Koliya
This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (June 2022) |
Koliya | |||||||
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c. 7th century BCE–c. 5th century BCE | |||||||
Viḍūḍabha of Kosala | c. 5th century BCE | ||||||
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Today part of | India Nepal |
Koliya (Pāli: Koliya) was an ancient Indo-Aryan clan of north-eastern South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The Koliyas were organised into a gaṇasaṅgha (an aristocratic oligarchic republic), presently referred to as the Koliya Republic.[1]
Location
The territory of the Koliyas was a thin strip of land spanning from the river
The capital of the Koliyas was
Name
The name of the tribe is uniformly attested under the Pāli form Koliya. The Koliyas originally obtained this name from the kola (jujube) tree because they lived in a region where kola trees were abundant, and because the kola tree was their totem.[1]
History
The early history of the Koliyas is little-known, although it is certain that they were related to their western neighbours, the
By the sixth century BCE, the Koliyas, the
The princess
During the life of the Buddha, an armed feud opposed the Sakyas and the Koliyas concerning the waters of the river Rohiṇī, which formed the boundary between the two states and whose water was needed by both of them to irrigate their crops. The intervention of the Buddha finally put an end to these hostilities.[2]
After the death of the Buddha, the Koliyas claimed from the Mallakas of
Conquest by Kosala
Shortly after the Buddha's death, the Kauśalya king
The massive life losses incurred by Kosala during its conquest of Sakya and Koliya weakened it significantly enough that it was itself was soon annexed by its eastern neighbour, the kingdom of Magadha, and its king Viḍūḍabha was defeated and killed by the Māgadhī king Ajātasattu.[2] Alternatively, the Koliyas might have been conquered by Ajātasattu directly after fighting against Magadha just like the Vajjika League did.[1]
Social and political organisation
The Koliyas were organised into a gaṇasaṅgha (an aristocratic oligarchic republic). Like the Sakyas, the Koliyas were a kṣatriya tribe, but unlike the Sakyas who belonged to the Gotama and Ādicca gottas, the Koliyas belonged to the Vyagghapajja gotta.[1]
Republican institutions
The Assembly
The Koliyas' governing body was a general Assembly of the heads of the kṣatriya clans, who held the title of khattiya and of rājā ("ruler"). The Koliya Assembly was small and consisted of a few hundred members. The sons of the rājās, who possessed the title of Koliya-kumāras ("princes of Koliya"), were also their uparājās (Viceroys), and would hereditarily succeed their fathers upon their deaths.[1]
The political system of the Koliyas was identical to that of the Sakyas, and, like the Sakyas and the other gaṇasaṅgha, the Koliya Assembly met in a santhāgāra, the main of which was located at Rāmagāma. The judicial and legislative functions of the Assembly of the Koliyas were not distinctly separated, and it met to discuss important issues concerning public affairs, such as war, peace, and alliances. The Koliya Assembly deliberated on important issues, and it had a simple voting system through either raising hands or the use of wooden chips.[2][1]
Mahārājā (Consul)
The Koliya Assembly elected as the head of the state a consul rājā who had the title of mahārājā ("great ruler") or Koliya-rājā ("Lord of Koliya"). The mahārājā was in charge of administering the republic with the help of the Council.[1][1]
Council
The Koliya Assembly met rarely, and it instead had an inner Council which met more often and was in charge of helping the mahārājā administer the republic. The members of the Koliya Assembly held the title of amaccās ("councillors"). The amaccās formed a college which was directly in charge of public affairs of the republic.[2][1]
Class society
The society of the Koliyas and Sakyas was a stratified one within which were present at least the aristocratic, land-owning, attendant, labourer, and serf classes.[2][1]
Landholders
Similarly to the Sakyas, the Koliyas of Indo-Aryan origin who had participated in colonising the territory of the republic had the right to own land . These landholders were analogous to mediaeval European barons, and held the title of bhojakās, literally meaning "enjoyers (of the right to own land)," and used in the sense of "headmen."[2][1]
Servants
The lower classes of Koliya society consisted of servants, in Pāli called kammakaras (meaning "labourers") and sevakas (meaning "serfs"), who performed the labour in the farms.[2][1]
The police
The Koliya Assembly possessed a body of peons or police who wore a headdress with a drooping crest.[1]
References
Sources
- Sharma, J. P. (1968). Republics in Ancient India, C. 1500 B.C.-500 B.C. ISBN 978-9-004-02015-3.