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Chera dynasty

January 06, 2023

"Chera" and "Cheras" redirect here. For other uses, see Chera (disambiguation) and Cheras (disambiguation).

The Chera dynasty (or Cēra), IPA: [t͡ʃeːɾɐ], was one of the South[1] dynasties in and before the Sangam period history of the state of Kerala and the Kongu Nadu region of Western Tamil Nadu in southern India.[2][3] Together with the Tamil dynasties of Cholas of Uraiyur (Tiruchirappalli) and the Pandyas of Madurai, the early Cheras were known as one of the three major powers (muventar) of ancient Tamilakam[2] in the early centuries of the Common Era. They are credited as the creators of land of Kerala as they have unified various regions of the western coast and western ghats to form the early Kerala empire.[4][5]

Chera dynasty
ചേരസാമ്രാജ്യം
Flag
CapitalEarly Cheras

Medieval Chera dynasty

Chera Perumals

Common languages
Religion
Demonym(s)Cheran
Today part of

The Chera country was geographically well placed to profit from maritime trade via the extensive Indian Ocean networks. Exchange of spices, especially black pepper, with Middle Eastern and Graeco-Roman merchants are attested in several sources.[6][7][2] The Cheras of the early historical period (c. second century BCE – c. third century CE[2]) are known to have had their original centre at Kuttanad in Kerala, and harbours at Muchiri (Muziris) and Thondi (Tyndis) on the Indian Ocean coast (Kerala) and Kongunadu. They governed the area of Malabar Coast between Alappuzha in the south to Kasaragod in the north. At the time af reign of Cheras, their empire was extented to the eastern parts of today's Tamilnadu also.This also included the Palakkad Gap, Coimbatore, Dharapuram, Erode, Salem, and Kolli Hills. The region around Coimbatore was ruled by the Cheras during the Sangam period between c. 1st and the 4th centuries CE and it served as the eastern entrance to the Palakkad Gap, the principal trade route between the Malabar Coast and Tamil Nadu.[8] However the southern region of the present-day Kerala state (The coastal belt between Thiruvananthapuram and southern Alappuzha) was under Ay dynasty, who was more related to the Pandya dynasty of Madurai.[9]

The early historic pre-Pallava[10] polities are often described as a "kinship-based redistributive economies" largely shaped by "pastoral-cum-agrarian subsistence" and "predatory politics".[2] Old Tamil Brahmi cave label inscriptions, describe Ilam Kadungo, son of Perum Kadungo, and the grandson of Ko Athan Cheral of the Irumporai clan.[11][12] Inscribed portrait coins with Brahmi legends give a number of Chera names,[13] with the Chera symbols of the bow and the arrow depicted in the reverse.[13] The anthologies of early Sangham texts are a major source of information about the early Cheras.[5] Cenguttuvan, or the good Chera, is famous for the traditions surrounding Kannaki, the principal female character of the Sangam epic poem Cilappatikaram.[6][14] After the end of the early historical period, around the 3rd-5th century CE, there seems to be a period where the Cheras' power declined considerably.[15]

Cheras of the Kongu country are known to have controlled western Tamil Nadu in the early medieval period.[16] Present-day central Kerala and Kongu Cheras detached around 8th-9th century AD to form the Chera Perumal kingdom and Kongu chera kingdom(c. 9th- 12th century AD).[17] The exact nature of the relationships between the various branches of Chera rulers is somewhat unclear.The Nambutiris asked for a regent of the Chera king from Punthura and were granted the prime minister hailing from Punthura. Hence the Zamorin holds the title 'Punthurakkon' (King from Punthura).[18]After this, the present Kerala parts and Kongunadu became autonomous.[19] Some of the major dynasties of medieval south India - Chalukya, Pallava, Pandya, Rashtrakuta, and Chola - seems to have conquered the Kongu Chera country. Kongu Cheras appear to have been absorbed into the Pandya political system by 10th/11th century AD. Even after the dissolution of the Perumal kingdom, royal inscriptions and temple grants, especially from outside Kerala proper, continued to refer the country and the people as the "Cheras or Keralas".[15]

The rulers of Venad (the Venad Cheras or the "Kulasekharas"), based out of the port of Kollam in south Kerala, claimed their ancestry from the Perumals.[15][20] Cheranad was also the name of an erstwhile province in the kingdom of Zamorin of Calicut, which had included parts of present-day Tirurangadi and Tirur Taluks of Malappuram district in it.[21] Later it became a Taluk of Malabar District, when Malabar came under the British Raj.[21][22] The headquarters of Cheranad Taluk was the town of Tirurangadi.[21][22] Later the Taluk was merged with Eranad Taluk.[21][22] In the modern period the rulers of Cochin and Travancore (in Kerala) also claimed the title "Chera".[23]

Etymology

The term Chera - and its variant form "Keralaputas" - stands for the ruling lineage and the country associated with them.[12]

The etymology of "Chera" is still a matter of considerable speculation among historians. One approach proposes that the word is derived from Cheral, a corruption of Charal meaning "declivity of a mountain" in Tamil, suggesting a connection with the mountainous geography of Kerala.[24] Another theory argues that the "Cheralam" is derived from "cher" (sand) and "alam" (region), literally meaning, "the slushy land".[24] Apart from the speculations mentioned, a number of other theories do appear in historical studies.[25][24]

In ancient non-Tamil sources, the Cheras are referred to by various names. The Cheras are referred as Kedalaputo (Sanskrit: "Kerala Putra") in the Emperor Ashoka's Pali edicts (3rd century BCE).[26] While Pliny the Elder and Claudius Ptolemy refer to the Cheras as Kaelobotros and Kerobottros respectively, the Graeco-Roman trade map Periplus Maris Erythraei refers to the Cheras as Keprobotras. All these Graeco-Roman names are evidently corruptions of "Kedala Puto/Kerala Putra" probably received through relations with northern India.[14][27]

The term Cheralamdivu or Cheran Tivu and its cognates, meaning the "island of the Chera kings", is a Classical Tamil name of Sri Lanka that takes root from the term "Chera".[28]

Cheras of ancient south India

 
Ancient Silk Road map showing the then trade routes. The spice trade was mainly along the water routes (blue).
 
Names, routes and locations of the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (1st century CE)

Recent studies on ancient south Indian history suggest that the three major rulers – the Pandya, the Chera and the Chola – based originally in Madurai in Tamil Nadu, Vanchi, present day Karur, in Tamilnadu and Uraiyur(Tiruchirappalli) in Tamil Nadu, respectively. They had established outlets on the Indian Ocean namely Korkai, Muchiri (Muziris), and Kaveripattinam respectively.[2] Territory of the Chera chiefdom of the early historical period (pre-Pallava[10]) consisted of the present day northern-central Kerala and Kongu region western Tamil Nadu.[12] The rest of kerala was under Ay dynasty (southern tip of Kerala) and Mushika dyansty (northern tip of Kerala).The political structure of the chiefdom was based on communal holding of resources and kinship-based production. The authority was determined by "the range of redistributive social relationships sustained through predatory accumulation of resources".[2] There was more than one branch of the Chera family ruling at the same time and contenting for leadership (one in central Kerala and the other one in western Tamil Nadu).[29]

The Cheras are referred to as Kedalaputo (Sanskrit: "Kerala Putra") in the Emperor Ashoka's Pali edicts (3rd century BCE, Rock Edicts II and XII).[26] The earliest Graeco-Roman accounts referring to the Cheras are by Pliny the Elder in the 1st century CE, in the Periplus of the 1st century CE, and by Claudius Ptolemy in the 2nd century CE.[30][11]

There are also brief references in the present forms of the works by author and commentator Katyayana (c. 3rd - 4th century BCE), author and philosopher Patanjali (c. 5th century BCE) and Maurya statesman and philosopher Kautilya (Chanakya) (c. 3rd - 4th century BCE) [though Sanskrit grammarian Panini (c. 6th - 5th century BCE) does not mention either the people or the land].[31]

Archaeological discoveries

 
Brahmi inscription from Pugalur, near Karur
 
A Chera coin with legend "Makkotai"
 
A Chera coin with legend "Kuttuvan Kotai"

Archaeology has found epigraphic and numismatic evidence of the Early Cheras.[32][11] Two almost identical inscriptions discovered from Pugalur (near Karur) dated to c. 1st - 2nd century CE, describe three generations of Chera rulers of the Irumporai lineage. They record the construction of a rock shelter for Jains on the occasion of the investiture of Ilam Kadungo, son of Perum Kadungo, and the grandson of Ko Athan Cheral Irumporai.[11]

Irumporai Cheras from Pugalur inscription

Arunattarmalai, Velayudhampalayam

  • Ko Athan Chel (Cheral) Irumporai
  • Perum Kadungon [Irumporai]
  • Ilam Kadungo [Irumporai]

A short Brahmi inscription, containing the word Chera ("Kadummi Pudha Chera") was found at Edakkal in the Western Ghats.[33]

Recent archaeological discoveries increasingly confirm Karur as a political, economic and cultural centre of ancient south India. Excavations at Karur yielded huge quantities of copper coins with Chera symbols such as the bow and arrow, Roman amphorae and Roman coins. An ancient route, from the harbours in Kerala (such as Muchiri or Thondi) through the Palghat Gap to Karur in interior Tamil Nadu can be traced with the help of archaeological evidence.[34] Historians are yet to precisely locate Muziris, known in Tamil as "Muchiri", a base of the Chera rulers. Archaeological excavations at Pattanam (near Cochin) suggest a strong case of identification with the location.[2] Roman coins have over a period of time been discovered in large numbers from central Kerala and the Coimbatore-Karur region (from locations such as Kottayam-Kannur, Valluvally, Iyyal, Vellalur and Kattankanni).[35][34]

Chera coinage

A number of coins, assumed to be of the Cheras, mostly found in the Amaravati riverbed in Tamil Nadu, are a major source of early Chera historiography.[35] This includes a number of punch marked coins discovered from Amaravati riverbed. The square coins of copper and its alloys or silver have also been discovered. Most of these early square coins show a bow and arrow, the traditional emblem of the Cheras on the obverse, with or without any legend. Silver-punch marked coins, an imitation of the Maurya coins, and with a Chera bow on the reverse, have been reported. Hundreds of copper coins, attributed to the Cheras, have been discovered from Pattanam in central Kerala.[13][36] Bronze dies for minting punch marked coins were discovered from a riverbed in Karur.[13]

Other discoveries include a coin with a portrait and the Brahmi legend "Mak-kotai" above it and another one with a portrait and the legend "Kuttuvan Kotai" above it. Both impure silver coins are tentatively dated to c. 1st century CE or a little later. The reverse side of both coins are blank.[35] The impure silver coins bearing Brahmi legends "Kollippurai", "Kollipporai",[13] "Kol-Irumporai" and "Sa Irumporai"[13] were also discovered from Karur. The portrait coins are generally considered as imitation of Roman coins.[13] All legends, assumed to be the names of the Chera rulers, were in Tamil-Brahmi characters on the obverse. Reverse often contained the bow and arrow symbol.[13] An alliance between the Cholas is evident from a joint coin bearing the Chola tiger on the obverse and the Chera bow and arrow on the reverse. Lakshmi-type coins of possible Sri Lankan origin have also been discovered from Karur.[13]

