Walauwa or walawwa is the name given to a feudal/colonial manor house in Sri Lanka of a native headmen. It also refers to the feudal social systems that existed during the colonial era. The term walauwa is derived from the Tamil word valavu, which denotes a compound or garden, and by implication, a large house with aristocratic connotations. The pinnacle of walauwas in the Sinhala social stratum is the wasala walauwa. Wasala is derived from the Tamil vaasal, which means an entrance. In the Sinhalese social hierarchy, a wasala walawa would typically be the ancestral residence of a mudaliyar.