Head, Department of Palm-leaf Manuscripts
Tamil University
Thanjavur 613 005

Date of Birth: October 11, 1949
M. A. Tamil, Madras University 1974
Ph. D., Delhi University 1983 (Thesis title: Place names in Thanjavur District: 600–1300).

Lecturer, Department of Tamil, Delhi University: 1977-1983
Reader, Department of Palm-leaf Manuscripts, Tamil University, Thanjavur: 1983-

Classical Works Edited:
1. Nattrinai, Tamil University, 1986
2. Ilakkana Chudamani (Work on Grammars), Tamil University, 1990
3. Noyum Marunthum (Work on Siddha Medicine), Tamil University 1995

Other Books Published:
1. Descriptive Catalogue of Tamil Manuscripts, 6 Vols., Tamil University, 1987-1990
2. Thirupporur and Vadakkuppattu: Eighteenth century Locality Accounts, (Co-author) Centre for Policy Studies, 2001.
3. Editor of several volumes of Proceedings of National Seminars on Manuscriptology.

Since 1987, when he took over as the Head of the department of Palm-leaf Manuscripts,
Dr. Paramasivam has managed to collect, catalogue and maintain over 5,000 manuscripts pertaining to various disciplines. He has also collected nearly 1,000 bundles of manuscript records from Chengalpattu, Thanjavur, Tirucchirapalli and Shenkottai regions, which are mainly in the nature of village and temple accounts. The Department of Palm-leaf Manuscripts at the Tamil University has the reputation of being one of the best maintained manuscript collections in the country.

Dr. Paramasivam’s father was a well-known saint, Govindasamy Adigalar. Dr. Paramasivam is maintaining a Trust in the name of his father to conduct annual festivals of important Tamil saints. In these festivals, apart from recitations of the sacred devotional literature composed by the saints, discourses are held, annadana is conducted and Tamil scholars are honoured.

Since 1999, with the blessings of Sri-la-Sri Kasivasi Thiruppanandal Adheenam,
Dr. Paramasivam has been organizing annual conferences in the sacred city of Kasi on different aspects of Tamil devotional literature. The theme of each of these conferences is announced several months in advance and each year, nearly 200-300 scholars make a pilgrimage to Kasi to present their articles in the conference. So far, proceedings of five of these conferences, running into several volumes, have been published.