The macro analysis of the Mak-kotai coin shows close similarities with the contemporary Roman silver coin. A silver coin with the portrait of a person wearing a Roman-type bristled-crown helmet was also discovered from Amaravati riverbed in Karur. Reverse side of the coin depicts a bow and arrow, the traditional symbol of the Chera family.[35]

Cheras from early Tamil texts

A large body of Tamil works collectively known as the Sangam (Academy) texts (c. 2nd century BCE- 3rd century CE) describes a number of Chera, Pandya and Chola rulers.[37][38] Among them, the most important sources for the Cheras are the Pathitrupattu, the Akananuru, and the Purananuru.[31] The Pathitrupattu, the fourth book in the Ettuthokai anthology, mentions a number of rulers and heirs-apparent of the Chera family.[5] Each ruler is praised in ten songs sung by a court poet.[37] However, the book is not worked into connected history and settled chronology so far.[39]

A method known as Gajabahu-Chenguttuvan synchronism, is used by some historians to date the events described in the early Tamil texts to c. 1st - 2nd century CE.[39] Despite its dependency on numerous conjectures, the method is considered as the sheet anchor for the purpose of dating the events in the early Tamil texts.[40][41][42] Ilango Adigal author of the legendary Tamil epic poem Chilapathikaram describes Chenguttuvan as his elder brother. He also mentions Chenguttuvan's decision to propitiate a temple (virakkallu) for the goddess Pattini (Kannaki) at Vanchi.[43] A certain king called Gajabahu, often identified with Gajabahu, king of Sri Lanka (2nd century CE), was present at the Pattini festival at Vanchi.[44][45] In this context, Chenguttuvan can be dated to either the first or last quarter of the 2nd century CE.[6]

Uthiyan Cheral Athan is generally considered as the earliest known ruler of the Chera family from the Sangam texts (and the possible hero of the lost first decad of Pathitrupattu). Uthiyan Cheral was also known as "Vanavaramban" (Purananuru). His headquarters were at Kuzhumur near Kuttanad(Akananuru).[46] He is described as the Chera ruler who prepared food ("the Perum Chotru") for Pandavas and the Kauravas at the Kurukshetra War (Purananuru and Akananuru).[46] He Married Nallini, daughter of Veliyan Venman, and was the father of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheralathan (Pathitrupattu (II)).[46]

Uthiyan Cheral Athan is probably identical with the Perum Cheral Athan who fought against the Chola Karikala at the battle of Venni. In the battle of Venni, the Chera was wounded on the back by the Chola ruler Karikala. Unable to bear the disgrace, the Chera committed suicide by slow starvation.[46]

As the name Pathitrupattu indicates, they were ten texts, each consisting a decad of lyrics; but of these two have not till now been discovered.[47]

Cells table centered Cheras from Pathitrupattu
Decad of Pathitrupattu Chera Relation Bard Notes
II Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan Son of Uthiyan Cheral Athan (by Veliyan's daughter Nallini)[48] Kannanar[5] Nedum Cheral Athan was also known as "Imayavaramban". He is praised for having subdued "seven crowned kings" to achieve the title of adhiraja.[49][48]

Kannanar also lauds the Chera for conquering enemies from Kumari to the Himalayas (and carving the Chera bow emblem on the Himalayas). Nedum Cheral Athan, famous for his hospitality, gifted Kannanar with a part of Umbar Kattu.[49][48]

The greatest of his enemies were the Kadambus (possibly Kadambas) whom he defeated in battles.[48] Nedum Cheral Athan is said to have conquered an island, which had the kadambu tree as its guardian, by crossing the ocean.[29] Poet Mamular also sings of his conquest of Mantai.[48] He also punished and extracted ransom from the Yavanas.[29]

Chola Neytalankanal Ilam Set Chenni captured Pamalur, which belonged to the Chera Kudakko Nedum Cheral Athan. The Chera fought the Cholas at Por (and both combatants died in the battle)[50]

III Palyanai Sel Kelu Kuttuvan Son of Uthiyan Cheral Athan (younger brother of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan)[51] Palai

Kauthamanar[5]

 Credited as the conqueror of "Konkar Nadu".[51] Described as lord of Puzhi Nadu and the Cheruppu and Aiyirai Mountains.[51]

Headquarters was located on the mouth river Periyar.[51]

IV Kalankai Kanni Narmudi Cheral Son of Imayavaramban.[52] Kappiyattukku Kappiyanar[53] Narmudi Cheral led an expedition against Nedumidal Anji (identified with the Adigaiman/Satyaputra of Tagadur). Initially the Chera was defeated by Nannan of Ezhimala in the battle of Pazhi, later defeated and killed Nannan in the battle of Vakai Perum Turai.[49][45] Performed his coronation using holy water from both the western and eastern oceans (brought by a relay of elephants).[29] Also known as "Vanavaramban".[52]
V Kadal Pirakottiya Chenguttuvan Son of Nedum Cheral Athan Paranar[53] Chenguttuvan is identified with "Kadal Pirakottiya" Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan. Chenguttuvan was a son of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan.[54]

Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan is often identified with the legendary "Chenguttuvan Chera", the most illustrious ruler of the Early Cheras. Under his reign, the Chera territory extended from Kollimalai (near Karur Vanchi) in the east to Thondi and Mantai (Kerala) on the western coast. The wife of Chenguttuvan was Illango Venmal (the daughter of a Velir chief).[45][49]

In the early years of his rule, the Kuttuvan successfully intervened in a succession dispute in the Chola territory and established his relative Nalam Killi on the Chola throne. The rivals of Killi were defeated in the battle of Nerivayil, Uraiyur. The Kadambas are described as the arch enemies of the Chera ruler. Kuttuvan was able to defeat them in the battle of Idumbil, Valayur (Viyalur). The "fort" of Kodukur in which the Kadamba warriors took shelter was stormed. Later the Kadambas (helped by the Yavanas) attacked Kuttuvan by sea, but the Chera ruler destroyed their fleet. Kuttuvan is said to have defeated the Kongu people and a warrior called Mogur Mannan (one of the Chera's allies was Arugai, an enemy of the Mogurs.[54][6]

According to Chilapathikaram, Chenguttuvan led his army to north India to get the sacred stone from the Himalayas to sculpt the idol of goddess Pattini.[29]

VI Adu Kottu Pattu Cheral Athan[55] Successor of Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan[44](son of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan and brother of Narmudi Cheral)[55] Kakkai Padiniyar Nachellaiyar (poetess)[53] Probably identical with the Perum Cheral Athan who fought against the Chola Karikala at the battle of Venni. In the battle of Venni, Uthiyan Cheral was wounded on the back by Karikala. Unable to bear the disgrace, the Chera committed suicide by slow starvation.[29][55]

Controlled the port of Naravu.[55]

VII Selva Kadumko Valia Athan Son of Anthuvan Cheral[56] Kapilar[53] Selvakadumko Valia Athan controlled Pandar and Kodumanam (Kodumanal).[29]

He married the sister of the wife of Nedum Cheral Athan. Selva Kadumko defeated the combined armies of the Pandyas and the Cholas.[56][5] Father of Perum Cheral Irumporai. Died at Chikkar Palli.[57]

Identified with Mantharan Poraiyan Kadumko. Pasum Put-Poraiyan and Perumput-Poraiyan.[56]

He is sometimes identified as the Ko Athan Cheral Irumporai mentioned in the Aranattar-malai inscription of Pugalur (c. 2nd century CE).[44][5]

VIII Tagadur Erinta Perum Cheral Irumporai[58] Arichil Kizhar[53] "Tagadur Erinta" Perum Cheral Irumporai defeated the combined armies of the Pandyas, Cholas and that of the chief of Tagadur Adigaman Ezhni at Tagadur. He is also called "the lord of Puzhinadu and "the lord of Kollimalai" and "the lord of [Poom]Puhar". Puhar was the Chola headquarters. Perum Cheral Irumporai also annexed the territories of a minor Idayar chief called Kazhuval (Kazhuvul).[59]Addressed as "Kodai Marba". Father of Illam Cheral Irumporai.[58]
IX "Kudakko" Illam Cheral Irumporai[60] Perunkundur Kizhar[5] Illam Cheral Irumporai defeated Perum Chola, Ilam Pazhaiyan Maran and Vicchi, and destroyed "five forts". Lord of Tondi, "Kongar Nadu", "Kuttuvar Nadu", and "Puzhi Nadu".[60]

Described as the descendant of Nedum Cheral Athan.[48]

The following Cheras are knowns from Purananuru collection (some of the names are re-duplications).[47]

  • Karuvur Eriya Ol-val Ko Perum Cheral Irumporai[47] - Ruled of Karuvur. Praised by Nariveruttalaiyar.[61]
  • Kadungo Valia Athan[47]
  • Palai Padiya Perum Kadumko[47]
  • Antuvan Cheral Irumporai[47] - father of Selva Kadumko Valia Athan (VII decad). Contemporary to Chola Mudittalai Ko Perunar Killi (whose elephant famously wandered to Karuvur).[50]
  • "Yanaikatchai" Mantaram Cheral Irumporai ruled from Kollimalai (near Karur Vanchi) in the east to Thondi and Mantai on the western coast. He defeated his enemies in a battle at Vilamkil. The famous Pandya ruler Nedum Chezhian (early 3rd century CE[6]) captured Mantaran Cheral as a prisoner. However, he managed to escape and regain the lost territories.[62][47]
  • Ko Kodai Marban[47]
  • Takadur Erinta Perum Cheral Irumporai[47]
  • Kuttuvan Kodai[47]
  • Kudakko Nedum Cheral Athan[47]
  • Perum Cheral Athan[47]
  • Kanaikkal Irumporai is said to have defeated a chief called Muvan and imprisoned him. The Chera then brutally pulled out the teeth of the prisoner and planted them on the gates of the city of Thondi. Upon capture by the Chola ruler Sengannan, Kanaikkal committed suicide by starvation.[62]
  • Kudakko Cheral Irumporai[47]
  • Kottambalattu Tunchiya Makkodai[47] - probably identical with Kottambalattu Tunchiya Cheraman in Akananuru (168)[46]
  • Vanchan[47]
  • Kadalottiya Vel Kelu Kuttuvan[47]
  • Man Venko[47] - a friend of the Pandya Ugra Peruvaluti and the Chola Rajasuyam Vetta Perunar Killi.[63]

Cheras in the medieval period

Main article: Kongu Chera dynasty
 
An approximate extend of Kalabhra supremacy in southern India.

