Pandya Nadu or Pandi Nadu is a geographical region comprising the southern and south-western parts of the present day state of Tamil Nadu. The region is bounded on its West by the Venad/Ay Nadu, Northeast by the Chola Nadu and Northwest by the Kongu Nadu. It comprises the present-day districts of Madurai, Dindigul, Theni, Sivaganga, Virudhunagar, Ramanathapuram, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi, Thoothukudi and Kanniyakumari.
The region was the principal historic seat of the Pandya dynasty who ruled it intermittently and with differing capacities at least from the 4th century BCE to 1759 CE. The political capital of the region is the city of Madurai with Korkai serving as a secondary capital and the principal port city during the early historic period.
After the end of the Sangam age in the third century CE, the region came under of the occupation of the Kalabhras who continued to possess it till the Pandyan reconquest led by Kadungon who founded the First Pandyan Empire. The Medieval Cholas conquered the region from the Pandyas in the 10th century and renamed it the Rajaraja Pandimandalam. The region became independent once again with the rise of the Second Pandyan Empire which continued to be the dominant power in Tamil Nadu until the invasions of the Delhi Sultanates. The result of which was the formation of the independent Madurai Sultanate with the Pandya rulers pushed southwards from the Vaigai belt. The Madurai Sultanate was then overthrown by the Vijayanagara Prince, Kumara Kampana, and the region was reinstated to the later Pandyas as vassals and as one of the rajyams under the Vijayanagara Empire. After the decline of the Vijayanagara Empire in the 16th century, the Nayaks of Madurai declared independence and ruled the region until the conquest of the Nawab of Carnatic which was then followed shortly by the British annexation in the 18th century into the Madras Presidency.
Geographical Extent
The exact borders to the region of Pandya Nadu is not well-defined and was probably different during different historical period. But rough approximations to the boundary can be found in the poem Pandimandala Sathakam. Mandala Sathakams are collections of poems written about specific geographical regions in Tamil, dating variously from 1000s to 1700s CE.
<blockquote>"North of Kumari Sea, South of Vellar,
East of Dindigul and Karaikadu,
West of Sethu, lies the land of
Pandiyan, ruled by the Great Maran!"
<br>
—Passage 98 from Pandimandala Sathakam states</blockquote>From this poem, which was written by Madurai Ayyamperumal Asiriyar, it can be inferred that at the time of his authorship, the Pandimandalam or Pandya Nadu extended South of River Vellar (River South Vellar, present-day Pudukottai district), North of Kumari Sea (Indian Ocean), West of Sethu (present-day Ramanathapuram district) and East of Dindigul (City in present-day Dindigul district) & Karaikadu (Village in present-day Kanniyakumari district). by the ongoing excavations by the Tamil Nadu Archaeological Department.
During the Sangam Age
Between the 3rd century BCE and 3rd century CE, the region was ruled the Sangam Pandyas with Madurai and Korkai as their capitals. The period produced the beautiful Tamil Sangam literatures which provides a clear window to the life of Tamil people of the age. Under the Sangam Pandyan rule, the region served as one of richest locations in India with its extensive involvement in maritime trades with Southeast Asia and the Western world. The Pandyan pearls, fished from the Gulf of Mannar and the Pearl Coast, were found to be of the highest quality and were adorned by the people of the Roman Empire. Literacy was also widespread in this region during this time owing to the found presence of the most number of Tamil Brahmi rock inscriptions and pot sherd markings.
Under the Kalabhras
The region entered a dark period (with reference to absence of records) in history with the end of the 3rd century BCE. The three crowned Kings of Tamilakam were displaced by the Kalabhras during this time and the region experienced a huge boom of Buddhist and Jain activities.
Under the Republic of India
The region was part of the Madras State under the newly independent India, which was subsequently renamed Tamil Nadu. The region of Kanniyakumari was transferred to Tamil Nadu. The region now comprises the districts of Madurai, Dindigul, Theni, Sivaganga, Ramanathapuram, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi, Thoothukudi, Kanniyakumari and Pudukkottai (South of Vellar).
See also
- Kongu Nadu
- Tondai Nadu
- Chola Nadu
- Venad
- Tulunadu
- Alupa dynasty