and also knowledge of their location. The Pandyan kings exempted the Paravars from taxation and allowed them to govern themselves in return for being paid tribute from the produce extracted. Cave engravings from the third century BC, found in 2003, reinforce this view as they suggest that the Paravars were the chieftains (Velirs) of the coastal region during this period, ruling as subordinates of the Pandyas. Previously, in the 1920s, Iyengar had noted that the caste name was used in ancient scripts to mean both boatmen and chiefs of the Madurai country. A report written in 1669 made it clear that in so far as they were kings, they were only kings of their own people and not of any wider constituency; furthermore, that these "kings" were referred to as such only by the Paravars. However, in the Sangam work Mathuraikkanci, the author Mankudi Maruthanar, refers to his patron, the Pandya sovereign Talaiyanganam Nedunjeliyan, as the Lord of Korkai and the Warlord of the southern Parathavar (Then Parathavar por yere). The community was also involved in sea salt production, which was a relatively easy task on the Indian coast as the hot temperatures evaporated the water without the need for firewood. The 1901 Madras Census noted that the Tamil-speaking Paravars "claim" to be kshatriyas (warriors) serving under the Pandyan kings, the word used suggesting some official doubt regarding the issue. Little is known about the Paravas during the middle ages. Indeed, Donkin has argued that with one exception, "there are no native literary works with a developed sense of chronology, or indeed much sense of place, before the thirteenth century", and that any historical observations have to be made using Arab, European and Chinese accounts. Southern India came under the control of the Cholas in the ninth century but reverted to Pandyan control around the mid-1200s following a series of battles. They maintained control, despite several challenges, until the 16th century. Arab arrival Regardless of any doubt regarding their claims to be warriors under the liege of Pandyan emperors, the Paravars certainly did have armies at a later time, these being created to protect the fisheries and their people from attack. The Arab Muslim invasion began in 712 AD at the Sindh Valley and by around 1300 AD they had taken over the entire northern India. However, even prior to the invasion there were Arabs in southern areas such as