After the end of the early historical period in south India, c. 3rd-5th century CE, there seems to be a period where the Chera family's political prestige and influence declined considerably.[15] Little is known for certain about the Cheras during this period.[64]

Cheras of Kongu country (Karur) initially appear as the rulers of western Tamil Nadu and central Kerala.[17][17] There was a domination of present-day Kerala regions of the ancient Chera country by the Kongu Cheras/Keralas (probably via some form of viceregal rule).[17] The family claimed that they were descended from the Cheras who flourished in pre-Pallava (early historic) south India.[17]

  • An inscription of Kadamba king Vishnu Varma, dated 5th or 6th century, can be found at Edakkal cave in Wayanad.[65][66] An early historic Chera graffiti containing the phrase "Kadummi Putra Chera" was also discovered from the cave.[33]
  • Tradition tells that the Kalabhra (Kalvar[6]) rulers kept the Chera, Chola and Pandya rulers in their confinement.[64]
  • The earliest Chalukya king to claim overlorship over Chera/Kerala is Kirttivarman I (fl. 566 - 598 AD) (this claim is generally considered as a "boastfull exaggeration" by historians). A later grant (695 AD) of king Vinayaditya II Satyasraya, with reference to the vassalage of the Kerala country, is now reckoned as a more dependable record.[66] Several Chalukya records of the 7th and 8th centuries speak of the conquest and vassalage of the Kerala country.[66]
  • A number of Pallava records also mention the vassalage of the Kerala country.[66]
  • Rashtrakuta inscriptions mention "an alliance of Dravida kings including Kerala, Pandya, Chola and Pallava who were defeated" (E. I., XVIII). The Keralas mentioned there might be the Kongu Cheras who had already submitted to the Pandyas (and not Chera Perumals of Kerala).[67]

Pandya conquests in Chera country

 
Chera Perumal Kingdom with the Chola Empire on the east.

There are clear attestations of repeated Pandya conquests of the Kerala or Chera country in the 7th and 8th centuries AD.[66]

  • Pandya king Sendan/Jayantan (fl. 645 – 70 AD) was known as the Vanavan, an ancient name for the Chera king.[66] Arikesari Maravarman (670 – 710 AD), another Pandya ruler, probably defeated the Keralas/Cheras on several occasions.[66][19] His successor Ko Chadayan Ranadhira also made gains against the Cheras.[68]
  • The so-called "renewal of the capital city of Vanchi ([[Karur]]) along with Kudal (Madurai) and Kozhi (Uraiyur)", described in the Madras Museum Plates of the Pandya king Rajasimha I (730 – 65 AD), may suggest a Pandya occupation of the Kongu Chera capital Karur.[67]
  • It is known that when Pandya king Jatila Parantaka (765 – 815 AD) went to war against the Adigaman of Tagadur (Dharmapuri), the Keralas and the Pallavas went to the aid of the latter though "the Pandyas drove them back to the quarters from which they had emerged" (Madras Museum Plates).[69] Perhaps the Chera branch from present-day Kerala had crossed the Ghat Mountains to offer support to the Adigaman and after defeat they were pursued up to the Palghat Gap by the Pandya forces.[69]
 
Cheras of central Kerala
  • Present-day central Kerala probably detached from Kongu Chera/Kerala kingdom (around 8th-9th century AD) to form the Chera/Perumal kingdom.[17]
  • The Pandyas are known to have made a defensive alliance with the Cheras of Kongu country (who were under their influence) in this period.[68] Pandya king Parantaka Vira Narayana (c. 880 – 900 AD) is known to have married a Kerala (Kongu Chera) princess "Vanavan Maha Devi".[70] The son of this alliance, Rajasimha, described as a member of Chandra-Aditya Kula (Sinnamanur copper plates), was "destroyed by the Chola king Parantaka".[70] It was initially assumed by K. A. N. Sastri and E. P. N. K. Pillai that the Vira Narayana had married a Chera Perumal princess of Kerala.[70]

Chola conquests of Chera country

  • The Kongu country was conquered by the Cholas (either by Srikantha or Aditya I Chola) in the last years of the 9th century AD (this campaign probably involved battles between Aditya I and Parantaka Vira Narayana). The Pandyas were eventually defeated in the "great battle" of Sripurambiyam (c. 885).[71]
  • The Pandyas were defeated by Chola king Parantaka in 910 AD (the fate of the Kongu Chera country, then ruled by Kongu Cheras, upon the fall of Madurai is not known).[72] Pandya king Rajasimha II, who was defeated by Parantaka Chola, is known to have found asylum in Kerala or Chera country (c. 920 AD).[72] Chola king Sundara (c. 956 – c. 973 AD) had a Chera or Kerala princess among his queens.[73]
  • Kongu Chera country (and the Chera Perumal kingdom) was subsequently conquered by the Cholas.[19]
    • Amara Bhujanga Deva, one of the princes defeated by Chola king Rajaraja (Tiruvalangadu Grant), was probably a Pandya or a Kongu Chera prince.[74]
    • Chola king Rajadhiraja is known for defeating certain Vira Kerala, one of the so-called "thennavar muvar", and trampling him to death by his war elephant.[75] This royal was probably a Kongu-Chera of Chandra-Aditya Kula or a Pandya prince (son of a Pandya and a Kongu Chera princess).[76] Vira Kerala was previously considered as a Chera Perumal king (K. A. N. Sastri and E. P. N. K. Pillai).[77]

Chera Perumals of Kerala

Main article: Chera/Perumals of Makotai
 
Depiction of Cherman Perumal Nayanar - Brihadisvara Temple, Thanjavur

While the Pallava and Pandya rulers in Tamil Nadu emerged into established kingship by c. 5th - 6th centuries CE, the formation of the monarchical polity in Kerala took place not before c. 9th century CE. The Chera Perumals are known to have ruled what is now Kerala between c. 9th and 12th century CE.[4] Scholars tend to identify Alvar saint Kulasekhara and Nayanar saint Cherman Perumal (literally "the Chera king") with some of the earliest Perumals.[78]

The exact nature of the relation between the Cheras of Kongu and the Chera Perumals remains obscure.[64] The Nambutiris asked for a regent of the Chera king from Karur in Coimbatore and were granted the prime minister hailing from Pundurai. Hence the Zamorin holds the title 'Punthurakkon' (King from Punthura).[18]After this, the Malabar and Kerala parts became autonomous of Karur. The Perumal kingdom derived most of its wealth from maritime trade relations (the spice trade) with the Middle East.[79] The port of Kollam, in the kingdom, was a major point in overseas India trade to the West and the East Asia.[80] Political units known as "nadus", controlled by powerful hereditary chiefs or by households, occupied central importance in the structuring of the Chera Perumal state. The rulers of the nadus usually acted with the help of a Nair military retinue. The prominent nadus continued to exist even after the end of the Chera rule during the beginning of the 12th century.[81] Nambudiri-Brahmin settlements of agriculturally rich areas (fertile wet land) were another major source of support to the kingdom.[82]

"A naval campaign led to the conquest of the Maldive Islands, the Malabar Coast, and northern Sri Lanka, all of which were essential to the Chola control over trade with Southeast Asia and with Arabia and eastern Africa. These were the transit areas, ports of call for the Arab traders and ships to Southeast Asia and China, which were the source of the valuable spices sold at a high profit to Europe."

— Romila Thapar, Encyclopædia Britannica

The Chera Perumal kingdom had alternating friendly or hostile relations with the Cholas and the Pandyas.[83] The kingdom was attacked, and eventually forced into submission, by the Cholas in the early 11th century AD (in order to break the monpoly of trade with the Middle East).[83][84] When the Perumal kingdom was eventually dissolved in the 12th century most of its autonomous chiefdoms became independent.[81]

Government

The extent and nature of state formation of the Chera kingdoms, from the ancient period to early modern period, cannot be interpreted either in a linear or in a monochromatic way. Each ruling family had its own political prestige and influence in southern India over their life spans.[14][85]

The extent of political formation in pre-Pallava[10] south India (before c. third century CE[2]) was a matter of considerable debate among historians.[5] Although earlier scholars visualised early historic south Indian polities as full-fledged kingdoms, some of the recent studies rule out the possibility of state formation.[4][2][86] According to historian Rajan Gurukkal, ancient south India was a combination of several "unevenly evolved and kinship based redistributive economies of chiefdoms". These polities were structured by the dominance of "agro-pastoral means of subsistence and predatory politics".[2] Kesavan Veluthat, another prominent historian of south India, uses the term "chief" and "chiefdom" for the Chera ruler and Chera polity of early historic south India respectively.[12]

Reaching conclusions based on the early Tamil poems and archaeological evidences is another topic of disagreement.[87][88] It is assumed that the institution of sabha in south Indian villages, for local administration, was first surfaced during the early historic period.[6]

Economy

The early Chera economy can be described as a predominantly "pastoral-cum-agrarian" based system. The emphasis on agriculture increased with time, and provided the base for larger economic change.[6] The early historic south India (c. second century BCE-c. third century CE[2]) can be described as a "semi-tribal political economy". In a 2013 paper, historian Rajan Gurukkal describes ancient south India as a collection of "unevenly evolved and kinship-based redistributive economies."[2]

Spice trade

 
Silk Road (Red) and Spice Routes (Blues)

Exchange relations with the merchants from Graeco-Roman world, the "Yavanas", and with north India provided considerable economic momentum for the Chera chiefdom. Indian Ocean exchange was the major economic activity.[6] There is some difference of opinion with regard to the nature of the "spice trade" in ancient Chera country. It is disputed whether this "trade" with the Mediterranean world was managed on equal terms by the Tamil merchants, in view of the existence of apparently unequal political institutions in south India.[89] Some of the more recent studies point out that the "trade" was an exchange of "serious imbalance", because of its being between the Roman Empire and South India with uneven chiefdoms.[2]

The geographical advantages, like the favourable Monsoon winds which carried ships directly from the Arabia to south India as well as the abundance of exotic spices in the interior Ghat mountains (and the presence of a large number of rivers connecting the Ghats with the Arabian Sea) combined to make the Cheras a major power in ancient southern India.[7][2] Spice exchange with Middle Eastern and Mediterranean (Graeco-Roman) navigators can be traced back to before the Common Era and was substantially consolidated in the early years of the Common Era.[2][90][91] In the first century CE, the Romans conquered Egypt, which probably helped them to establish dominance in the Indian Ocean spice trade. The earliest Graeco-Roman accounts referring to the Cheras are by Pliny the Elder in the 1st century CE, in Periplus Maris Erythraei of the 1st century CE, and by Claudius Ptolemy in the 2nd century CE.[27] The Periplus Maris Erythraei portrays the "trade" in the territory of Keprobotras in detail. Muziris was the most important centre in the Malabar Coast, which according to the Periplus, "abounded with large ships of Romans, Arabs and Greeks". Bulk spices, ivory, timber, pearls and gems were "exported" from the Chera country to the Middle East and Mediterranean kingdoms.[92]

