Tamraparni (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

for "with

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pink ...

leaves" or "red-leaved") is an older name for multiple distinct places, including

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Tirunelveli Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tam ...

in India, and the

Thamirabarani River The Thamirabarani or Tamraparni or Porunai is a perennial river that originates from the Agastyarkoodam peak of Pothigai hills of the Western Ghats, above Papanasam in the Ambasamudram taluk. It flows through Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi dis ...

that flows through Tirunelveli.

As a name for Sri Lanka

The rock edicts of the 3rd century BCE Indian emperor Ashoka mentions the word Tamraparni (as "Tambapanni") in connection with his foreign missions. One edict states that his ''dhamma vijaya'' (victory through

dhamma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for ' ...

) prevailed in frontier kingdoms of the Choda (

Cholas The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE d ...

), Pada ( Pandyas), and as far as Tambapanni. This seems to be a reference to Sri Lanka, as the Buddhist chronicles of Sri Lanka mention that a port city called Tammapanni was established there during the reign of the legendary king Vijaya. The city was called "Tammena" during the reign of Vijaya's successor

Panduvasdeva Prince Panduvasudeva, (died 474 BC) was King of Upatissa Nuwara (in modern-day Sri Lanka) from 504 BC to 474 BC. He was the first monarch of the Kingdom of Upatissa Nuwara and succeeded Upatissa, who reigned as regent. Panduvasudeva had ten so ...

and "Tammapanni" during the reign of Ashoka's missionary son

Mahendra Mahendra is a Sanskrit compound word deriving from Maha (Highest position) and Indra Deva (the King of Gods) from Hindu mythology.{{Citation needed, date=April 2022 It has been used in compound royal styles. History and politics Royalty ...

. According to these chronicles, the place was so called because its dust stuck to Mahendra's skin, making him appear copper-coloured. The name was subsequently applied to the entire island of Sri Lanka. According to one theory, " Taprobane", an ancient Greek name for

, is derived from the word "Tamraparni". The name may be a reference to the "copper colored" shores of Sri Lanka, and may have entered Greek via the

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

"Tambapanni". Megasthenes, a Greek ambassador to Ashoka's grandfather Chandragupta, describes Taprobane as being separated from the mainland by a river, and as being "more productive of gold and large pearls than India." This seems to be a reference to Sri Lanka. In the world map drawn by the ancient Greek (Claudius Ptolemaeus "Geographia", 150 CE), a huge island located south of the Indian subcontinent is referred to by the Greek as "Taprobane", which modern historians identify as the island of Sri Lanka.

As a name for the river

The name "Tamraparni" was applied to Tirunelveli and the river flowing through it relatively later, after having been used as a name for Sri Lanka. Historian R. Champakalakshmi theorizes that the Sanskrit word "Tamraparni" and Prakrit word "Tambapanni" are renderings of the

Tamil language Tamil (; ' , ) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. Tamil is an official language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the sovereign nations of Sri Lanka and Singapore, and the Indian territory o ...

words "Tan porunai". According to this theory, the

was originally known as "Tan Porunai" (literally "cool toddy"). This name of the river occurs in

Ettuthokai The Eight Anthologies, known as Eṭṭuttokai ( ta, எட்டுத்தொகை) or "Eight Collections" in the literature, is a classical Tamil poetic work that forms part of the Eighteen Greater Texts (''Patiṉeṇmēlkaṇakku'') antholo ...

, the ancient Tamil anthologies.

References

External links

Tambapanni
{{Authority control Pre Anuradhapura period Names of Sri Lanka