Pandya dynasty

The etymology of Pandya is still a matter of considerable speculation among scholars. One theory is that the word pandya is derived from the ancient Tamil word "pandu" meaning "old". The theory suggests that in early historic Tamil lexicon the word pandya means old country in contrast with Chola meaning new country, Chera meaning hill country and Pallava meaning branch. Another theory is that the word Pandya is derived from the Sanskrit word Pandu to mean white or pale, in reference to king Pandu and the Pandavas. Apart from these derivations mentioned, several other theories do appear in historical studies. Tamil legends narrate an origin myth for the three crowned kings, described by K. A. Nilakanta Sastri as a legend similar to that of Romulus and Remus. According to the myth, the three brothers Cheran, Cholan and Pandyan ruled in common at the southern city of Korkai. While Pandya remained at home, his two brothers Cheran and Cholan after a separation founded their own kingdoms in north and west. The epic poem Silappatikaram mentions that the emblem of the Pandyas was that of a fish. Indian traditions such as the Great Epics and the Puranas often associate southern India with Sage Agastya (who had his ashrama in the south). Agastya appears prominently in medieval Tamil literature also. Ceylonese folklores attribute Alli Rani (meaning "the queen Alli") as one of the early historic rulers of the Pandyas. She is attributed as an "amazonian queen" whose servants were men and administrative officials and army were women. She is thought of ruling the whole western and northern coast of Sri Lanka from her capital Kudiramalai, where remains of what is thought of as her fort are found. She is sometimes seen as an incarnation of the Pandya associated gods, Meenakshi and Kannagi. Chandravamsha The medieval Pandya kings claimed to belong to the Chandravamsha or the Lunar Race. They claimed Pururavas and Nahusha as their ancestors. Pururavas is listed as one of their ancestors in the Velvikudi Inscription of Nedunjadaiyan Varaguna-varman I (Jatila Parantaka Nedunjadaiyan). ==Sources of Pandya history==

The Greek ambassador to Chandragupta Maurya, Megasthenes mentions the Queen of the Pandyas as 'Pandaia' and locates them in the south of India extending into the ocean. It consisted of 365 villages which met the needs of the royal palace each day of the year. He described the queen Pandaie as daughter of Heracles (by some authors as Shiva or Krishna). Madurai, capital of Pandyas is mentioned in Kautilya's Arthashastra (4th century BCE) as 'Mathura of the south'.), Asoka refers to the peoples of south India – the Cholas, the Cheras, Pandyas and Satiyaputras. These polities, possibly not part of the Maurya empire, were on friendly terms with Asoka: The earliest Pandya to be found in epigraph is Nedunjeliyan, figuring in the Tamil-Brahmi Mangulam inscription (near Madurai) assigned to 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE. The record documents a gift of rock-cut beds, to a Jain ascetic. It is assumed that the people found in the Mangulam inscription, Nedunjeliyan, Kadalan, and Izhanchadikan predate rulers such as Talaiyanganam Nedunjelyan and Palyaga-salai Mudukudimi Peruvaludi. Archaeological excavations at Korkai and other coastal sites in the Pandya region have yielded Roman coins, pottery, and port remains, which support literary references to long-distance trade, including pearls. Early Tamil literature The early historic Pandyas are celebrated in the earliest available Tamil poetry. According to tradition, the legendary Sangams ("the Academies") were held in Madurai under the patronage of the Pandyas. Several Tamil literary works, such as Iraiyanar Agapporul, mention the legend of three separate Sangams and ascribe their patronage to the Pandyas. built by Pandyas primarily, is the official emblem of Tamil Nadu. Pandya rulers from early historic south India Besides several short poems found in the Akananuru and the Purananuru collections, there are two major works – Mathuraikkanci and Netunalvatai – which give a glimpse into the society and commercial activities in the Pandya country during the early historic period. The Purananuru and Agananuru collections contain poems sung in praise of various Pandya rulers and also poems that were claimed to be composed by the rulers themselves. Foreign sources The Buddhist text Mahavamsa (composed in the 5th century CE) mentions a Pandya king in the context of Prince Vijaya's (543–505 BCE) arrival in Sri Lanka with his 700 followers. • According to the Mahavamsa, emissaries laden with precious gifts were sent from Sri Lanka to the city of Madhura in southern India. Their mission was to secure a bride for Prince Vijaya. The Pandya King of Madurai agreed to the proposal. He not only sent his own daughter to marry Prince Vijaya but also requested other families to offer their daughters to marry the prince's ministers and retainers. So, along with the Princess and hundreds of maidens, craftsmen and a thousand families from the eighteen guilds were also sent to Sri Lanka. • Greek and Latin sources (early centuries CE) refer to the ancient Tamil country, same as the Tamilakam, as "Lymyrike" or "Damirice" (or Dymirice/Dimirixe or Damirice) and its ruling families. He described the Pandya country in Indika as "occupying the portion of India which lies southward and extends to the sea". According to his account, the kingdom had 365 villages, each of which was expected to meet the needs of the royal household for one day in the year. He described the Pandya queen at the time, Pandaia as the daughter of Herakles. • Pliny the Elder refers to the Pandya ruler of Madurai in general terms (first century CE). • Strabo states that an Indian king called Pandion sent Augustus Caesar "presents and gifts of honour". • The Roman emperor Julian received an embassy from a Pandya about 361 CE. However, others have identified it with an ancient state located in modern Burma or Assam. • The Chinese traveler Xuanzang mentions a kingdom further south from Kanchipuram, a kingdom named Malakutta, identified with Madurai described by his Buddhist friends at Kanchipuram. • In the later part of the 13th century (in 1288 and 1293 CE) Venetian traveller Marco Polo visited the Pandya kingdom and left a vivid description of the land and its people. == History ==