It is known that the Romans brought vast amounts of gold in exchange for black pepper.[2][93] This is testified by the Roman coin hoards that have been found in various parts of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Pliny the Elder, in the 1st century CE, laments the drain of Roman gold into India and China for luxuries such as spices, silk and muslin. The spice trade across the Indian Ocean dwindled with the decline of the Roman empire in the 3rd - 4th centuries CE.[2] With the exit of the Mediterranean from the spice trade, their space was picked up by the Chinese and Arab navigators.[4]

Wootz steel

The famous damascus blades resulted from the unique properties of wootz crucible steel from medieval south India and Sri Lanka.[94] There are several ancient Tamil, Greek, Chinese and Roman literary references to high-carbon Indian steel. The crucible steel production process started in the 6th century BC at Kodumanal in Tamil Nadu, Golconda in Telangana, Karnataka and Sri Lanka. This steel was termed "the finest steel in the world" by the Romans who referred to it by the term "Seric". It was exported to Rome, Egypt, China and the Middle East by 500 BC.[95][96][97] The steel was exported as cakes of steely iron that came to be known as "Wootz".[98]

The method was to heat black magnetite ore in the presence of carbon in a sealed clay crucible inside a charcoal furnace to completely remove slag. An alternative was to smelt the ore first to give wrought iron, then heat and hammer it to remove slag. The carbon source was bamboo and leaves from plants such as Avārai.[98][99] The Chinese and locals in Sri Lanka adopted the production methods of creating wootz steel from the Cheras by the 5th century BC.[100][101] In Sri Lanka, this early steel-making method employed a unique wind furnace, driven by the monsoon winds. Production sites from antiquity have emerged, in places such as Anuradhapura, Tissamaharama and Samanalawewa, as well as imported artifacts of ancient iron and steel from Kodumanal. A 200 BC Tamil trade guild in Tissamaharama, in the South East of Sri Lanka, brought with them some of the oldest iron and steel artifacts and production processes to the island from the classical period.[102][103][104][105]

Society and culture

Early Cheras

In general, early Tamil texts reflect the southern Indian cultural tradition as well as elements of the northern Indian cultural tradition, which by now was beginning to come into contact with southern India.[6] It is logical to conclude that most of the Chera population followed native Dravidian religions.[106] Religious practice might have consisted predominantly of conducting sacrifices to various gods, such as to the pre-eminent god Murugan.[6] The worship of departed heroes was a common practice in the Chera territory, along with tree worship and other kinds of ancestor worship. The war goddess Kottava was propitiated with elaborate offerings of meat and toddy. It is theorised that Kottava was assimilated into the present-day form of the goddess Durga.[106] It is thought that the first wave of Brahmin migration came to the Chera territory around the 3rd century BCE with or behind the Jain and Buddhist missionaries. It was only in the 8th century CE that the Aryanisation of the old Chera country reached its organised form.[107] Though the vast majority of the population followed native practices, a small percentage of the population, mainly migrants, followed Jainism, Buddhism and Brahmanism.[106] Populations of Jews and Christians were also known to have lived in Kerala.[108][109]

Early Tamil texts do make a number of references to social stratification, as expressed by use of the word kudi ("group") to denote "caste".[6] A striking feature of the social life of the early historic period (c. second century BCE-c. third century CE[2]) is the high status accorded to women.[110][86]

Agriculture and pastoralism were the primary occupations of the people. Various agricultural occupations such as harvesting, threshing and drying are described in the early Tamil texts. Poets and musicians were held in high regard in society. Early Tamil texts are full of references about the lavish patronage extended to court poets. There were professional poets and poetesses who composed texts praising their patrons and were generously rewarded for this.[111]

See also

References

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Books cited

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  • Menon, A. Sreedhara (2007). A Survey of Kerala History (2007 ed.). Kerala, India: D C Books. ISBN 978-8126415786.
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  • Menon, A. Sreedhara (4 March 2011). Kerala History and its Makers. D C Books. ISBN 978-81-264-3782-5.
  • Kulke, Hermann; Rothermund, Dietmar (2004). A History of India (Fourth ed.). Routledge. ISBN 9780415329200.
  • Karashima, Noboru (2014). A Concise History of South India: Issues and Interpretations. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198099772.
  • Zvelebil, Kamil (1975). Tamil Literature. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-04190-5.
  • Zvelebil, Kamil (1973). The Smile of Murugan: On Tamil Literature of South India. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 978-90-04-03591-1.
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Encyclopedic articles

  • Thapar, Romila (2018). "India (History) - Southern Indian Kingdoms". Encyclopedia Britannica.
  • Pletcher, Kenneth (2018). "Cera Dynasty". Encyclopedia Britannica.
  • Tikkanen, Amy (2018). "Silappathikaram". Encyclopedia Britannica.
  • Dalziel, N. R. (2016). "Pandyan Empire". In J. M. MacKenzie (ed.). The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Empire. pp. 1–3. doi:10.1002/9781118455074.wbeoe416. ISBN 9781118455074.
  • Edward Balfour, ed. (1871). "Muziris". Cyclopaedia of India and of Eastern and Southern Asia. Vol. II (Second ed.).
  • P. Gregorios and R. G. Roberson, ed. (2008). "Muziris". The Encyclopedia of Christianity. Vol. 5. ISBN 9780802824172.

Journal articles

  • Fawcett, F. (1901). "Notes on the Rock Carvings in the Edakal Caves, Wynaad". The Indian Antiquary. XXX: 409–421.
  • Gurukkal, Rajan (2015). "Classical Indo-Roman Trade: A Misnomer in Political Economy". Economic and Political Weekly. 48 (26–27).
  • Fischel, Walter J. (1967). "The Exploration of the Jewish Antiquities of Cochin on the Malabar Coast". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 87 (3): 230–248. doi:10.2307/597717. JSTOR 597717.
  • Ganesh, K. N. (2009). "Historical Geography of Natu in South India with Special Reference to Kerala". Indian Historical Review. 36 (1): 3–21. doi:10.1177/037698360903600102. S2CID 145359607.
  • Subbarayalu, Y. (2015). "Trade Guilds of South India up to the Tenth Century". Studies in People's History. 02 (1): 21–26. doi:10.1177/2348448915574403. S2CID 133144002.
  • Veluthat, Kesavan (2018). "History and Historiography in Constituting a Region: The Case of Kerala". Studies in People's History. 5 (1): 13–31. doi:10.1177/2348448918759852. ISSN 2348-4489. S2CID 166060066.
  • Gurukkal, Rajan (2002). "Did State Exist in the Pre-Pallavan Tamil Region?". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 63: 198–150. JSTOR 44158082.

Magazine articles

  • Champakalakshmi, R. (2003). "A Magnum Opus on Tamil-Brahmi Inscriptions". Frontline. The Hindu.
  • "Digging up the Past". Frontline. The Hindu. 2012.

Newspaper reports/features

  • Subramanian, T. S. (9 February 2012). "Edakal Cave Yields One More Tamil-Brahmi Inscription". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X.
  • Subramanian, T. S. (28 January 2007). "Roman Connection in Tamil Nadu". The Hindu.
  • Sudhi, K. S. (30 April 2004). "Copper Coins of Adi Chera Period Excavated". The Hindu.
  • Bhanj, J. D. (3 December 2014). "Artefacts from the Lost Port of Muziris". The Hindu.
  • Nair, C. G. (3 May 2009). "Pattanam Richest Indo-Roman Site on Indian Ocean Rim". The Hindu.

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chera Dynasty.
  • (1981) R. Nagaswamy, Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology

