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Thanjavur

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Thanjavur
Thanjavur
city
Government
 • Municipal ChairpersonThenmozhi Jayabalan[1]
Population
 (2001)
 • Total215,725
"Tanjore" redirects here. For other uses, see Tanjore (disambiguation).

Thanjavur (Tamil : தஞ்சாவூர்), also known by its anglicised name Tanjore, is a city and a municipality in Thanjavur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is also the capital of the Thanjavur District. The city lies on the south bank of the Kaveri River. Thanjavur was the capital of the Mutharayars and Cholas when they were at the peak of their power. Since then, Thanjavur has been one of the chief political, cultural and religious centres of South India. Thanjavur is home to the famous Brihadeeswara Temple, one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Thanjavur derives its name from Tanjan - an asura (demon) who according to local legend caused devastation and was killed by Sri Anandavalli Amman and Sri Neelamegapperumal. Tanjan's last request, that the city might be named after him, was granted.

History

The Thanjavur area, where a majority of Mutharayar and other families are presently located, has a rich historical heritage and is a prism of ancient as well as the modern south Indian civilizations. The city was once the stronghold of the historic Cholas.

Perumbidugu Mutharaiyar ruled his kingdom with Uraiyur as the capital[citation needed]. Later it was ruled by the Nayaks of Vijayanagara and the Maratha rajas.

Thanjavur contains over 90 temples, as it was favored by the Chola rulers between the 1st - 12th centuries, the Nayakas in the 16th century, and the Marathas in the 17th and 18th centuries.[2]

Under the Cholas

Brihadeeswara Temple built by Rajaraja Chola I

Thanjavur, or Tanjapuri as it was called in the ancient times was chosen by the Mutharayar king and later conquered by Vijayalaya Chola. Vijayalaya built a temple for his favourite goddess Nisumbhasudani in the city. Although subsequent emperors made Kanchipuram a subsidiary capital, Thanjavur maintained its position as the chief city. The great Brihadisvara Temple, built by Rajaraja Chola I was completed around 1010 CE. It remained the centre of the Chola administration for many years, channelling the state revenue into a number of civic projects. It also acted as a repository of the empire's records, as the great Rajaraja had its walls covered with numerous inscriptions recording his conquests and his endowments to various charities. The impression we get from the inscriptions is of a wealthy, progressive city, although totally dominated by the temple.

The inscriptions tell us about a number of royal palaces in the city and of the districts where palace servants lived. We also learn the names of a number of streets: the big street of Virasola and the big market of Tribhuvanamadeviyar. During the reign of Rajaraja we learn that the city was divided into two parts: Ullalai (inner) and Purambadi (outer) city. Purambadi could have been an extension to the city built during Rajaraja's reign. Among the new streets built by Rajaraja were two running east to west in front of the Brihadisvara Temple and called Northern and Southern Talichcheries. People who worked in the temple occupied these streets. There were other temples then, such as the Jayabhima temple and Tanjai Mamani found in the inscriptions, which do not exist anymore. There was also a public hospital attached to a Vishnu temple named after Sundara Chola called Sundarachola Vinnagara Salai which was endowed by Kundavai, the sister of Rajaraja Chola.

The influence of Thanjavur began to diminish when Rajendra Chola I built a new city named Gangaikonda Cholapuram and moved his capital there.

After the Cholas

File:RajaGopalaCannon.JPG
A Mighty Cannon of forge-welded Iron. This cannon was built during the reign of Raghunatha Nayak (1600 - 1645 CE), and it was located at the defense barricade at the Eastern entrance to the city.

After the Cholas the Pandyas conquered the Chola country. Madurai was the Pandya capital and Thanjavur remained in the background, as a province of Vijaynagar empire.

Later in 1535,the Vijaynagar king installed a Nayak king hence the era of Tanjore Nayaks which lasted till mid-17th century, until attacked by the Madurai Nayaks. Later slipped into the hands of Marathas.

Tanjore was conquered by the Marathas in 1674 under Venkaji, the half-brother of Shivaji the Great; his successors ruled as rajas of Tanjore. The British first came into contact with Tanjore by their expedition in 1749 with a view to the restoration of a deposed raja of Tanjore Nayak lineage. In this they failed, and a subsequent expedition was bought off. The Maratha rajas held Tanjore until 1799. A Protestant mission at Tanjore was founded in 1778 by the Reverend Christian Friedrich Schwarz. His church dates from 1779.

In October 1799, the district was ceded to the British East India Company in absolute sovereignty by Raja Serfoji II, a pupil of the missionary Schwartz. The raja retained only the capital and a small tract of surrounding country. He died in 1833 and was succeeded by his son Sivaji, on whose death in 1855 without an heir the house became extinct.