Early historic Pandyas in Madurai Mauryan emperor Asoka (3rd century BCE) seems to have been on friendly terms with the people of south India and Sri Lanka (the Cholas, the Pandyas, the Satiya Putras, the Kerala Putras and the Tamraparnis). There are no indications that Asoka tried to conquer the extreme south India (the Tamilakam – the Abode of the Tamils). The three chiefly lines of early historic south India – the Cheras, Pandyas and Cholas – were known as the mu-vendar ("the three vendars"). They were traditionally based at their original headquarters in the interior Tamil Nadu (Karur, Madurai and Uraiyur respectively). The Pandyas seem to be the most prominent of the three "ventar" rulers. There are even references to a Pandya queen from 3rd century BCE representing a confederacy of the Tamil countries. Xuanzang describes a peaceful cosmopolitan region where some 100 monasteries with 10,000 monks were studying Mahayana Buddhism, Kanchipuram was hosting learned debates with hundreds of heretic Deva (Hindu) temples but no Buddhist institutions. Xuangzang makes no mention of the Kalabhras. Historian Noboru Karashima states that Kadunkon was a contemporary of Pallava Simhavishnu, who drove out the Kalabhras in the Tamil region and dated Kadunkon's reign to 560 - 590 CE. With the decline of the Kalabhra dynasty, the Pandyas grew steadily in power and territory. With the Cholas in obscurity in Uraiyur, the Tamil country was divided between the Pallavas of Kanchi and the Pandyas of Madurai. From the 6th century to the 9th century CE, the Chalukyas of Badami, the Pallavas of Kanchi, and the Pandyas of Madurai dominated the politics of south India. The Badami Chalukyas were eventually replaced by the Rashtrakutas in the Deccan. The Pandyas took on the growing Pallava ambitions in south India, and from time to time they also joined in alliances with the kingdoms of the Deccan Plateau (such as with the Gangas of Talakad in late 8th century CE). and Nedunjadaiyan/Varagunavarman I (r. 765–815 CE) threatened Pallava king Nandivarman II Pallavamalla (r. 731–96 CE) who had managed to defeat the Gangas in . Varagunavarman I invaded the Pallava country and conquered the Kongu country (western Tamil Nadu) and Venadu (south Kerala). King Srimara Srivallabha (r. 815–62 CE) sailed to Sri Lanka, subjugated and overpowered King Sena I, and sacked his capital Anuradhapura (the Panya invasion of Sri Lanka followed a period of vassalage). However, Srimara Srivallabha was soon overpowered by Pallava king Nripatunga (r. 859–99 CE). Sena II, the king of Sri Lanka, invaded the Pandya country, sacked Madurai and chose Varagunavarman II (r. c. 862–880 CE) as the new king soon after. It is proposed that the start of the Kollam Era, the Kerala calendar, in 825 CE marked the liberation of Venadu from Pandya control. During the rule of Dantivarman (r. 796–847 CE), the Pallava territory was reduced by the encroachment from the Pandyas from the south (and Rashtrakutas and the Telugu-Cholas from north). Pallava king Nandivarman III (r. 846–69 CE) was able to defeat the Pandyas and Telugu-Cholas (and even the Rashtrakutas) with the help of the Gangas and the emerging Cholas. , Pandya kingdom, king Jatila Parantaka Nedunjadaiyan (8th century CE)|alt=|center Under Chola influence (10th–13th centuries) (12th century) While the Pandyas and the Rashtrakutas were busy engaging the Pallavas, with the Gangas and the Simhalas (Sri Lanka) also in the mix, the Cholas emerged from the Kaveri delta and took on the chieftains of Thanjavur (the Mutharaiyar chieftain had transferred their loyalty from the Pallava to the Pandya). The Chola king Vijayalaya conquered Thanjavur by defeating the Mutharaiyar chieftain around . The Cholas were defeated by a Rashtrakuta-lead confederacy in the battle of Takkolam in 949 CE. Pandya kings (10th century–first half of 11th century CE): • Sundara Pandya I • Vira Pandya I (Veerapandyan) • Vira Pandya II • Amarabhujanga Tivrakopa • Srivallabha Manakulachala (1101–1124 CE) • Maravarman Srivallabha (1132–1161 CE) • Parakrama I (1161–1162 CE) • Kulasekara III • Vira Pandya III • Jatavarman Srivallabha (1175–1180 CE) • Jatavarman Kulasekara I (1190–1216 CE) Imperial Pandyas (13th–14th centuries) The Pandya empire included extensive territories, at times including large portions of south India and Sri Lanka. The rule of the empire was shared among several royals, one of them enjoying primacy over the rest. The Pandya king at Madurai thus controlled these vast regions through the collateral family branches subject to Madurai. city from Meenakshi Temple |alt=aerial image of a temple campus Maravarman Sundara I The foundation for the Pandya supremacy in south India was laid by Maravarman Sundara I early in the 13th century. He succeeded his older brother Jatavarman Kulasekhara in 1216. He invaded the Chola country, sacked Uraiyur and Thanjavur, and drove the Chola king Kulothunga III into exile. The Chola king subsequently made a formal submission to Maravarman Sundara I and acknowledged his overlordship. Jatavarman Sundara I ascended the Pandya throne in 1251 CE. Jatavarman Sundara I also came into conflict with the Kadava ruler Kopperunjinga II. It seems that Bana (Magadai) and Kongu countries came under the Pandya rule during the wars against the Hoysalas and the Kadavas. and on his behalf by his younger brother Jatavarman Vira II between 1262 and 1264 CE. The island was again invaded and defeated by Jatavarman Vira II in 1270 CE. Maravarman Kulasekara I Sundara Pandya I (died in 1268) was succeeded by Maravarman Kulasekara I. Unfortunately, the Pandya civil war coincided with the Khalji raids in south India. Taking advantage of the political situation, the neighbouring Hoysala king Ballala III invaded the Pandya territory. However, Ballala had to retreat to his capital, when Alauddin Khalji's general Malik Kafur invaded his kingdom at the same time. After subjugating Ballala III, the Khalji forces marched to the Pandya territory in March 1311. The Pandya brothers fled their headquarters, and the Khaljis pursued them unsuccessfully. By late April 1311, the Khaljis gave up their plans to pursue the Pandya princes, and returned to Delhi with the plunder. By 1312 the Pandya control over south Kerala was also lost. After the departure of the Khaljis, Vira and Sundara Pandya resumed their conflict. Sundara Pandya was defeated and sought help from the Khaljis. With their help, he regained control of the South Arcot region by 1314. Subsequently, there were two more expeditions from the sultanate in 1314 led by Khusro Khan and in 1323 by Jauna Khan under the Punjab-born sultan Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq. The family quarrels and the sultanate invasions shattered the Pandya empire beyond revival With the invasion of the Sultanates, Vijayanagaras, and Nayakars from the fourteenth century onwards, the Pandyas lost their traditional capital of Madurai and shifted to cities like Tenkasi and Tirunelveli. All the Pandyas from Sadaavarman Parakrama Pandya and his next generations were crowned in the Adheenam Mutt in Kasi Viswanathar temple. During the same period, some Pandyas ruled with Tirunelveli as their capital. Kayatharu, Vadakkuvalliyur, and Ukkirankottai are some of their major cities. Inscriptions on them are found in Tenkasi's Kasi Viswanathar temple, Brahmadesam, Tirunelveli, Cheranmadevi, Ambasamudram, Kalakkad and Pudukkottai. The last Pandyan king known was Kollankonda, who was of the Tenkasi Pandya line. Although the Vijayanagara Empire and the Nayaks ruled Madurai after the 14th century, they were occasionally opposed by the Pandyas. Sometimes, these Pandyas ruled Madurai. Prominent among them were Sadaavarman Vikrama Pandya (1401–1422 AD) and his son, Arikesari Parakrama Pandya. He assigned separate battalions to these Polygars, allowing them to repel the Pandyas. This secured Madurai from the Pandyas forever, allowing the Nayaks to gain supremacy. Jalal ud-Din Hasan Khan was appointed governor of the newly created southernmost Ma'bar province. In , Jalal ud-Din Hasan Khan declared his independence and created Madurai sultanate. In 1529 the Nayak governors declared independence and established Madurai Nayak dynasty. ==Economy==

