Kongu Nadu is the north western region of the state of Tamil Nadu in Southern India.The word Kongu is derived from Kanku found in inscritions which inturmn is from the name of the dominant community Kankas (Gangas) or Kongar or the modern Kongu Vellala Gounder (caste). The Kongu country has vast tracts of forests accounting approximately 30% of its land area. Recently newly constructed (dravidian) theory says it to be rich in honey or nectar of flowers and hence it came to be known as the Kongu Nadu meaning country. The people who lived in that part of the Tamil country were called Kongars. The ancient Kongu country extended up to the River Kaveri in Mysore. The people of this region identified themselves by either wearing garlands of distinct flowers or by having the totem of an animal or a bird. They especially wore garlands of Kongam flowers (Cochlo spermum Gossypium). A sangam*1 verse that praises Nannan, the Velir chief of the Coorg and Mysore region, referred to him as 'Ponnam-kanni Nannan'. Since the Kongam flowers are yellow in colour, like gold, 'Ponnam-Kanni' was described as a beautiful garland of the gold-like yellow Kongum flowers. It is also mentioned in a verse of Perumkadai of Konguvel, that Barugur and the North Coimbatore plateau formed the southern extension of the Mysore plateau and had plenty of Kongam or Kongilavam trees. Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... Gounder is the name of the head in a system of decentralised panchayat administration used with various regional variations by distinct castes. ... , For other uses, see Mysore (disambiguation). ... A yellow Tulip. ... GOLD refers to one of the following: GOLD (IEEE) is an IEEE program designed to garner more student members at the university level (Graduates of the Last Decade). ...

History

The strategic location of Coimbatore near the Palghat Gap in the Western Ghats has made this region an area of conflict between different southern kingdoms since ancient times. Not much is known about the prehistory of this region. "Kongudesa Rajakkal" says that it is the land of Gangas. Ganga in Tamil is written Kanka which subsequently has become Kongu. The Kongu Vellalar community living here is the majority, its original name is Ganga kulam Gounder (caste) , Coimbatore   (Tamil: ), also known as Kovai (Tamil: ), is a major industrial city in India. ... The Palakkad Gap is a low pass through the Western Ghats ranges of southern India, linking Palakkad District of Kerala state with Coimbatore District of Tamil Nadu. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... Gounder is the name of the head in a system of decentralised panchayat administration used with various regional variations by distinct castes. ...

The region around Coimbatore was amongst the first places in Tamil Nadu where the local Tamil speaking people set up territorial states. In the ancient period the region around Coimbatore was known as Kanga Nadu (Ganga country) and was ruled by local Velir chiefs of the Western Ganga Dynasty, who were of Tamil origin. In the course of time Kongu country witnessed long drawn out power struggles between the different kingdoms of south India: here mainly within the Gounder clans of the Satiyaputra (Adiyaman) of Dharmapuri (the Adi kootam of modern Gounders) , Cheras (the Cheran kootam of modern Gounders) of Karur (Vanchi) and during the decline of the Sangam, the Gangas dynasty of Kannuva Gotra (the Kannan kootam of modern Gounders). There is a short interregnum of alien Thanjavur Cholas under Rajaraja and Rajendra. The power then passed to the kingdoms established by outsiders, Hoysalas who still used the Gavunda organisation at the local level. The arrival of Muslims and their defeat resulted in the shift of tax collection to alien Wodeyar scribes under Vijayanagara. However, the Gounders retained their militaristic power and local administration upto the Kingdom of Mysore and after the fall of Dheeran Chinnamalai, total power went into the hands of the British. Todays's Kongunadu is politically weak though economically strong resulting in exploitation by outsiders. The region ruled by these kingdoms was known as the land of the Gangas (Kongus),by the last dynasty where native Gounders ruled, the language Gangee Tamil (Kongu tamil) (Wilkins, History of Mysore) is spoken here. The information we get about these three states is mainly based on Tamil literature also called the 'Sangam literature'*1 and Kongudesarajakkal. The Gangas of Talakad, like the Kadambas of Banavasi, rose to political eminence in the middle of the fourth century A.D., and ruled over the southern parts of Karnataka, in southern India. ... Languages Tamil Religions Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Jainism Related ethnic groups Dravidian people Brahui people Kannadigas Malayalis Tamils Telugus Tuluvas Gonds The Tamil people are a multi-ethnic group from the Indian subcontinent with a recorded history going back more than two millennia. ... The Cheras were one of the three ancient Tamil dynasties who ruled the southern tip of the peninsula of India for most of its early history. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... The Cholas were a South Indian Tamil dynasty, antedating the early Sangam literature (c. ... Detail of a statue of Rajarja at Brihadisvara Temple Rajaraja Chola I was the king of the Chola dynasty, who ruled between 985 and 1014 CE. Rajaraja, the greatest of the all the Chola rulers of the Vijayalaya dynasty, laid the foundation for the growth of the Chola kingdom into... Rajendra is a popular Indian name. ... The Hoysala Empire ruled part of southern India from 1000 to 1346. ... Vijayanagara (Kannada: ವಿಜಯನಗರ, English: ) is in Bellary District, northern Karnataka. ... Flag of former princely state of Mysore. ... Dheeran Chinnamalai born in 1756, Chinnamalai started off by forming a 1,000 strong army in support of Tipu Sultan. ... 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. ...

Go to Gounder (caste) for more on Kongu history. Gounder is the name of the head in a system of decentralised panchayat administration used with various regional variations by distinct castes. ...

Countries of Kongu Nadu

The countries comprising ancient Kongu Nadu are:

1. Poondurai Nadu - Erode & Thiruchengode
2. Thenkarai Nadu - Dharapuram & Kurur
3. Kangeya Nadu - Dharapuram & Kankeyam
4. Pongalur Nadu - Palladam & Dharapuram
5. Arai Nadu - Kovai & Avanasi
6. Varakka Nadu - Palladam & Pollachi
7. Thiruvavinankudi Nadu - Palladam & Pollachi
8. Mana Nadu - South-West region of Karur Taluk
9. Thalaiyur Nadu - South& West regions of Karur
10. Thataiyur Nadu - Kuliththalai Taluk
11. Poovaniya Nadu - Omalur & Dharmapuri Taluks
12. Araya nadu - Erode & Namakkal
13. Oduvanga Nadu - Gobi Taluk
14. Vadakarai Nadu - Bhavani Taluk
15. Kilanku Nadu - Karur & Kulithalai Nadu
16. Nallurukka Nadu - Udumalaipettai
17. Vallavandi Nadu - Namakkal Northern part, Karur
18. Anda Nadu - Palani Taluk, Eastern Part
19. Venkala Nadu - Karur Taluk, Eastern Part
20. Kazalakkala Nadu - Pollachi Taluk
21. Anamalai Nadu - Pollachi South-West
22. Rasipura Nadu - Selam, Rasipuram, Kollimalai
23. Kangikovil Nadu - Gobi,Bhavani
24. Kurumbu Nadu - Vellakovil

Notes

^ Dr.Nagaswamy Roman Karur [1]

References

• Kongudesarajakkal, Government manuscript Library, Chennai
• Dheeran Chinnamalai by Pulavar Dr. Rasu.