Geography

Thanjavur is located at 10°48′N 79°09′E / 10.8°N 79.15°E / 10.8; 79.15[3]. It has an average elevation of 2 metres (6 feet). The city lies on the south bank of the Kaveri River, 200 miles south of Chennai.

The city is primarily divided into two parts separated by a flyover. The Downtown [known as Old Town or simply Town] is the business district. The other side of the flyover is the residential area which is a relatively new neighborhood. The various neighborhoods are Palliagraharam, Karanthai, Old Town, Vilar, Nanjikottai Road, Manabuchavadi, Pookkara Street, New Town, Medical College, Old Housing Unit, New Housing Unit and Srinivasapuram.

The extension areas include Mariamman Koil, Gnanam Nagar, Kattuthottam, Nanjikottai, Madhakottai, Pillaiyarpatti, Nilagirivattam and Reddypalayam. The total population of the composite city touches 500,000 (unofficial figure). For all purposes the city extends from Vallam to Mariamman Koil (west - east) and Vayalur to Nanjikottai (north-south) for an area of 100 km².

Places of interest

Entrance of the Brihadisvara Temple in Thanjavur
Bell Tower

Thanjavur is famous for the Brahadeeswara Temple (or Brihadeeswara temple) built by Rajaraja Chola, the first sailor king of India. The Brahadeeswara Temple, also known as the Big Temple, is one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The temple is enclosed in two courts, surmounted by a lofty tower and including the exquisitely decorated shrine of Subrahmanya. Among the other historic buildings is the Vijayanagar fort, which contains a palace that was expanded by the Maratha king Serfoji II with an armoury, a Bell Tower and the Saraswathi Mahal Library, which contains over 30,000 Indian and European manuscripts written on palm leaf and paper.

Arts and Culture

Thanjavur is one of the chief political, literary and religious centres of southern India, known for its contribution to Carnatic music, it has produced many classical musicians and Bharathanatyam dancers. It has become the second most important site for the annual Natyanjali dance festival.

Tiruvaiyaru, which is close to Thanjavur, is the place where the great musician Saint Tyagaraja lived. Here in Tiruvaiyaru every year in the tamil month of 'Thai'(January end) Thyagaraja Aradhana will be held where musicians from all over the country will participate.

It is also well known for its unique painting style called Tanjore Painting, a percussion instrument called the Thavil, a divine classical string instrument Veenai and the Thanjavur Dolls[4].

The Tanjore paintings are very popular and are renown around the world. The artists use a combination of canvas background with glass, metals, etc. to depict and decorate various scenes from Hindu mythology.

Tanjore plates which are made of color glass pieces which are aesthetically cut and embedded on velvet cloth. It will have god image or birds at the center.

Demographics

The city is the 8th largest in the state of Tamil Nadu with a census population of around 225,000 (est. 2005). It has an area of 36 km². Ethnically most of the people are Tamils. There is also a large Telugu population along with Saurashtrians and Thanjavur Marathi people. As of 2001 India census[5], Thanjavur had a population of 215,725. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Thanjavur has an average literacy rate of 80%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 85%, and female literacy is 76%. In Thanjavur, 9% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Here in thanjavur in 1994, 8th Tamil world conference was held.

Nearby Towns

Employment

Most of the people in Thanjavur District are farmers. Thanjavur is the rice bowl of TamilNadu. In the city of Thanjavur there are a large number of doctors due to the presence of a 50-year old medical college. The first M.B.B.S. doctor of this city was the late Dr. N. Ramanathan, who served as a general practitioner of medicine from 1938 to 1988. Even today, there is a bus stop on his name, near his hospital. Also there are a large number of professors working in the various professional and arts colleges around the city.

Education

Thanjavur is renowned for its culture of education. It is home to the famous Saraswati Mahal library which dates back to the end of the 16th century and contains over 30,000 rare manuscripts. It has now been fully computerized. St. Peter's, founded in the 18th century by Schwartz, is a renowned school. Currently, Thanjavur has two universities, viz., the Tamil University and the SASTRA Deemed University, and several colleges including the renowned Thanjavur Medical College. This city also has many research centres like the Paddy Processing Research Centre, Soil and Water Research Centre, etc.

Thanjavur has a high number of Software Engineering Professionals, Doctors, Engineers, Teachers etc.

