Gattara
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‘Gattara’ is the word used in ancient Sri Lankan rock inscriptions and literature to refer to agricultural serfs who involved in tillage and cattle cultivation. Serfdom status was common under feudalism in south India and landless and poverty stricken agricultural workers of Shudra caste who occupying the lowest position in the existing caste hierarchy who landed to Sri Lanka and settled the county over. The seven sub groups of Gattara or Gasthara sub caste is the main social group consist the main Govigama caste in Sri Lanka.Gastharas are Theravada Buddhists by religion. They are ethnically Sinhalese people but many of them proclaim their Dravidian peoples ethnic origin to South India. Many of them have distinctive Tamil surnames just changed to Sinhalise names droping "M" letter (Ex: Senavirathnam - M - Senavirathna) and Bandara (Pandaram) caste surnames. Gasthara or agricultural surfs indicate a complex migration history from India to Sri Lanka
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