In contemporary Tamil, the term
kōvil is also used to refer to "Place of Worship". In modern formal speech,
kōvil is also referred to as
aalayam,
dheva sthaanam by many Hindus.
Ambalam is another term used by devotees of the 19th century Tamil monk
Vallalar. Another term is 'Thali' (), which also means temple. For
Vaishnavites the foremost
kōvils are,
Sri Ranganathaswamy temple, Srirangam and
Tirumala Venkateswara temple,
Tirupati are viewed as important While for
Shaivites, the foremost
kōvils are
Chidambaram temple and
Koneswaram temple are important. In Tamil Nadu, India, the term "kovil" is commonly used to refer to the famous Hindu temples in the region, such as The
Parthasarathy Temple, Chennai, the Brihadeeswarar Temple in Thanjavur, and the
Narasimhaswamy Temple, Namakkal are important cultural and religious landmarks, and attract thousands of visitors each year. There are over 36,488 Temples in Tamil Nadu alone as registered by
Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department. The
Sangam literature scripted
before the common era, refers to some of the temples the early kings of
Tamilagam had erected. The songs of the revered
Vaishnava Alvar saints that date back to the period 5th to the 10th century CE and the
Shaiva Nayanars that date back to the period 7th to the 10th century CE provide ample references to the temples of that period.
Stone inscriptions found in most temples describe the patronage extended to them by the various rulers. The most ancient temples were built of wood as well as brick and mortar. Up to about 700 CE temples were mostly of the rock-cut type. The
Pallava kings were great builders of temples in stone. The
Chola dynasty (850–1279 CE) left a number of monuments to their credit such as the
Brihadeeswarar Temple in
Thanjavur. The Cholas added many ornate mandpams or halls to temples and constructed large towers. The
Pandya style (until 1350 CE) saw the emergence of huge towers, high wall enclosures and enormous towered gateways (Gopurams). The
Vijayanagara Style (1350–1560 CE) is famous for the intricacy and beauty especially for the decorated monolithic pillars. The
Nayak style (1600–1750 CE) is noted for the addition of large
prakaram (outer courtyard) (circum-ambulatory paths) and pillared halls. ==See also==