Early history trade routes of Nellaiappar Temple The Pandya country, located at the extreme southwestern tip of South Asia, served as an important meeting point throughout the history of India. The location was economically and geopolitically significant as a key point connecting the shipping between Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Graeco-Roman merchants frequented the ancient Tamil country, present day south India and Sri Lanka, securing contacts with the Tamil chiefdoms of the Pandya, Chola and Chera families. a few decades before the start of the Common Era and remained long after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The contacts between south India and the Middle East continued even after the Byzantium's loss of the ports of Egypt and the Red Sea in the 7th century CE. The early historic Pandya country was famous for its supply of pearls. The ancient port of Korkai, in present-day Thoothukudi, was the centre of the pearl trade. Written records from Graeco-Roman and Egyptian voyagers give details about the pearl fisheries off the Gulf of Mannar. Greek historian Megasthenes reported about the pearl fisheries, indicating that the Pandyas derived great wealth from the pearl trade. Convicts were according to the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea used as pearl divers in Korkai. The Periplus even mentions that "pearls inferior to the Indian sort are exported in great quantity from the marts of Apologas and Omana". The pearls from the Pandya country were also in demand in the kingdoms of north India. Literary references of the pearl fishing mention how the fishermen, who dive into the sea, avoid attacks from sharks, bring up the right-whorled chank and blow on the sounding shell. Pandya coinage The early coins of Tamilakam bore the symbols of the Three Crowned Kings, the tiger, the fish and the bow, representing the symbols of the Cholas, Pandyas and Cheras. Coins of Pandyas bear the legend of different Pandya ruler in different times. The Pandyas had issued silver punch-marked and die-struck copper coins in the early period. A few gold coins were attributed to the Pandya rulers of this period. These coins bore the image of fish, singly or in pairs, which were their emblem. Some of the coins had the names Sundara, Sundara Pandya or merely the letter 'Su' were etched. Some of the coins bore a boar with the legend of 'Vira-Pandya. It had been said that those coins were issued by the Pandyas and the feudatories of the Cholas but could not be attributed to any particular king. The coins of Pandyas were square. Those coins were etched with an elephant on one side and the other side remained blank. The inscription on the silver and gold coins during the Pandyas were in Tamil-Brahmi and the copper coins bore the Tamil legends. The coins of the Pandyas, which bore the fish symbols, were termed as 'Kodandaraman' and 'Kanchi' Valangum Perumal'. Apart from these, 'Ellamthalaiyanam' was seen on coins which had the standing king on one side and the fish on the other. 'Samarakolahalam' and 'Bhuvanekaviram' were found on the coins having a Garuda, 'Konerirayan' on coins having a bull and 'Kaliyugaraman' on coins that depict a pair of feet. == Religion ==

