KEERIMALAI SPRING

Herbert Daniel Gebauer - 06/01/2018

A fresh-water spring (COORAY 1967: 71, 263 fig. 93), which is part of a subterranean drainage system in the karst of the Jaffna peninsula, possibly indicates the exsurgence of an active, water-filled stream cave. Compare –>Manipay Sinkhole and the somehow nearby (sic!) –>Keerimalai Snake Cave. COOK (1931: 137) explains that the … Jaffna Peninsula is … very flat and low-lying, and the limestone bed is evidently fairly level; as it extends under the sea, salt water enters the holes [in the sense of conduits] and is drawn into the underground circulation. It is not surprising, therefore, that the wells of this region exhibit great peculiarities. … e.g. at Kirimalai, there are freshwater springs on the seashore coming from holes that are not connected with the sea. ETYMOLOGY: No locally known name has been identified for this karst spring (and exsurgence cave?) called after village of Keerimalai (Kirimalai, Keerimale). The -Dravidian- (Konkani, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, etc.) noun -malai-means hill and -keri- (kere, keeri, kiri, querem, etc.) is a tank (water reservoir), pool, lake, etc. SITUATION: At an unidentified location on the Jaffna Peninsula and somewhere in the vicinity of the village of Keerimalai, Kirimalai, or Keerimale (note 1). SPRING DESCRIPTION 1952: NOT SEEN: SIRIMANE (1952). SPRING DESCRIPTION 1958: KUKLA (1958: 169) does not acknowledge his source of inspiration (note 2) according to which there is an unspecified cave located in Keerimalai … giving 1600 litres of fresh water per minute (note 3): Most probably, a big underground system of caves [read: conduits] exists in Jaffna with galleries formed above the sea level in the geological past, which now lie below the sea. SPRING DESCRIPTION 1967: There is no surface drainage in the Jaffna Peninsula, all the water which falls on the surface passing downwards along fissures formed by solution of the limestone and flowing in underground channels [cave passages, conduits]. The 'bottomless well' at Putur and the fresh-water spring at Keerimalai are both parts of this subterranean drainage system (COORAY 1967: 71). CAVE DESCRIPTION 1974: A somewhat new cave (CEYLON TRAVELLER 1974: 249; 1983: 250) of unknown age (previously not known) with a relatively small underground lake (unidentified dimensions) has been revealed a few years ago near the cement factory at Keerimalai (N09°49': E080°00'). CAVE POTENTIAL: Already PRIDHAM (1849, 2: 515) suspected some subterraneous communication between the –>Tidal Well (Navakkeeri) and sea at Keerimale (note 4).ur and the fresh-water spring at Keerimalai are both parts of this subterranean drainage system (COORAY 1967: 71). CAVE DESCRIPTION 1974: A somewhat new cave (CEYLON TRAVELLER 1974: 249; 1983: 250) of unknown age (previously not known) with a relatively small underground lake (unidentified dimensions) has been revealed a few years ago near the cement factory at Keerimalai (N09°49': E080°00'). CAVE POTENTIAL: Already PRIDHAM (1849, 2: 515) suspected some subterraneous communication between the –>Tidal Well (Navakkeeri) and sea at Keerimale (note 4).