James T. Rutnam
James Thevathasan Rutnam (1905-1988) was a Sri Lankan historian, educationalist, writer, and politician.[1]
James T. Rutnam | |
|---|---|
 James T. Rutnam | |
| Born | June 13, 1905 |
| Died | 1988 |
| Nationality | Sri Lankan |
| Occupation(s) | historian, educationalist, author, politician |
| Spouse | Evelyn Wijeyaratne Rutnam |
| Children | Rajah, Chandran, Indrani, Jayam, Iswari, Dennis, Padmini and George |
Born in Jaffna, he was educated at the Manipay Hindu College, St. Joseph's College, Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia, before entering the Ceylon University College and thereafter the Ceylon Law College for the advocates course where he was the editor of the Law Students Magazine and won the Walter Pereira Prize. J. R. Jayewardene was his contemporary. Leaving without completing his legal qualification, Rutnam became a teacher at Uva College, Badulla and Wesley College, Colombo and was the Principal of St. Xavier's College, Nuwara Eliya.[2][3]
Rutnam was associated with S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike during his early days having joined Progressive Nationalist Party and the Ceylon National Congress. He unsuccessfully contested for the State Council of Ceylon from Nuwara Eliya and was defeated by E. W. Abeygunasekera in 1931, and 1936 and by M. D. Banda in the by-election that followed Abeygunasekera resignation in 1943. Rutnam unseated Banda in an election petition.[2] He contested the 1947 general elections and the 1952 general elections from Nuwara Eliya without success.
He is the founder of the Evelyn Rutnam Institute for Inter-Cultural Studies.
References
- "James T. Rutnam - a versatile servant". The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd. 2005-12-02. Archived from the original on 2011-06-29. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
- Perera, Basil. "Dr. James T. Rutnam - a scholar and writer". Ceylon Daily News. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- Festschrift 1985 (PDF). Sri Lanka UNESCO National Commission. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
External links
- James T. Rutnam - a versatile servant
- Alimankada –Behind the scenes Archived 2011-07-22 at the Wayback Machine
- "First Lankan immigrant to USA dies". Sunday Observer. 2 August 2009. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
- A Biographical Introduction by James T. Rutnam
- Dr. James T. Rutnam - A true scholar By Prof. K. Indrapala Archived 2017-03-31 at the Wayback Machine
- Dr. James T. Rutnam - a scholar and writer
- The Leading Characters in the Political Turmoil of Sinhalese-Muslim Riots of 1915 by Sachi Sri Kantha
- Rajah Rutnam — Sri Lanka’s first immigrant to US
- Dr. James T. Rutnam - a scholar and writer
- James T. Rutnam - a versatile servant by Prof. Bertram Bastiampillai
- When Sinhalese supported and Tamils opposed federalism
- A Century of Tamil Poetry in Sri Lanka
- WHO WAS JAMES T RUTNAM? Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
- In Memory of James Rutnam Archived 2012-03-14 at the Wayback Machine
- Meeting Thiru Arumugam in Toronto
- James Thevathasan Rutnam by Silan Kadirgamar
- "The House of Nilaperumal" Archived 2014-03-05 at the Wayback Machine by James T.Rutnam