The chieftains and village headmen of the Karaiyars held the title "Pattankattiyar", meaning ""One who is crowned"" in Tamil. Other titles they used were "Adappanar", "Mudaliar", "Pillai", "Kurukulattan" and "Varunakulattan". The Adappans along with the Pattankattiyar were headmen who were responsible of the harbors and pearl fishery of the northern and western parts of Sri Lanka. At the hand of the powerful maritime trading clans of the Karaiyars, the emergence of urban centers known as "pattanam" were seen. Pattanavar (literally meaning "pattanam-residents"), is an almost extinct caste name also used by the Karaiyars. Mudaliar (meaning "capitalist") were conferred on the maritime elite trading clans of the Karaiyars as titles of nobility.