Ainkurnuru (ஐங்குறுநூறு) is a book containing five hundred short poems and is part of Ettuthokai, a Sangam literature anthology. The poems in this book were written by numerous authors and were compiled by Kudalur Kizhar at the instance of Chera King Yanaikkatcey Mantaran Ceral Irumporai. Sangam Literature is the collective name for the Tamil literature created over 1800 years ago. ... Agattiyam, according to mentions inSangam Literature, was the first known book on Tamil grammar. ... The Tolkāppiyam (தொல்காப்பியம் in Tamil) is a work on the grammar of the Tamil language. ... Akananuru (அகநானுறு) is the seventh book in the Sangam literature anthology Ettuthokai. ... Pura Nanooru or Pura Nanuru is an ancient Tamil Sangam collection of poems, dating from 900 BCE to 220 CE. It is one of the oldest Tamil anthologies. ... Pattupattu (பத்துப்பாட்டு) – The ten Idylls, is an anthology of ten mind length books and is one of the oldest surviving Tamil Poetry. ... Tiruvalluvar statue at Kanyakumari Tirukural (திருக்குறள் in Tamil) is an important work of Tamil literature by Tiruvalluvar written in the form of couplets expounding various aspects of life. ... Manimegalai, Seevaga Sindhamani, Valayaapathi, Kundalakesi and Silapadhigaaram constitute the Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature. ... Cilappatikaram (The Anklet) also spelled as Cilappadhikaram or Silappadhigaram, is one of the five great epics of ancient Tamil Literature. ... Manimekalai is one of the masterpieces of Tamil literature and belongs to The Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature. ... The Sangam is a collection of Tamil literature composed between 1,500 and 2,000 years ago. ... Tamil literature is literature in the Tamil language which most prominently includes the contributions of the Tamil country (or Tamizhagam) history, a large part of which constitutes the modern state of Tamil Nadu and Kerala as well as some parts of Karnataka and Andra pradesh. ... Sangam Literature is the collective name for the Tamil literature created over 1800 years ago. ... The Cheras were one of the three ancient Tamil dynasties who ruled the southern peninsula of India at the beginning of its recorded history. ...

Character of the poems

This book comes under the Agam (subjective) category in its subject matter. Ancient Tamil poems was categorised into the broad categories of Agam(அகம்) - Subjective, dealing with matters of the heart and human emotions, and Puram (புறம்) - Objective, dealing with the tangibles of life such as war, politics, wealth, etc. The poems of this anthology are of the Akaval meter.

These poems deal with the various aspects of the courtship between the hero and the heroine. The poems are set in various landscapes (Thinai - திணை) depending on the mood of the poem. The poem shown as the example in this article is of the Marutham thinai. This is characterised by the mountainous setting and the subject matter of the poem which deals with the hero speaking about his union with his lover .

Sangam Literature is the collective name for the Tamil literature created over 1800 years ago. ...

Authors

Five authors wrote the poems, each contributing one hundred. These authors have been identified as Orampokiyar, Ammuvanaar, Kapilar, Othalandayar and Peyanaar. Perunthevanaar, who translated the Mahabharatham into Tamil, wrote the invocation song at the start of the anthology.

See also

• Ancient Tamil country
• Tamil language
• Tamil Literature
• Sangam
• Sangam Literature
• Sangam landscape

The ancient Tamil country of the classical era extended from River Krishna to the Cape Comorin(Kanyakumari). ... Tamil (தமிழ் ) is a classical language and one of the major languages of the Dravidian language family. ... Tamil literature is literature in the Tamil language which most prominently includes the contributions of the Tamil country (or Tamizhagam) history, a large part of which constitutes the modern state of Tamil Nadu and Kerala as well as some parts of Karnataka and Andra pradesh. ... The Sangam is a collection of Tamil literature composed between 1,500 and 2,000 years ago. ... Sangam Literature is the collective name for the Tamil literature created over 1800 years ago. ...

References

• Mudaliyar, Singaravelu A., Apithana Cintamani, An encyclopaedia of Tamil Literature, (1931) - Reprinted by Asian Educational Services, New Delhi (1983)
• http://www.tamilnation.org/literature/