Susan Neild notes the
Kondaikatti Vellalar, Thondai Mandala Saiva Vellalar / Saiva Mudaliyar as being the "predominant" subcastes of the Thondamandala Vellala.They practice
endogamy and have a least two subgroups themselves, being the higher-status Melnadu and the lower-ranked Kilnadu. According to
Burton Stein, She noted a link between the Thondaimandala Vellalar and the
Morasu Vokkaligas of Bangalore and
Kolar based on geographical proximity although two communities are distinct. In her study concentrated on two villages in 1951-53,
Kathleen Gough noted the Thondamandala Vellala subjects there to have been traditionally "landlords, warriors, and officials of the state class". She thought it likely that they had moved to their present area in
Thanjavur around the 15th century when the
Vijayanagaras were making incursions on their former heartland of
Kanchipuram in the
Pallava country. She noted those households studied as being the highest-ranked members of the village community after the
Brahmins, and possibly to have in some cases increased their wealth and land by being appointed as revenue collectors for the
Kingdom of Mysore when it took over the area in the period after 1780. == References ==