Velakkaras are royal guards mentioned in various historical accounts of Sri Lanka.
The general prevailing notion is that they were Tamil mercenaries employed by the Sinhala and Tamil kings.
They were considered to be loyal to the king, but occasionally rebelled against him as happened during the time of Vijayabahu.
Velam also could be the Sanskrit 'aham', both meaning the inner line of defence in a royal set up.
This Sri Lankan history-related article is a stub.