This paper is part of a project titled ‘A History of Ethnic Conflict in Sri Lanka: Recollection, Reinterpretation and Reconciliation’. In the early nineteenth century thousands of Tamils from South India migrated to work on plantations throughout the British Empire; for instance the tea pluckers in Sri Lanka. Today, they make up one third of all Tamils in Sri Lanka. However, this community’s lack of a standard name for themselves highlights the betwixt-and-between state of their being Lankan but not Sri Lankan. This paper explores and addresses the issues pertaining to this. The articles are expected to reach many people, including scholars, media personnel, political activists and NGO personnel, provoking thought and discussion on a range of relevant subjects, thereby, guiding decision makers at all levels when they aim to establish a viable framework for peace.