Pandya Nadu

Location of ancient region Pandya Nadu in TN

Pandya Nadu is an ancient region of South India. It includes the present-day districts of Tamil Nadu state, the districts are Madurai, Theni, Sivaganga, Ramanathapuram, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi, Thoothukudi, Kanniyakumari and Dindigul district.

This region has been assosciated with the Pandya dynasty from at least 4th century BCE. The main cultural and political center of the region is Madurai, which served as the capital of the Pandya kingdom. It was involved in trade between western and eastern Asia via Indian Ocean, and had close cultural, economic, and political ties to Kerala and Sri Lanka.

Modern day capital for Pandya Nadu is either Madurai or Kanyakumari.

During 15th century, the region came under the control of the Vijayanagara Empire and after the collapse of the empire in the 16th century, the Nayaks of Madurai ruled the region until the British conquest in the 17th century. During 18th century, it was integrated into Madras Presidency. After Indian independence in 1947, Madras Presidency became Madras State, later renamed Tamil Nadu.