Ceylon (Sri Lanka) Mahout's knives

[Anandalal N.]

Hi David and others,

The reason I posted the two knives above is since there is little written about them and so to place them in context. I suppose looking at the discussion that ensued the greater significance lies in the fact that although they may have had other uses, they are more or less dedicated knives for use by mahouts.

For example the large knife from Nepal depicted is a day to day working knife and I myself have observed it being used by Nepalese villagers. A similar knife is found in some Sri Lankan village households as a multipurpose knife used for various purposes from cracking open coconuts with the reverse edge to chopping wood and collecting firewood.

Kandyan provinces are as stated by me, the last areas to come under a foreign power (British) and so the term 'Kandyan' came to represent things that were uniquely Kandyan but also those arts, crafts and cultural elements that had resisted change the longest.

The term Piha Kaetta is a term that in a non Sri Lankan context has come to represent a large variety of knives from pointed dagger like knives with a clip point to heavy choppers. In relation to knives, the distinction between Kandyan and non Kandyan became more pronounced since the early regulations of the British Government prohibiting pointed knives to be worn or carried by locals exempted the inhabitants of the Kandyan provinces.

So things are not as straight forward as one would like it to be.

Rgds.

[sirupate]

Originally Posted by Anandalal N.

Hi David and others,

The term Piha Kaetta is a term that in a non Sri Lankan context has come to represent a large variety of knives from pointed dagger like knives with a clip point to heavy choppers. In relation to knives, the distinction between Kandyan and non Kandyan became more pronounced since the early regulations of the British Government prohibiting pointed knives to be worn or carried by locals exempted the inhabitants of the Kandyan provinces.

So things are not as straight forward as one would like it to be.

Rgds.

The British Government is often accused of stopping local inhabitants practising their Martial Arts or carrying this or that in the 19th and early 20th century etc. So far I have found the claims made by the people of the region to be a myth. The last one before this being the British stopping the Indian's practising their MA etc.

[Anandalal N.]

Relevant parts of the Regulation of 1816 annexed.

"For prohibiting the use of Pointed Knives amongst the natives Cingalese of the maritime provinces of the Island"

Such claims are not always unfounded mostly un-researched!

[kronckew]

the kamis of Surya Benai, Nepal call their sickle a 'hasiya' terminal H optional.
they also come in fancy.

[sirupate]

Originally Posted by kronckew

the kamis of Surya Benai, Nepal call their sickle a 'hasiya' terminal H optional.
they also come in fancy.

The HI kami, so probably a dialect/regional variance, like khuda is to khunda, the fancy ones were used as a presentation pieces, there is one in the GM in Winchester.

[RobT]

Kronckew,

"the kamis of Surya Benai, Nepal call their sickle a 'hasiya' terminal H optional."

That gives full confirmation that the movie title Hasiya means sickle (also one of the online blurbs for the movie said that hasiya means sickle in English). The heroine of the movie uses a hasiya in some of the combat sequences. It's not too far a stretch to see how another group combined aansi & hasiya to get hansiya (especially if the "h" is sort of silent).

Sincerely,
Till

[Sajen]

Here is such a knife which was listed by ebay.

[sirupate]

Originally Posted by Anandalal N.

Relevant parts of the Regulation of 1816 annexed.

"For prohibiting the use of Pointed Knives amongst the natives Cingalese of the maritime provinces of the Island"

Such claims are not always unfounded mostly un-researched!

Good find