Sri Lankan Chetty

Sri Lankan Chetties (, ) also known as Colombo Chetties, is an elite, royal and a high class ethnicity in the island of Sri Lanka. This Before 2001, they were known as the Sri Lankan Tamil ( ශ්‍රී ලංකා දෙමළ) caste, but then after 2001, they were classified as a separate ethnic group in the 2001 census. Now they are known as the Colombo Chetties as a whole. They are an elite class of people who are said to have migrated from India under Portuguese rule but now they are considered as one of the most elite, richest and high classed ethnicities in Sri Lanka and in Colombo. Apart from their titled race, these people showcase no difference from the Sinhala people in Sri Lanka and in the present and nowadays, most chetties grow in Sinhala backgrounds and are basically Sinhala apart from their written identity. "Hetti] is another term used in this context where the term Hetti refers to the present generation of chetties who doesn't have any relation to India but are solely from Sri Lanka. Etymology The word is thought to have been derived from the Tamil word Etti, an honorific title bestowed on the leading and noble people. History They settled mostly in western Sri Lanka, especially in the ports of Colombo from the 16th century to mid 17th century, during the rule of the Portuguese and Dutch. The Chetties of Western Sri Lanka converted to various forms of Christianity during the colonial era: Roman Catholicism under Portuguese rule, as well as to Anglicanism and Reformed Christianity under British rule and Dutch rule, respectively. Marriages between Sinhalese ( Sinhala people) and Chetties are very common and therefore, many also got Sinhalised. However, the Colombo Chetties showcases no differences from the Sinhalese people in Sri lanka apart from their origins.