January 06, 2023
chera, dynasty, chera, cheras, redirect, here, other, uses, chera, disambiguation, cheras, disambiguation, cēra, ʃeːɾɐ, south, dynasties, before, sangam, period, history, state, kerala, kongu, nadu, region, western, tamil, nadu, southern, india, together, with. Chera and Cheras redirect here For other uses see Chera disambiguation and Cheras disambiguation The Chera dynasty or Cera IPA t ʃeːɾɐ was one of the South 1 dynasties in and before the Sangam period history of the state of Kerala and the Kongu Nadu region of Western Tamil Nadu in southern India 2 3 Together with the Tamil dynasties of Cholas of Uraiyur Tiruchirappalli and the Pandyas of Madurai the early Cheras were known as one of the three major powers muventar of ancient Tamilakam 2 in the early centuries of the Common Era They are credited as the creators of land of Kerala as they have unified various regions of the western coast and western ghats to form the early Kerala empire 4 5 Chera dynastyച രസ മ ര ജ യ FlagCapitalEarly Cheras Vanchi MuzirisMedieval Chera dynasty KarurChera Perumals MahodayapuramCommon languagesMalayalam TamilReligionHinduism Buddhism JainismDemonym s CheranSucceeded byZamorin of CalicutTravancoreKingdom of CochinToday part ofKerala India Kongu region of Tamil Nadu India The Chera country was geographically well placed to profit from maritime trade via the extensive Indian Ocean networks Exchange of spices especially black pepper with Middle Eastern and Graeco Roman merchants are attested in several sources 6 7 2 The Cheras of the early historical period c second century BCE c third century CE 2 are known to have had their original centre at Kuttanad in Kerala and harbours at Muchiri Muziris and Thondi Tyndis on the Indian Ocean coast Kerala and Kongunadu They governed the area of Malabar Coast between Alappuzha in the south to Kasaragod in the north At the time af reign of Cheras their empire was extented to the eastern parts of today s Tamilnadu also This also included the Palakkad Gap Coimbatore Dharapuram Erode Salem and Kolli Hills The region around Coimbatore was ruled by the Cheras during the Sangam period between c 1st and the 4th centuries CE and it served as the eastern entrance to the Palakkad Gap the principal trade route between the Malabar Coast and Tamil Nadu 8 However the southern region of the present day Kerala state The coastal belt between Thiruvananthapuram and southern Alappuzha was under Ay dynasty who was more related to the Pandya dynasty of Madurai 9 The early historic pre Pallava 10 polities are often described as a kinship based redistributive economies largely shaped by pastoral cum agrarian subsistence and predatory politics 2 Old Tamil Brahmi cave label inscriptions describe Ilam Kadungo son of Perum Kadungo and the grandson of Ko Athan Cheral of the Irumporai clan 11 12 Inscribed portrait coins with Brahmi legends give a number of Chera names 13 with the Chera symbols of the bow and the arrow depicted in the reverse 13 The anthologies of early Sangham texts are a major source of information about the early Cheras 5 Cenguttuvan or the good Chera is famous for the traditions surrounding Kannaki the principal female character of the Sangam epic poem Cilappatikaram 6 14 After the end of the early historical period around the 3rd 5th century CE there seems to be a period where the Cheras power declined considerably 15 Cheras of the Kongu country are known to have controlled western Tamil Nadu in the early medieval period 16 Present day central Kerala and Kongu Cheras detached around 8th 9th century AD to form the Chera Perumal kingdom and Kongu chera kingdom c 9th 12th century AD 17 The exact nature of the relationships between the various branches of Chera rulers is somewhat unclear The Nambutiris asked for a regent of the Chera king from Punthura and were granted the prime minister hailing from Punthura Hence the Zamorin holds the title Punthurakkon King from Punthura 18 After this the present Kerala parts and Kongunadu became autonomous 19 Some of the major dynasties of medieval south India Chalukya Pallava Pandya Rashtrakuta and Chola seems to have conquered the Kongu Chera country Kongu Cheras appear to have been absorbed into the Pandya political system by 10th 11th century AD Even after the dissolution of the Perumal kingdom royal inscriptions and temple grants especially from outside Kerala proper continued to refer the country and the people as the Cheras or Keralas 15 The rulers of Venad the Venad Cheras or the Kulasekharas based out of the port of Kollam in south Kerala claimed their ancestry from the Perumals 15 20 Cheranad was also the name of an erstwhile province in the kingdom of Zamorin of Calicut which had included parts of present day Tirurangadi and Tirur Taluks of Malappuram district in it 21 Later it became a Taluk of Malabar District when Malabar came under the British Raj 21 22 The headquarters of Cheranad Taluk was the town of Tirurangadi 21 22 Later the Taluk was merged with Eranad Taluk 21 22 In the modern period the rulers of Cochin and Travancore in Kerala also claimed the title Chera 23 Contents 1 Etymology 2 Cheras of ancient south India 2 1 Archaeological discoveries 2 2 Chera coinage 2 3 Cheras from early Tamil texts 3 Cheras in the medieval period 3 1 Pandya conquests in Chera country 3 2 Chola conquests of Chera country 3 3 Chera Perumals of Kerala 4 Government 5 Economy 5 1 Spice trade 5 2 Wootz steel 6 Society and culture 6 1 Early Cheras 7 See also 8 References 8 1 Books cited 8 2 Encyclopedic articles 8 3 Journal articles 8 4 Magazine articles 8 5 Newspaper reports features 9 External linksEtymology EditThe term Chera and its variant form Keralaputas stands for the ruling lineage and the country associated with them 12 The etymology of Chera is still a matter of considerable speculation among historians One approach proposes that the word is derived from Cheral a corruption of Charal meaning declivity of a mountain in Tamil suggesting a connection with the mountainous geography of Kerala 24 Another theory argues that the Cheralam is derived from cher sand and alam region literally meaning the slushy land 24 Apart from the speculations mentioned a number of other theories do appear in historical studies 25 24 In ancient non Tamil sources the Cheras are referred to by various names The Cheras are referred as Kedalaputo Sanskrit Kerala Putra in the Emperor Ashoka s Pali edicts 3rd century BCE 26 While Pliny the Elder and Claudius Ptolemy refer to the Cheras as Kaelobotros and Kerobottros respectively the Graeco Roman trade map Periplus Maris Erythraei refers to the Cheras as Keprobotras All these Graeco Roman names are evidently corruptions of Kedala Puto Kerala Putra probably received through relations with northern India 14 27 The term Cheralamdivu or Cheran Tivu and its cognates meaning the island of the Chera kings is a Classical Tamil name of Sri Lanka that takes root from the term Chera 28 Cheras of ancient south India Edit Ancient Silk Road map showing the then trade routes The spice trade was mainly along the water routes blue Names routes and locations of the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea 1st century CE Recent studies on ancient south Indian history suggest that the three major rulers the Pandya the Chera and the Chola based originally in Madurai in Tamil Nadu Vanchi present day Karur in Tamilnadu and Uraiyur Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu respectively They had established outlets on the Indian Ocean namely Korkai Muchiri Muziris and Kaveripattinam respectively 2 Territory of the Chera chiefdom of the early historical period pre Pallava 10 consisted of the present day northern central Kerala and Kongu region western Tamil Nadu 12 The rest of kerala was under Ay dynasty southern tip of Kerala and Mushika dyansty northern tip of Kerala The political structure of the chiefdom was based on communal holding of resources and kinship based production The authority was determined by the range of redistributive social relationships sustained through predatory accumulation of resources 2 There was more than one branch of the Chera family ruling at the same time and contenting for leadership one in central Kerala and the other one in western Tamil Nadu 29 The Cheras are referred to as Kedalaputo Sanskrit Kerala Putra in the Emperor Ashoka s Pali edicts 3rd century BCE Rock Edicts II and XII 26 The earliest Graeco Roman accounts referring to the Cheras are by Pliny the Elder in the 1st century CE in the Periplus of the 1st century CE and by Claudius Ptolemy in the 2nd century CE 30 11 There are also brief references in the present forms of the works by author and commentator Katyayana c 3rd 4th century BCE author and philosopher Patanjali c 5th century BCE and Maurya statesman and philosopher Kautilya Chanakya c 3rd 4th century BCE though Sanskrit grammarian Panini c 6th 5th century BCE does not mention either the people or the land 31 Archaeological discoveries Edit Brahmi inscription from Pugalur near Karur A Chera coin with legend Makkotai A Chera coin with legend Kuttuvan Kotai Archaeology has found epigraphic and numismatic evidence of the Early Cheras 32 11 Two almost identical inscriptions discovered from Pugalur near Karur dated to c 1st 2nd century CE describe three generations of Chera rulers of the Irumporai lineage They record the construction of a rock shelter for Jains on the occasion of the investiture of Ilam Kadungo son of Perum Kadungo and the grandson of Ko Athan Cheral Irumporai 11 Irumporai Cheras from Pugalur inscription Arunattarmalai Velayudhampalayam Ko Athan Chel Cheral Irumporai Perum Kadungon Irumporai Ilam Kadungo Irumporai A short Brahmi inscription containing the word Chera Kadummi Pudha Chera was found at Edakkal in the Western Ghats 33 Recent archaeological discoveries increasingly confirm Karur as a political economic and cultural centre of ancient south India Excavations at Karur yielded huge quantities of copper coins with Chera symbols such as the bow and arrow Roman amphorae and Roman coins An ancient route from the harbours in Kerala such as Muchiri or Thondi through the Palghat Gap to Karur in interior Tamil Nadu can be traced with the help of archaeological evidence 34 Historians are yet to precisely locate Muziris known in Tamil as Muchiri a base of the Chera rulers Archaeological excavations at Pattanam near Cochin suggest a strong case of identification with the location 2 Roman coins have over a period of time been discovered in large numbers from central Kerala and the Coimbatore Karur region from locations such as Kottayam Kannur Valluvally Iyyal Vellalur and Kattankanni 35 34 Chera coinage Edit A number of coins assumed to be of the Cheras mostly found in the Amaravati riverbed in Tamil Nadu are a major source of early Chera historiography 35 This includes a number of punch marked coins discovered from Amaravati riverbed The square coins of copper and its alloys or silver have also been discovered Most of these early square coins show a bow and arrow the traditional emblem of the Cheras on the obverse with or without any legend Silver punch marked coins an imitation of the Maurya coins and with a Chera bow on the reverse have been reported Hundreds of copper coins attributed to the Cheras have been discovered from Pattanam in central Kerala 13 36 Bronze dies for minting punch marked coins were discovered from a riverbed in Karur 13 Other discoveries include a coin with a portrait and the Brahmi legend Mak kotai above it and another one with a portrait and the legend Kuttuvan Kotai above it Both impure silver coins are tentatively dated to c 1st century CE or a little later The reverse side of both coins are blank 35 The impure silver coins bearing Brahmi legends Kollippurai Kollipporai 13 Kol Irumporai and Sa Irumporai 13 were also discovered from Karur The portrait coins are generally considered as imitation of Roman coins 13 All legends assumed