Tyndis

Tondis on Peutinger Table (north of "Templ Augusti" and "Lacus Muziris")

Tyndis (Ancient Greek: Τύνδις^[1], Tamil: Thondi^[2]) was an ancient south Indian seaport and harbor-town mentioned in Graeco-Roman writings. It was located about 500 stadia north of the port Muziris (Muchiri), in the country of the Chera rulers.^[3]^[2] No archaeological evidence of Tyndis has been found.^[2]

The Chera rulers of early historic south India (c. 2nd century BCE - c. 3rd century CE^[4]) had their headquarters at Vanchi-Karur (Karuvur) in the interior Tamil Nadu and headquarters or ports at Muziris (Vanchi or Muchiri) and Tyndis (Thondi) on the Malabar Coast (present-day Kerala).^[4] Early Tamil poems (the Sangam Literature) contain several references to a port named "Thondi" on the Kerala coast in Chera country.^[2]^[4]

Another town named Thondi, located in the Pandya country on the eastern coast of the peninsula, is also mentioned in early Tamil literature.^[5]^[2] This town continues to exist under the same name.^[2]

Different variations of the name

In Tamil, the term "Thondi" refers to either "a small bay-like landscape" or to the "navel".^[3]^[2]

Thondi, like Virai or Arikamedu-Virampattinam, is occasionally referred to as "Munthurai", meaning "the port in front [of the town]".^[2] It is also called "Kanalam Thondi", meaning "the coastal town with backwater lakes or backwaters with flowers".^[2] Tamil poems notably describe it as "valam kezhu", signifying its prosperity, similar to that of Muchiri.^[2]

The port of Thondi also had an ananku goddess.^[2]

Periplus of the Erythraean Sea - Tyndis^[3]
Pliny the Elder (Natural History) - Tyndis^[3]
Peutinger Table - Tondis^[3]
Claudius Ptolemy (Geography) - Tyndis^[3]

Sources

Graeco-Roman descriptions

Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (c. 1st century CE^[3]), 54-56, mentions Tyndis as a "village by plain sight from the sea":^[2]
- "Naura and Tyndis, the first ports of trade of Limyrike"
- "Tyndis, a well known village on the coast, is in the kingdom of Keprobotos..."
- Tyndis was situated 500 stadia (~92 km) north to Muziris "by river and sea" (meaning the distance included river travel).^[3]^[6]
Pliny the Elder (1st century CE) - "the Caelobothras ruled a kingdom extending to Tyndis (on the north-west)".^[3]
By the time Claudius Ptolemy (2nd century) wrote, Tyndis had grown large enough for him to describe it (Geography 7.1.8) as a "town" or "polis".^[7]
The Tabula Peutingeriana locates "Tondis" north of Muziris (north of "Templ Augusti" and "Lacus Muziris").^[3]

Early Tamil poems

There are several references to a port named Thondi on the Kerala coast in the early Tamil texts (the Sangam Literature). It was under the control of the Chera rulers, probably under the Irumporai collateral branch.^[2] The port may have been associated with hinterland trade from the Malabar Coast to the interior Tamil country via the Palghat Gap.^[2]

The Chera ruler of Thondi was usually called "Poraiyan".^[2] One Chera ruler, notably styled "Thin Ther Poraiyan" or "the Poraiyan with the Strong Chariot", is repeatedly mentioned in early Tamil literature.^[2] On some occasions, Chera ruler of Thondi is directly named as "Chenkol Kuttuvan" or Cheraman Ko Kothai Marpan.^[2] Early Tamil poems also refer to a palace of the Chera ruler at Thondi.^[2] According to these poems, the Chera fixed the tooth of his enemy chieftain "Muvan" on the palace gate.^[2] The Chera ruler of Thondi appears to have commanded a contingent of Marava warriors and owned several elephants.^[2] He distributed coins to bards and poets and, on one occasion, gifted varudai (mountain) goats from the Deccan region (?) to Brahmin priests.^[2]

