through the lens of landscape-based (thinai) lifestyle, social transitions from primitive communism to feudalism, moneyless barter economy, domestic ethics such as "hospitality even at midnight," and nature-oriented social eco-consciousness. Furthermore, utilizing supporting evidence from other Sangam literary texts, this paper establishes how family ethics, women's autonomous agency, hospitality, and social moral values found in Narrinai poems hold special significance from a modern socio-anthropological perspective.