, Meenakshi, and Shiva (Meenakshi Temple, Madurai) Early Pandya rulers are traditionally associated with patronage of Jainism. In literary and inscriptional records, several Pandya kings are described as having supported Jain monks and institutions. According to tradition, a Pandya ruler known as Koon Pandya was later converted to Shaivism. Based on such accounts, historians believe that the early Pandyas were originally adherents of Jainism and only later converted to Saivism and lending royal support to the Bhakti movement. The Pandya period (c. 13th century CE) was characterised by several elite forms of Hinduism, a popular bhakti religion and an even more widespread local form of Hinduism. The distinctions between the three were not differentiated. The worship of the gods Vishnu and Shiva was generally supported by the elite and Shiva was generally later supported by the elite. The bhakti movement emphasized the mutual intense emotional attachment between the god and the devotee. The Pandya country was home to several renowned temples including the Meenakshi Temple in Madurai. As some of the largest employers and landowners of the Pandya country, the temples played an important part in the Tamil economy and society. They generally also served as banks, schools, dispensaries, and poorhouses (thus performing valuable social functions). The large walled temple complexes of the Pandya country also contained several administrative offices and bazaars. ==Architecture==

, Madurai The early temple architecture phase in Tamil Nadu opens with the rock-cut cave temples. The Tamil country is home to the 'South Indian' or 'Dravidian' style of medieval temple architecture. The major Pandya contributions to Dravidian architecture come after the Pallava (7th–9th centuries) and the Chola periods (9th–12th centuries). • Gopuras are extremely large and elaborately decorated (capped by a barrel vault). • Successively built walls and gopuras. Finest Pandyan architectures: • Jambukeswarar Temple, Tiruchirapalli • Kallalagar temple, Alagar Koyil • Meenakshi Temple, Madurai • Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram == In popular culture ==

The Pandyas are a secondary subject of the Tamil films Aayirathil Oruvan (2010), Ponniyin Selvan: I (2022), Ponniyin Selvan: II (2023), and Yaathisai (2023). ==See also==