contd

The word sengunthan also denotes a position in the military, like the word "lance corporal".
Senguntham = a lance or stave, that is carried by the person who marches ahead of his force of men or platoon.

muthal> muthali: one who marches ahead of his force. This word is found in stone inscriptions as "padaimuthali", as per researchers. It shortened to "muthali" . Meaning is clear from the word: it means the first person. (not a general, but a right marker or left marker in marching.)

We are here only concerned with word derivation. We set aside the social aspects etc such as what connotations the word attained as it progressed through time.