Cheap Madurai Tour Packages, Best Travel Agent in Madurai, Local Travel Agent in Madurai, Travel Hed Madurai is one of the largest cities in Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the River Vaigai. The settlements at Madurai started two thousand years ago and Madurai is considered as one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world. It was called by various names as Koodal, Koodal Nagaram, Naanmada Koodal, Thiruvalaivai and Aalavai. It is said that the name Madurai should have originated from the word Madhura meaning sweetness. Also it is said that the landscape on the banks of the River Vaigai was called Marutham and Madurai was the mutation of that name. The original city was called Then Madurai and this was destroyed by great Tsunami in Kumari Kandam. The different names of the place were quoted in the 17th century writings by Paranjothi Munivar named Thiruvilayaadal Puraanam. According to the Hindu mythology, Lord Shiva showered his blessings on the land and so it was called Madhurapuri which means The City of Divine Nectar. The history of Madurai starts with 300 B.C. when the Greek ambassador Megasthenes visited the place. He had recorded the name of the city as Methora in his works. There was a mention about the city in Arthashastra written by Kautilya, the Greek geographer Strabo and the works of the Roman historians Pliny and Ptolemy. Sangam literature flourished here during the reign of Pandya rulers. The great epic Silapathikaram was written during the 2nd century A.D. Initially, Kalabhras were ruling this territory. They were considered as evil kings and were not benevolent. In 550 A.D. Pandyas drove them and came to power. They ruled the place for more than 3 centuries. In the 9th century, Chola dynasty held supremacy over the region. They held sway for next four years until the Pandyan Empire was again established in 13th century. Kulasekhara Pandiyan was the last Pandiyan ruler. After this, Delhi Sultanate captured the place and brought it under its control. However, Madurai Sultanate was established and this served as an independent kingdom.