There is mention of extensive rice or paddy cultivation in the fields in and around Thondi, which is described as a "coastal town" with "backwater lakes" or "backwaters filled with flowers". Early poems also hint at the presence of nearby coconut groves and hills.^[2] Thondi was also noted for its fishing and its "neythal" (water lily) flowers.^[2] It had a fishing community of Paratavar people.^[2]

Location

The location of Muziris (Muchiri) provides clues for identifying Tyndis, which was 500 stadia (~92 km) north of it ("by river and sea").^[3] The exact location of the port remains uncertain. Possible candidates include the following modern sites:

Kadalundi^[3]
- About 117 km north of Kodungallur.^[3]
- At the mouth of the Chaliyar and Kadalundi rivers.^[3]
- Etymology: Kadal (sea) + Thundi (navel)^[3]
- An open harbour entrance through a channel ~ 12 m deep that does not require dredging.^[3]
Ponnani^[3]
- About 74 km north of Kodungallur.^[3]
- At the mouth of Bharathappuzha river.^[3]
- Located opposite the Palakkad Gap.^[3]
Panthalayini Kollam (Quilandy)^[2]

References

^ Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, 53 and 54
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y Selvakumar, V. (2016). "Ancient Ports of Kerala: An Overview". In Mathew, K. S. (ed.). Imperial Rome, Indian Ocean Regions and Muziris: New Perspectives on Maritime Trade. Taylor & Francis. pp. 271 and 274–80 and 411. ISBN 978-1-351-99752-2.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t Gurukkal, Rajan; Whittaker, Dick (2001). "In Search of Muziris". Journal of Roman Archaeology. 14: 334–350. doi:10.1017/S1047759400019978. ISSN 1047-7594.
^ ^a ^b ^c Gurukkal, Rajan (2013). "Classical Indo-Roman Trade: A Misnomer in Political Economy". Economic and Political Weekly. 48 (26–27).
^ "Excavations: Thondi". Tamil Nadu State Department of Archeology. Government of Tamil Nadu.
^ Sharma, Yogesh, ed. (2010). Coastal Histories: Society and Ecology in pre-Modern India. Primus Books.
^ Casson, Lionel (1989). The Periplus Maris Erythraei: Text with Introduction, Translation, and Commentary. Princeton University Press. p. 213. ISBN 1-4008-4320-0.

Bibliography

Lionel Casson (2012) [1989]. The Periplus Maris Erythraei: Text with Introduction, Translation, and Commentary. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-1-4008-4320-6.
Gurukkal, Rajan (2015). "Classical Indo-Roman Trade: A Misnomer in Political Economy". Economic and Political Weekly. 48 (26–27).

External links

[1] Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, 53 and 54

[:3-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y Selvakumar, V. (2016). "Ancient Ports of Kerala: An Overview". In Mathew, K. S. (ed.). Imperial Rome, Indian Ocean Regions and Muziris: New Perspectives on Maritime Trade. Taylor & Francis. pp. 271 and 274–80 and 411. ISBN 978-1-351-99752-2.

[:0-3] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t Gurukkal, Rajan; Whittaker, Dick (2001). "In Search of Muziris". Journal of Roman Archaeology. 14: 334–350. doi:10.1017/S1047759400019978. ISSN 1047-7594.

[:11-4] Gurukkal, Rajan (2013). "Classical Indo-Roman Trade: A Misnomer in Political Economy". Economic and Political Weekly. 48 (26–27).

[5] "Excavations: Thondi". Tamil Nadu State Department of Archeology. Government of Tamil Nadu.

[6] Sharma, Yogesh, ed. (2010). Coastal Histories: Society and Ecology in pre-Modern India. Primus Books.

[7] Casson, Lionel (1989). The Periplus Maris Erythraei: Text with Introduction, Translation, and Commentary. Princeton University Press. p. 213. ISBN 1-4008-4320-0.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]