to be the names of the Chera rulers were in Tamil Brahmi characters on the obverse Reverse often contained the bow and arrow symbol 13 An alliance between the Cholas is evident from a joint coin bearing the Chola tiger on the obverse and the Chera bow and arrow on the reverse Lakshmi type coins of possible Sri Lankan origin have also been discovered from Karur 13 The macro analysis of the Mak kotai coin shows close similarities with the contemporary Roman silver coin A silver coin with the portrait of a person wearing a Roman type bristled crown helmet was also discovered from Amaravati riverbed in Karur Reverse side of the coin depicts a bow and arrow the traditional symbol of the Chera family 35 Cheras from early Tamil texts Edit A large body of Tamil works collectively known as the Sangam Academy texts c 2nd century BCE 3rd century CE describes a number of Chera Pandya and Chola rulers 37 38 Among them the most important sources for the Cheras are the Pathitrupattu the Akananuru and the Purananuru 31 The Pathitrupattu the fourth book in the Ettuthokai anthology mentions a number of rulers and heirs apparent of the Chera family 5 Each ruler is praised in ten songs sung by a court poet 37 However the book is not worked into connected history and settled chronology so far 39 A method known as Gajabahu Chenguttuvan synchronism is used by some historians to date the events described in the early Tamil texts to c 1st 2nd century CE 39 Despite its dependency on numerous conjectures the method is considered as the sheet anchor for the purpose of dating the events in the early Tamil texts 40 41 42 Ilango Adigal author of the legendary Tamil epic poem Chilapathikaram describes Chenguttuvan as his elder brother He also mentions Chenguttuvan s decision to propitiate a temple virakkallu for the goddess Pattini Kannaki at Vanchi 43 A certain king called Gajabahu often identified with Gajabahu king of Sri Lanka 2nd century CE was present at the Pattini festival at Vanchi 44 45 In this context Chenguttuvan can be dated to either the first or last quarter of the 2nd century CE 6 Uthiyan Cheral Athan is generally considered as the earliest known ruler of the Chera family from the Sangam texts and the possible hero of the lost first decad of Pathitrupattu Uthiyan Cheral was also known as Vanavaramban Purananuru His headquarters were at Kuzhumur near Kuttanad Akananuru 46 He is described as the Chera ruler who prepared food the Perum Chotru for Pandavas and the Kauravas at the Kurukshetra War Purananuru and Akananuru 46 He Married Nallini daughter of Veliyan Venman and was the father of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheralathan Pathitrupattu II 46 Uthiyan Cheral Athan is probably identical with the Perum Cheral Athan who fought against the Chola Karikala at the battle of Venni In the battle of Venni the Chera was wounded on the back by the Chola ruler Karikala Unable to bear the disgrace the Chera committed suicide by slow starvation 46 As the name Pathitrupattu indicates they were ten texts each consisting a decad of lyrics but of these two have not till now been discovered 47 Cells table centered Cheras from Pathitrupattu Decad of Pathitrupattu Chera Relation Bard NotesII Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan Son of Uthiyan Cheral Athan by Veliyan s daughter Nallini 48 Kannanar 5 Nedum Cheral Athan was also known as Imayavaramban He is praised for having subdued seven crowned kings to achieve the title of adhiraja 49 48 Kannanar also lauds the Chera for conquering enemies from Kumari to the Himalayas and carving the Chera bow emblem on the Himalayas Nedum Cheral Athan famous for his hospitality gifted Kannanar with a part of Umbar Kattu 49 48 The greatest of his enemies were the Kadambus possibly Kadambas whom he defeated in battles 48 Nedum Cheral Athan is said to have conquered an island which had the kadambu tree as its guardian by crossing the ocean 29 Poet Mamular also sings of his conquest of Mantai 48 He also punished and extracted ransom from the Yavanas 29 Chola Neytalankanal Ilam Set Chenni captured Pamalur which belonged to the Chera Kudakko Nedum Cheral Athan The Chera fought the Cholas at Por and both combatants died in the battle 50 III Palyanai Sel Kelu Kuttuvan Son of Uthiyan Cheral Athan younger brother of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan 51 Palai Kauthamanar 5 Credited as the conqueror of Konkar Nadu 51 Described as lord of Puzhi Nadu and the Cheruppu and Aiyirai Mountains 51 Headquarters was located on the mouth river Periyar 51 IV Kalankai Kanni Narmudi Cheral Son of Imayavaramban 52 Kappiyattukku Kappiyanar 53 Narmudi Cheral led an expedition against Nedumidal Anji identified with the Adigaiman Satyaputra of Tagadur Initially the Chera was defeated by Nannan of Ezhimala in the battle of Pazhi later defeated and killed Nannan in the battle of Vakai Perum Turai 49 45 Performed his coronation using holy water from both the western and eastern oceans brought by a relay of elephants 29 Also known as Vanavaramban 52 V Kadal Pirakottiya Chenguttuvan Son of Nedum Cheral Athan Paranar 53 Chenguttuvan is identified with Kadal Pirakottiya Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan Chenguttuvan was a son of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan 54 Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan is often identified with the legendary Chenguttuvan Chera the most illustrious ruler of the Early Cheras Under his reign the Chera territory extended from Kollimalai near Karur Vanchi in the east to Thondi and Mantai Kerala on the western coast The wife of Chenguttuvan was Illango Venmal the daughter of a Velir chief 45 49 In the early years of his rule the Kuttuvan successfully intervened in a succession dispute in the Chola territory and established his relative Nalam Killi on the Chola throne The rivals of Killi were defeated in the battle of Nerivayil Uraiyur The Kadambas are described as the arch enemies of the Chera ruler Kuttuvan was able to defeat them in the battle of Idumbil Valayur Viyalur The fort of Kodukur in which the Kadamba warriors took shelter was stormed Later the Kadambas helped by the Yavanas attacked Kuttuvan by sea but the Chera ruler destroyed their fleet Kuttuvan is said to have defeated the Kongu people and a warrior called Mogur Mannan one of the Chera s allies was Arugai an enemy of the Mogurs 54 6 According to Chilapathikaram Chenguttuvan led his army to north India to get the sacred stone from the Himalayas to sculpt the idol of goddess Pattini 29 VI Adu Kottu Pattu Cheral Athan 55 Successor of Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan 44 son of Imayavaramban Nedum Cheral Athan and brother of Narmudi Cheral 55 Kakkai Padiniyar Nachellaiyar poetess 53 Probably identical with the Perum Cheral Athan who fought against the Chola Karikala at the battle of Venni In the battle of Venni Uthiyan Cheral was wounded on the back by Karikala Unable to bear the disgrace the Chera committed suicide by slow starvation 29 55 Controlled the port of Naravu 55 VII Selva Kadumko Valia Athan Son of Anthuvan Cheral 56 Kapilar 53 Selvakadumko Valia Athan controlled Pandar and Kodumanam Kodumanal 29 He married the sister of the wife of Nedum Cheral Athan Selva Kadumko defeated the combined armies of the Pandyas and the Cholas 56 5 Father of Perum Cheral Irumporai Died at Chikkar Palli 57 Identified with Mantharan Poraiyan Kadumko Pasum Put Poraiyan and Perumput Poraiyan 56 He is sometimes identified as the Ko Athan Cheral Irumporai mentioned in the Aranattar malai inscription of Pugalur c 2nd century CE 44 5 VIII Tagadur Erinta Perum Cheral Irumporai 58 Arichil Kizhar 53 Tagadur Erinta Perum Cheral Irumporai defeated the combined armies of the Pandyas Cholas and that of the chief of Tagadur Adigaman Ezhni at Tagadur He is also called the lord of Puzhinadu and the lord of Kollimalai and the lord of Poom Puhar Puhar was the Chola headquarters Perum Cheral Irumporai also annexed the territories of a minor Idayar chief called Kazhuval Kazhuvul 59 Addressed as Kodai Marba Father of Illam Cheral Irumporai 58 IX Kudakko Illam Cheral Irumporai 60 Perunkundur Kizhar 5 Illam Cheral Irumporai defeated Perum Chola Ilam Pazhaiyan Maran and Vicchi and destroyed five forts Lord of Tondi Kongar Nadu Kuttuvar Nadu and Puzhi Nadu 60 Described as the descendant of Nedum Cheral Athan 48 The following Cheras are knowns from Purananuru collection some of the names are re duplications 47 Karuvur Eriya Ol val Ko Perum Cheral Irumporai 47 Ruled of Karuvur Praised by Nariveruttalaiyar 61 Kadungo Valia Athan 47 Palai Padiya Perum Kadumko 47 Antuvan Cheral Irumporai 47 father of Selva Kadumko Valia Athan VII decad Contemporary to Chola Mudittalai Ko Perunar Killi whose elephant famously wandered to Karuvur 50 Yanaikatchai Mantaram Cheral Irumporai ruled from Kollimalai near Karur Vanchi in the east to Thondi and Mantai on the western coast He defeated his enemies in a battle at Vilamkil The famous Pandya ruler Nedum Chezhian early 3rd century CE 6 captured Mantaran Cheral as a prisoner However he managed to escape and regain the lost territories 62 47 Ko Kodai Marban 47 Takadur Erinta Perum Cheral Irumporai 47 Kuttuvan Kodai 47 Kudakko Nedum Cheral Athan 47 Perum Cheral Athan 47 Kanaikkal Irumporai is said to have defeated a chief called Muvan and imprisoned him The Chera then brutally pulled out the teeth of the prisoner and planted them on the gates of the city of Thondi Upon capture by the Chola ruler Sengannan Kanaikkal committed suicide by starvation 62 Kudakko Cheral Irumporai 47 Kottambalattu Tunchiya Makkodai 47 probably identical with Kottambalattu Tunchiya Cheraman in Akananuru 168 46 Vanchan 47 Kadalottiya Vel Kelu Kuttuvan 47 Man Venko 47 a friend of the Pandya Ugra Peruvaluti and the Chola Rajasuyam Vetta Perunar Killi 63 Cheras in the medieval period EditMain article Kongu Chera dynasty An approximate extend of Kalabhra supremacy in southern India After the end of the early historical period in south India c 3rd 5th century CE there seems to be a period where the Chera family s political prestige and influence declined considerably 15 Little is known for certain about the Cheras during this period 64 Cheras of Kongu country Karur initially appear as the rulers of western Tamil Nadu and central Kerala 17 17 There was a domination of present day Kerala regions of the ancient Chera country by the Kongu Cheras Keralas probably via some form of viceregal rule 17 The family claimed that they were descended from the Cheras who flourished in pre Pallava early historic south India 17 An inscription of Kadamba king Vishnu Varma dated 5th or 6th century can be found at Edakkal cave in Wayanad 65 66 An early historic Chera graffiti containing the phrase Kadummi Putra Chera was also discovered from the cave 33 Tradition tells that the Kalabhra Kalvar 6 rulers kept the Chera Chola and Pandya rulers in their confinement 64 The earliest Chalukya king to claim overlorship over Chera Kerala is Kirttivarman I fl 566 598 AD this claim is generally considered as a boastfull exaggeration by historians A later grant 695 AD of king Vinayaditya II Satyasraya with reference to the vassalage of the Kerala country is now reckoned as a more dependable record 66 Several Chalukya records of the 7th and 8th centuries speak of the conquest and vassalage of the Kerala country 66 A number of Pallava records also mention the vassalage of the Kerala country 66 Rashtrakuta inscriptions mention an alliance of Dravida kings including Kerala Pandya Chola and Pallava who were defeated E I XVIII The Keralas mentioned there might be the Kongu Cheras who had already submitted to the Pandyas and not Chera Perumals of Kerala 67 Pandya conquests in Chera country Edit Chera Perumal Kingdom with the Chola Empire on the east There are clear attestations of repeated Pandya conquests of the Kerala or Chera country in the 7th and 8th centuries AD 66 Pandya king