Ancient period There is plenty of evidence to suggest that the area had been inhabited since 500 BCE, although an organized settlement was only founded around 800 CE. The present-day areas of
Niranam, and Kadapra on the western part of Thiruvalla were submerged under the sea before then. Thiruvalla has many Neolithic remains and got civilized earlier. The Aryan culture presented Thiruvalla as one of the 64 Brahmin settlements of Kerala, and one of the important too. Ptolemy mentions the Baris river, the present "Pamba" river. Thiruvalla was also an important commercial centre with the
Niranam port in olden days, which is described by Pliny as "
Nelcynda". At this light, the "Bacare" could have been modern "
Purakkad". The fact that modern western Thiruvalla contains the coastal kind of sand, and several seashells in the soil despite being landlocked proves that prior to the reclamation of Kuttanad from sea, Niranam and the whole western Thiruvalla could have been a coastal area. in Kerala. The Thiruvalla salai was one of the richest among the Vedic schools of Kerala, and according to the copper plates, the pupils of the school were fed with 350
nazhis of paddy every day, Due to the length, the antiquity and the nature of the language, Thiruvalla copper plates form the "First book in Malayalam", according to Prof.
Elamkulam.
Early Modern period The rulers of Thiruvalla now belonged to the Thekkumkoor Dynasty, which had one of its headquarters at Idathil near Kaavil Temple. Idathil (Vempolinadu Edathil Karthavu) was the family name of the Thekkumkoor kings. Today's Paliakara Palace is a branch of Lakshmipuram Palace of
Changanacherry, which is a branch of Alikottu Kovilakam of Pazhancherry in
Malabar. Similarly,
Nedumpuram Palace is a branch of Mavelikkara Palace is an heir to the Valluvanad tradition of
South Malabar. The Thekkumkoor kings lost their control in the course of time and Vilakkili (വിലക്കിലി) Nampoothiris were rulers in 1752–1753 when
Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma, the king of
Travancore, seized it in a bloody battle in which the ruler was killed, though some dispute it, saying the surrender was peaceful as the Namboothiris were so naïve as to challenge the mighty army of
Ramayyan, the shrewd and sadistic Dalava (ദളവ)- head of administration and advisor – of Travancore. == Geography and climate ==