List of Universities:

  1. Tamil University.
  2. SASTRA University (Formerly Shanmugha College of Engineering. SASTRA has a very well developed sprawling campus on a 500 acre site and is an accredited Research and Development Centre under the President's Technology Mission - TIFAC CORE. SASTRA has collaborations and exchange Programs with many reputed Universities abroad.SASTRA University
  3. Periyar Maniammai University

List of Autonomous colleges:

  1. A.V.V.M SRI Pushapam College(Autonomous) poondi, Thanjavur Dt.(A.Veeraiya Vandaiyar Memorial Sri Pushpam College was established in 1956 in a village Poondi, 12 km from Thanjavur on the way to Nagapattinam in Tamilnadu state in India on the National High Way 74. The College is having a vast campus of 85 acres, NAAC accreditation with status of four stars.
  2. Rajah Serfoji Govt. College
  3. Kundhavai Nachiar Govt. College

List of Colleges:

Medical and Paramedical

  1. Thanjavur Medical College.
  2. Mannai Narayanasamy College.
  3. Arasu Paramedical College.
  4. Konagarnadu College of Nursing.

Engineering

  1. P R Engineering College(PREC).
  2. Ponnaiyah Ramajayam College Of Engineering and Technology(PRCET).
  3. Periyar Maniyammai College of Technology for Women.
  4. Anjalaiammal Mahalingam Engineering College.
  5. King's College of Engineering (KCE).

Arts, Science and Management

  1. Rajah Serfoji Government Arts College, Thanjavur.
  2. Kundhavai Nachiar Government Arts College.
  3. Ponnaiah Ramajayam College(PRC).
  4. Tamilvel Umamaheshwaranar Karanthai Arts College.
  5. A.V.V.M Sri Pushpam College
  6. Na. Mu. Venkatasamy Nattar College.
  7. Nalli Kuppusamy College
  8. Bharath College of Science and Management.
  9. Marudhupandiar College.
  10. Madha Sami Arul College.
  11. Adaikala Matha College.
  12. Bon Secours College.
  13. Abi & Abi College of Arts and Science
  14. Adikalamatha Institute of Management.
  15. P. R. Institute of Managemnet.

Polytechnics

  1. Periyar Centenary Polytechnic.
  2. Ponnaiyah Ramajayam Polytechnic college
  3. Vandayar Polytechnic.
  4. CCMR Polytechnic.

Teacher Training Institutes

  1. Ponnaiyah Ramajayam Teacher Training Institute(PRTTI).
  2. Ponnaiyah Ramajayam College of Education(PRCE).
  3. Maruthu Pandiar College of Education
  4. Bon Secours College of Education

Famous Schools

  1. KalyanaSundaram Higher Secondary School (Established in 1893)
  2. Don Bosco matric hig.sec.shool
  3. Kamala subramaniam matric hig.sec.shool
  4. Ponnaiyah Ramajayam Public School
  5. Auxilium
  6. Sacred Heart
  7. Shri Venkateswara Matric Hig.sec.shool
  8. Veeraragava Higher Secondary School
  9. Umamaheswara Higher Secondary School
  10. St.Joseph
  11. St.Antonys Higher secondary school.
  12. St.Peters
  13. Maxwell Matric Hig.Sec.School

Top Government Officials

  1. Deputy Inspector General of Police.. Mr Abhash Kumar IPS
  2. District Collector.. Mr Vijayaraj Kumar IAS
  3. District Superintendent of Police Mr Amit Kumar Singh IPS
  1. 'Dr.R.venkataraman'FORMER President of the Republic of India
  2. Thiru U.Ve.Swaminatha Iyer (Tamil Thatha), Tamil Scholar
  3. Actor Nadigar Thilagam Pathmashree Sivaji Ganesan
  4. Late Thiru G.K.Moopanar,Founder Tamil Maanila Congress.
  5. ThiruK.Thulasi ayya Vandayar,Secretary and corespondent of A.V.V,M SRI PUSHPAM COLLEGE
  6. Thiru Ko.Si.Mani, Tamil Nadu Minister for Statistics and Ex-Servicemen
  7. Thiru.S.S.Palanimanickam, Union Minister of State for Finance(Revenue)
  8. Dr.M.Natarajan,Managing Director of Tamilarasi Publication Pvt Ltd and Social Activist
  9. Prof. R.Sethuraman, Vice-Chancellor,SASTRA UNIVERSITY
  10. Thiru G.K.Vasan,Union Minister of State for Statistics & Prog Imp(Independent Charge).
  11. Thiru S.N.M.Ubayadulla, Tamil Nadu Minister for Commercial Taxes
  12. Thiru. Rt.Hon.Srinivasa sastri, Known as the SILVER TOUNGED for profeciency in English
  13. Thiru. Basel Pillar RAJAKUMAR A
  14. Dr.S.Jayakumar,CTO,Epigon Media Technologies

References

  • Public Domain This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  1. ^ The Hindu dated 29 October 2006
  2. ^ "Brahadeshvara Temple". Retrieved 2006-09-14.
  3. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Thanjavur
  4. ^ Thanjavur Dolls in Action (Animation)
  5. ^ Template:GR
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