Sendan Jayantan fl 645 70 AD was known as the Vanavan an ancient name for the Chera king 66 Arikesari Maravarman 670 710 AD another Pandya ruler probably defeated the Keralas Cheras on several occasions 66 19 His successor Ko Chadayan Ranadhira also made gains against the Cheras 68 The so called renewal of the capital city of Vanchi Karur along with Kudal Madurai and Kozhi Uraiyur described in the Madras Museum Plates of the Pandya king Rajasimha I 730 65 AD may suggest a Pandya occupation of the Kongu Chera capital Karur 67 It is known that when Pandya king Jatila Parantaka 765 815 AD went to war against the Adigaman of Tagadur Dharmapuri the Keralas and the Pallavas went to the aid of the latter though the Pandyas drove them back to the quarters from which they had emerged Madras Museum Plates 69 Perhaps the Chera branch from present day Kerala had crossed the Ghat Mountains to offer support to the Adigaman and after defeat they were pursued up to the Palghat Gap by the Pandya forces 69 Cheras of central Kerala Present day central Kerala probably detached from Kongu Chera Kerala kingdom around 8th 9th century AD to form the Chera Perumal kingdom 17 The Pandyas are known to have made a defensive alliance with the Cheras of Kongu country who were under their influence in this period 68 Pandya king Parantaka Vira Narayana c 880 900 AD is known to have married a Kerala Kongu Chera princess Vanavan Maha Devi 70 The son of this alliance Rajasimha described as a member of Chandra Aditya Kula Sinnamanur copper plates was destroyed by the Chola king Parantaka 70 It was initially assumed by K A N Sastri and E P N K Pillai that the Vira Narayana had married a Chera Perumal princess of Kerala 70 Chola conquests of Chera country Edit The Kongu country was conquered by the Cholas either by Srikantha or Aditya I Chola in the last years of the 9th century AD this campaign probably involved battles between Aditya I and Parantaka Vira Narayana The Pandyas were eventually defeated in the great battle of Sripurambiyam c 885 71 The Pandyas were defeated by Chola king Parantaka in 910 AD the fate of the Kongu Chera country then ruled by Kongu Cheras upon the fall of Madurai is not known 72 Pandya king Rajasimha II who was defeated by Parantaka Chola is known to have found asylum in Kerala or Chera country c 920 AD 72 Chola king Sundara c 956 c 973 AD had a Chera or Kerala princess among his queens 73 Kongu Chera country and the Chera Perumal kingdom was subsequently conquered by the Cholas 19 Amara Bhujanga Deva one of the princes defeated by Chola king Rajaraja Tiruvalangadu Grant was probably a Pandya or a Kongu Chera prince 74 Chola king Rajadhiraja is known for defeating certain Vira Kerala one of the so called thennavar muvar and trampling him to death by his war elephant 75 This royal was probably a Kongu Chera of Chandra Aditya Kula or a Pandya prince son of a Pandya and a Kongu Chera princess 76 Vira Kerala was previously considered as a Chera Perumal king K A N Sastri and E P N K Pillai 77 Chera Perumals of Kerala Edit Main article Chera Perumals of Makotai Depiction of Cherman Perumal Nayanar Brihadisvara Temple Thanjavur While the Pallava and Pandya rulers in Tamil Nadu emerged into established kingship by c 5th 6th centuries CE the formation of the monarchical polity in Kerala took place not before c 9th century CE The Chera Perumals are known to have ruled what is now Kerala between c 9th and 12th century CE 4 Scholars tend to identify Alvar saint Kulasekhara and Nayanar saint Cherman Perumal literally the Chera king with some of the earliest Perumals 78 The exact nature of the relation between the Cheras of Kongu and the Chera Perumals remains obscure 64 The Nambutiris asked for a regent of the Chera king from Karur in Coimbatore and were granted the prime minister hailing from Pundurai Hence the Zamorin holds the title Punthurakkon King from Punthura 18 After this the Malabar and Kerala parts became autonomous of Karur The Perumal kingdom derived most of its wealth from maritime trade relations the spice trade with the Middle East 79 The port of Kollam in the kingdom was a major point in overseas India trade to the West and the East Asia 80 Political units known as nadus controlled by powerful hereditary chiefs or by households occupied central importance in the structuring of the Chera Perumal state The rulers of the nadus usually acted with the help of a Nair military retinue The prominent nadus continued to exist even after the end of the Chera rule during the beginning of the 12th century 81 Nambudiri Brahmin settlements of agriculturally rich areas fertile wet land were another major source of support to the kingdom 82 A naval campaign led to the conquest of the Maldive Islands the Malabar Coast and northern Sri Lanka all of which were essential to the Chola control over trade with Southeast Asia and with Arabia and eastern Africa These were the transit areas ports of call for the Arab traders and ships to Southeast Asia and China which were the source of the valuable spices sold at a high profit to Europe Romila Thapar Encyclopaedia Britannica The Chera Perumal kingdom had alternating friendly or hostile relations with the Cholas and the Pandyas 83 The kingdom was attacked and eventually forced into submission by the Cholas in the early 11th century AD in order to break the monpoly of trade with the Middle East 83 84 When the Perumal kingdom was eventually dissolved in the 12th century most of its autonomous chiefdoms became independent 81 Government EditThe extent and nature of state formation of the Chera kingdoms from the ancient period to early modern period cannot be interpreted either in a linear or in a monochromatic way Each ruling family had its own political prestige and influence in southern India over their life spans 14 85 The extent of political formation in pre Pallava 10 south India before c third century CE 2 was a matter of considerable debate among historians 5 Although earlier scholars visualised early historic south Indian polities as full fledged kingdoms some of the recent studies rule out the possibility of state formation 4 2 86 According to historian Rajan Gurukkal ancient south India was a combination of several unevenly evolved and kinship based redistributive economies of chiefdoms These polities were structured by the dominance of agro pastoral means of subsistence and predatory politics 2 Kesavan Veluthat another prominent historian of south India uses the term chief and chiefdom for the Chera ruler and Chera polity of early historic south India respectively 12 Reaching conclusions based on the early Tamil poems and archaeological evidences is another topic of disagreement 87 88 It is assumed that the institution of sabha in south Indian villages for local administration was first surfaced during the early historic period 6 Economy EditThe early Chera economy can be described as a predominantly pastoral cum agrarian based system The emphasis on agriculture increased with time and provided the base for larger economic change 6 The early historic south India c second century BCE c third century CE 2 can be described as a semi tribal political economy In a 2013 paper historian Rajan Gurukkal describes ancient south India as a collection of unevenly evolved and kinship based redistributive economies 2 Spice trade Edit Silk Road Red and Spice Routes Blues Exchange relations with the merchants from Graeco Roman world the Yavanas and with north India provided considerable economic momentum for the Chera chiefdom Indian Ocean exchange was the major economic activity 6 There is some difference of opinion with regard to the nature of the spice trade in ancient Chera country It is disputed whether this trade with the Mediterranean world was managed on equal terms by the Tamil merchants in view of the existence of apparently unequal political institutions in south India 89 Some of the more recent studies point out that the trade was an exchange of serious imbalance because of its being between the Roman Empire and South India with uneven chiefdoms 2 The geographical advantages like the favourable Monsoon winds which carried ships directly from the Arabia to south India as well as the abundance of exotic spices in the interior Ghat mountains and the presence of a large number of rivers connecting the Ghats with the Arabian Sea combined to make the Cheras a major power in ancient southern India 7 2 Spice exchange with Middle Eastern and Mediterranean Graeco Roman navigators can be traced back to before the Common Era and was substantially consolidated in the early years of the Common Era 2 90 91 In the first century CE the Romans conquered Egypt which probably helped them to establish dominance in the Indian Ocean spice trade The earliest Graeco Roman accounts referring to the Cheras are by Pliny the Elder in the 1st century CE in Periplus Maris Erythraei of the 1st century CE and by Claudius Ptolemy in the 2nd century CE 27 The Periplus Maris Erythraei portrays the trade in the territory of Keprobotras in detail Muziris was the most important centre in the Malabar Coast which according to the Periplus abounded with large ships of Romans Arabs and Greeks Bulk spices ivory timber pearls and gems were exported from the Chera country to the Middle East and Mediterranean kingdoms 92 It is known that the Romans brought vast amounts of gold in exchange for black pepper 2 93 This is testified by the Roman coin hoards that have been found in various parts of Kerala and Tamil Nadu Pliny the Elder in the 1st century CE laments the drain of Roman gold into India and China for luxuries such as spices silk and muslin The spice trade across the Indian Ocean dwindled with the decline of the Roman empire in the 3rd 4th centuries CE 2 With the exit of the Mediterranean from the spice trade their space was picked up by the Chinese and Arab navigators 4 Wootz steel Edit The famous damascus blades resulted from the unique properties of wootz crucible steel from medieval south India and Sri Lanka 94 There are several ancient Tamil Greek Chinese and Roman literary references to high carbon Indian steel The crucible steel production process started in the 6th century BC at Kodumanal in Tamil Nadu Golconda in Telangana Karnataka and Sri Lanka This steel was termed the finest steel in the world by the Romans who referred to it by the term Seric It was exported to Rome Egypt China and the Middle East by 500 BC 95 96 97 The steel was exported as cakes of steely iron that came to be known as Wootz 98 The method was to heat black magnetite ore in the presence of carbon in a sealed clay crucible inside a charcoal furnace to completely remove slag An alternative was to smelt the ore first to give wrought iron then heat and hammer it to remove slag The carbon source was bamboo and leaves from plants such as Avarai 98 99 The Chinese and locals in Sri Lanka adopted the production methods of creating wootz steel from the Cheras by the 5th century BC 100 101 In Sri Lanka this early steel making method employed a unique wind furnace driven by the monsoon winds Production sites from antiquity have emerged in places such as Anuradhapura Tissamaharama and Samanalawewa as well as imported artifacts of ancient iron and steel from Kodumanal A 200 BC Tamil trade guild in Tissamaharama in the South East of Sri Lanka brought with them some of the oldest iron and steel artifacts and production processes to the island from the classical period 102 103 104 105 Society and culture EditEarly Cheras Edit In general early Tamil texts reflect the southern Indian cultural tradition as well as elements of the northern Indian cultural tradition which by now was beginning to come into contact with southern India 6 It is logical to conclude that most of the Chera population followed native Dravidian religions 106 Religious practice might have consisted predominantly of conducting sacrifices to various gods such as to the pre eminent god