Nattukottai Chettiars The Tamil term ‘Nattukottai Chettiar’ means ‘people with palatial houses in the countryside’. They hail from Chettinad in Tamilnadu, South India, and are one of the earliest Indian merchant communities in Singapore. They are also known as the Nagarathars, meaning city dwellers, traders and temple- based people. They are grouped by social definition (such as marriage and adoption) according to nine Siva temples in Chettinad. Their association with the temples and the prefix Nattukottai differentiate the group from other Chettiar communities.

According to A. Ramanathan Chettiar, who compiled the group’s history in 1953, the Chettiars first sailed to Penang and Singapore in 1824. They established their businesses, especially money- lending and banking, at Market Street in Singapore.

Besides money- lending, the Chettiars invested heavily in property— some Singapore roads are named after prominent members of the community. These include Arnasalam Chetty Road, Narayanan Chetty Road, Muthuraman Chetty Road and Meyyappa Chettiar Road.

The group’s commercial interests were looked after by the Chettiar Chamber of Commerce, established on 18 January 1931, but it could not stop the Chettiars’ commercial activities from declining as a result of various factors: laws against money- lending passed between 1930 and 1940; the Japanese Occupation; the introduction of stricter immigration controls; post- 1965 independence employment policies; the development of banks and other financial institutions; and the lack of interest on the part of the younger generation in taking up the money- lending business.

Nevertheless, the community is responsible for several important temples in Singapore. One of these is the temple on Tank Road, the Sri Thendayuthapani Temple, dedicated to Lord Murugan. Another is the Sri Layan Sithi Vinayagar Temple at Keong Saik Road. Thaipusam is the most important annual festival celebrated at the Tank Road temple. It attracts thousands of devotees and tourists.

At present, there are more than 500 Chettiar families living in Singapore. Only a few Chettiars are involved in the money- lending trade. Others work as professionals in fields such as education, engineering, law, business and medicine. The group continues to contribute significantly to Singapore’s economic, cultural and religious development.

Photo credit: Singapore Press Holdings/ The Straits Times