Murugan 6 The worship of departed heroes was a common practice in the Chera territory along with tree worship and other kinds of ancestor worship The war goddess Kottava was propitiated with elaborate offerings of meat and toddy It is theorised that Kottava was assimilated into the present day form of the goddess Durga 106 It is thought that the first wave of Brahmin migration came to the Chera territory around the 3rd century BCE with or behind the Jain and Buddhist missionaries It was only in the 8th century CE that the Aryanisation of the old Chera country reached its organised form 107 Though the vast majority of the population followed native practices a small percentage of the population mainly migrants followed Jainism Buddhism and Brahmanism 106 Populations of Jews and Christians were also known to have lived in Kerala 108 109 Early Tamil texts do make a number of references to social stratification as expressed by use of the word kudi group to denote caste 6 A striking feature of the social life of the early historic period c second century BCE c third century CE 2 is the high status accorded to women 110 86 Agriculture and pastoralism were the primary occupations of the people Various agricultural occupations such as harvesting threshing and drying are described in the early Tamil texts Poets and musicians were held in high regard in society Early Tamil texts are full of references about the lavish patronage extended to court poets There were professional poets and poetesses who composed texts praising their patrons and were generously rewarded for this 111 See also EditChola dynasty Pandya dynasty Pallava dynastyReferences Edit Paniker K Ayyappa 1997 Medieval Indian Literature Surveys and selections Sakitya Akademi p 299 ISBN 8126003650 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Gurukkal 2015 pp 26 27 Cera dynasty India Britannica www britannica com Retrieved 7 May 2022 a b c d Karashima 2014 pp 143 145 a b c d e f g h i Zvelebil 1973 pp 52 53 a b c d e f g h i j k l Thapar 2018 a b Edward Balfour 1871 p 584 Subramanian T S 28 January 2007 Roman connection in Tamil Nadu The Hindu Archived from the original on 19 September 2013 Retrieved 28 October 2011 KA Nilakanta Sastri a b c Gurukkal 2002 pp 138 150 a b c d Pletcher 2018 a b c d Veluthat 2018 pp 13 31 a b c d e f g h i Majumdar 2016 a b c Narayanan 2013 a b c d Menon 2007 p 118 Narayanan 2013 pp 89 90 92 93 a b c d e f Narayanan 2013 pp 89 90 and 92 93 a b Thurston Edgar 1909 Castes And Tribes Of Southern India Vol 5 m p a b c Narayanan 2013 pp 80 81 Thapar 2004 p 368 a b c d Logan William 2010 Malabar Manual Volume I New Delhi Asian Educational Services pp 631 666 ISBN 9788120604476 a b c C A Innes 1908 Madras District Gazetteers Malabar and Anjengo Government Press Madras p 373 Retrieved 30 September 2020 Menon 2007 p 81 a b c Menon 2007 p 21 Citing K Achyutha Menon Ancient Kerala Studies in Its History and Culture pp 7 Menon 2011 p 15 According to Menon this etymology of added or reclaimed land also complements the Parashurama myth about the formation of Kerala In it Parashurama one of the avatars of Vishnu flung his axe across the sea from Gokarnam towards Kanyakumari or vice versa and the water receded up to the spot where it landed thus creating Kerala a b Keay 2001 a b Caldwell 1998 p 92 Ramachandran 1991 p 34 Sri Lanka was known as Cerantivu island of the Cera kings in those days The seal has two lines The line above contains three signs in Indus script and the line below contains three alphabets in the ancient Tamil script known as Tamil a b c d e f g Karashima 2014 pp 50 51 Menon 2007 p 33 a b Menon 2007 pp 26 29 Champakalakshmi 2003 a b The Hindu 2012 a b Frontline 2012 a b c d The Hindu 2007 The Hindu 2004 a b Zvelebil 1992 p 12 Sastri 1955 p 105 a b Kanakasabhai 1997 Zvelebil 1973 pp 37 39 The opinion that the Gajabahu Synchronism is an expression of genuine historical tradition is accepted by most scholars today Pillai 1956 We may be reasonably certain that chronological conclusion reached above is historically sound Zvelebil 1973 p 38 Tikkanen 2018 a b c Menon 2007 p 70 a b c Menon 1967 a b c d e Aiyar 1937 pp 05 10 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Aiyar 1937 pp 01 05 a b c d e f Aiyar 1937 pp 10 13 a b c d Menon 2007 pp 67 68 a b Aiyar 1937 pp 36 38 a b c d Aiyar 1937 pp 15 17 a b Aiyar 1937 pp 17 21 a b c d e Aiyar 1937 pp 52 53 a b Aiyar 1937 pp 21 23 a b c d Aiyar 1937 pp 27 32 a b c Aiyar 1937 pp 38 40 Aiyar 1937 pp 38 41 a b Aiyar 1937 pp 41 43 Menon 2007 p 71 a b Aiyar 1937 pp 44 45 Aiyar 1937 pp 34 36 a b Menon 2007 p 72 Aiyar 1937 pp 60 61 a b c Narayanan 2013 pp 80 81 and 88 93 Fawcett 1901 pp 409 421 a b c d e f g Narayanan 2013 pp 90 91 and 103 04 a b Narayanan 2013 pp 93 95 a b Dalziel 2016 a b Narayanan 2013 pp 93 95 and 107 a b c Narayanan 2013 pp 95 96 and 108 Narayanan 2013 pp 97 a b Narayanan 2013 pp 98 99 and 111 Narayanan 2013 pp 100 01 Narayanan 2013 pp 116 117 and 136 Narayanan 2013 pp 121 122 Narayanan 2013 pp 304 05 and 322 23 Narayanan 2013 pp 84 85 Karashima 2014 pp 143 44 Thapar 2004 pp 331 32 and 364 65 Thapar 2004 pp 382 83 a b Ganesh 2009 pp 3 21 Thapar 2004 pp 331 32 and 379 80 a b Thapar 2004 pp 364 65 Karashima 2014 pp 143 144 Menon 2007 p 75 a b Menon 2007 p 77 Menon 2007 p 67 Menon 2007 pp 75 76 Subbarayalu 2015 pp 21 26 The Hindu 2014 The Hindu 2009 Kulke amp Rothermund 2004 pp 105 McLaughlin 2010 Ward Gerald W R 2008 The Grove Encyclopedia of Materials and Techniques in Art Oxford Oxford University Press p 380 ISBN 978 0 19531 391 8 Srinivasan Sharada 15 November 1994 Wootz crucible steel a newly discovered production site in South India Papers from the Institute of Archaeology 5 49 59 doi 10 5334 pia 60 Coghlan Herbert Henery 1977 Notes on prehistoric and early iron in the Old World 2nd ed Pitt Rivers Museum pp 99 100 Sasisekharan B 1999 Technology of Iron and Steel in Kodumanal PDF Indian Journal of History of Science 34 4 Archived from the original PDF on 24 July 2015 a b Davidson Hilda Roderick Ellis 1998 The Sword in Anglo Saxon England Its Archaeology and Literature Boydell amp Brewer Ltd p 20 ISBN 978 0 85115 716 0 Burton Sir Richard Francis 1884 The Book of the Sword London Chatto amp Windus p 111 Needham Joseph 1 April 1971 Science and Civilisation in China Volume 4 Physics and Physical Technology Cambridge University Press p 282 ISBN 978 0 52107 060 7 Manning Charlotte Speir Ancient and Medieval India Vol 2 p 365 ISBN 978 0 543 92943 3 Hobbies April 1963 Vol 68 No 5 p 45 Chicago Lightner Publishing Company Mahathevan Iravatham 24 June 2010 An epigraphic perspective on the antiquity of Tamil The Hindu The Hindu Group Retrieved 31 October 2010 Ragupathy P 28 June 2010 Tissamaharama potsherd evidences ordinary early Tamils among population Tamilnet Retrieved 31 October 2010 Dinithi PDF Sri Lanka Archaeology 1 4 February 2012 permanent dead link a b c Menon 2007 p 83 Menon 2007 p 89 Slapak 2003 p 78 P Gregorios and R G Roberson 2008 p 285 Menon 2007 p 78 Menon 2007 pp 79 80 Books cited Edit Thapar Romila 2004 2002 Early India From the Origins to AD 1300 Berkeley University of California Press ISBN 9780520242258 Menon A Sreedhara 2007 A Survey of Kerala History 2007 ed Kerala India D C Books ISBN 978 8126415786 Menon A Sreedhara 1967 A Survey of Kerala History Sahitya Pravarthaka Co operative Society OCLC 555508146 Menon A Sreedhara 4 March 2011 Kerala History and its Makers D C Books ISBN 978 81 264 3782 5 Kulke Hermann Rothermund Dietmar 2004 A History of India Fourth ed Routledge ISBN 9780415329200 Karashima Noboru 2014 A Concise History of South India Issues and Interpretations Oxford University Press ISBN 9780198099772 Zvelebil Kamil 1975 Tamil Literature BRILL ISBN 978 90 04 04190 5 Zvelebil Kamil 1973 The Smile of Murugan On Tamil Literature of South India Brill Academic Publishers ISBN 978 90 04 03591 1 Zvelebil Kamil 1992 Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature E J Brill ISBN 9004093656 Caldwell Robert 1998 1913 A Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian or South Indian Family of Languages 3rd ed Asian Educational Services ISBN 978 81 206 0117 8 Narayanan M G S 2013 1972 Perumals of Kerala Brahmin Oligarchy and Ritual Monarchy Thrissur CosmoBooks ISBN 9788188765072 Shulman David 2016 Tamil A Biography Cambridge The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press ISBN 978 0 674 97465 4 Aiyar K G Sesha 1937 Chera Kings of the Sangam Period London Luzac and Co Majumdar S B 2016 Money Matters Indigenous and Foreign Coins in the Malabar Coast In K S Mathew ed Imperial Rome Indian Ocean Regions and Muziris New Perspectives on Maritime Trade Cambridge Routledge Sastri K A Nilakanta 1955 A History of South India Oxford University Press Kanakasabhai V 1997 1904 The Tamils Eighteen Hundred Years Ago Asian Educational Services ISBN 978 81 206 0150 5 Keay John 2001 2000 India A History Grove Press ISBN 0 8021 3797 0 McLaughlin Raoul 2010 Rome and the Distant East Trade Routes to the Ancient Lands of Arabia India and China London Continuum ISBN 9781441162236 Slapak Orpa ed 2003 The Jews of India A Story of Three Communities The Israel Museum Jerusalem ISBN 965 278 179 7 Pillai Vaiyapuri 1956 History of Tamil Language and Literature Beginning to 1000 AD Madras New Century Book House Ramachandran M 1991 The Spring of the Indus Civilisation Prasanna Pathippagam Encyclopedic articles Edit Thapar Romila 2018 India History Southern Indian Kingdoms Encyclopedia Britannica Pletcher Kenneth 2018 Cera Dynasty Encyclopedia Britannica Tikkanen Amy 2018 Silappathikaram Encyclopedia Britannica Dalziel N R 2016 Pandyan Empire In J M MacKenzie ed The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Empire pp 1 3 doi 10 1002 9781118455074 wbeoe416 ISBN 9781118455074 Edward Balfour ed 1871 Muziris Cyclopaedia of India and of Eastern and Southern Asia Vol II Second ed P Gregorios and R G Roberson ed 2008 Muziris The Encyclopedia of Christianity Vol 5 ISBN 9780802824172 Journal articles Edit Fawcett F 1901 Notes on the Rock Carvings in the Edakal Caves Wynaad The Indian Antiquary XXX 409 421 Gurukkal Rajan 2015 Classical Indo Roman Trade A Misnomer in Political Economy Economic and Political Weekly 48 26 27 Fischel Walter J 1967 The Exploration of the Jewish Antiquities of Cochin on the Malabar Coast Journal of the American Oriental Society 87 3 230 248 doi 10 2307 597717 JSTOR 597717 Ganesh K N 2009 Historical Geography of Natu in South India with Special Reference to Kerala Indian Historical Review 36 1 3 21 doi 10 1177 037698360903600102 S2CID 145359607 Subbarayalu Y 2015 Trade Guilds of South India up to the Tenth Century Studies in People s History 02 1 21 26 doi 10 1177 2348448915574403 S2CID 133144002 Veluthat Kesavan 2018 History and Historiography in Constituting a Region The Case of Kerala Studies in People s History 5 1 13 31 doi 10 1177 2348448918759852 ISSN 2348 4489 S2CID 166060066 Gurukkal Rajan 2002 Did State Exist in the Pre Pallavan Tamil Region Proceedings of the Indian History Congress 63 198 150 JSTOR 44158082 Magazine articles Edit Champakalakshmi R 2003 A Magnum Opus on Tamil Brahmi Inscriptions Frontline The Hindu Digging up the Past Frontline The Hindu 2012 Newspaper reports features Edit Subramanian T S 9 February 2012 Edakal Cave Yields One More Tamil Brahmi Inscription The Hindu ISSN 0971 751X Subramanian T S 28 January 2007 Roman Connection in Tamil Nadu The Hindu Sudhi K S 30 April 2004 Copper Coins of Adi Chera Period Excavated The Hindu Bhanj J D 3 December 2014 Artefacts from the Lost Port of Muziris The Hindu Nair C G 3 May 2009 Pattanam Richest Indo Roman Site on Indian Ocean Rim The Hindu External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chera Dynasty Tamil Coins A Study 1981 R Nagaswamy Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Chera dynasty amp oldid 1129092775, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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