Poovar is a tourist town in

Neyyattinkara (tehsil) Neyyattinkara Taluk is a Taluk (tehsil) in Thiruvananthapuram district in the Indian state of Kerala. It situated in the Southern part of the Thiruvananthapuram district. It comprises 21 villages and one municipality. It is the southernmost ta ...

in the

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

district of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Ca ...

state,

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union terr ...

. This village is almost at the southern tip of

while the next village, Pozhiyoor, marks the end of Kerala. This village beach attracts tourists throughout the year.

Thiruvananthapuram Greenfield Shipyard

A major Greenfield Shipyard is coming up in Poovar. Kerala government owns 200 acres of land in this location which reduces land acquisition. The depth of the sea is 30-meter depth by nature. The

Vizhinjam International Seaport The Vizhinjam International Deepwater Multipurpose Seaport, also known as the Vizhinjam Port is an under-construction port on the Arabian Sea coast at city of Trivandrum . Developed in three phases, the first phase is expected to get completed ...

is 10 km from this location.

State government offices

*Panchayath Office *Sub Registrar's Office *Village Office *Agriculture Office *Govt. Hospital *Govt. Homeopathic Hospital *Govt. Ayurveda Hospital *Fisheries Office *Govt.V & HSS *Fire & Rescue Office *Police Circle Office *KSRTC Depot *Coastal police station

Geography

Poovar lies very close to

Vizhinjam Vizhinjam is a region located in the city of Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of the state of Kerala in India. It is located 16 km south west from the city centre and 17 km south of Trivandrum International Airport along NH66. Adani Por ...

, a natural harbour. The beach of Pozhiyoor named

Pozhikkara Pozhikkara or Pozhikara is the Western border town of the Paravur municipality in the Kollam district of Kerala state in India. It is located at the South-Western tip of Kollam's coastal area. It is in the Arabian Sea coast. Pozhikara is ...

is located near Poovar. The 56 km

Neyyar River The Neyyar River is 56 km long river which flows through the Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala in India. It flows from the Agastya Mala (''Agastyarkoodam'') in the Western Ghats. The town Neyyattinkara in Thiruvananthapuram district, is s ...

passes through Neyyattinkara Taluk into the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channe ...

near Poovar.

History

Poovar was a trading centre of timber, sandalwood,

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals i ...

and spices. It is believed that ships owned by

King Solomon King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ti ...

of Israel landed in

Ophir Ophir (; ) is a port or region mentioned in the Bible, famous for its wealth. King Solomon received a shipment from Ophir every three years (1 Kings 10:22) which consisted of gold, silver, sandalwood, pearls, ivory, apes, and peacocks. ...

, which is identified by some sources as Poovar, The village was one of the ancient Muslim settlements along the western coast of India. The central mosque in Poovar was built by

Malik Deenar Malik Dinar ( ar-at, مالك دينار, Mālik b. Dīnār, Malayalam: മാലിക് ദീനാര്‍) (died 748 CE)Al-Hujwiri, "Kashf al-Mahjoob", 89 was a Muslim scholar and traveller. He was one of the first known Muslims to have co ...

, an eighth century Muslim preacher. During the reign of the

Chola dynasty 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 BC ...

, Poovar was a major port. The explorer

Megasthenes Megasthenes ( ; grc, Μεγασθένης, c. 350 BCE– c. 290 BCE) was an ancient Greek historian, diplomat and Indian ethnographer and explorer in the Hellenistic period. He described India in his book '' Indica'', which is now lost, but ha ...

, Roman writer

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ' ...

and Venetian traveller

Marco Polo Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in '' The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...

mention connections with

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...

and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. There were a merchant named Pokku Moosa Maraikkar who lived in Poovar during the 18th century in a house called Kallaraickal Tharavad, which many times gave shelter to

Marthanda Varma Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma (Malayalam: ) was the founding monarch of the southern Indian Kingdom of Travancore (previously Venadu) from 1729 until his death in 1758. He was succeeded by Rama Varma ("Dharma Raja") (1758–98).Subrahman ...

(1706–58), king of

Travancore The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. A ...

from his enemies. Poovar also had trade relations with international markets at this time as well as a well trained army and some ships. At the

Battle of Colachel The Battle of Colachel (or The Battle of Kulachal) was fought on between the Indian kingdom of Travancore and the Dutch East India Company. During the Travancore-Dutch War, King Marthanda Varma's (1729–1758) forces defeated the Dutch East ...

and Battle of Kayamkulam these forces assisted the Travancore army against the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...

during the

Travancore–Dutch War The Travancore–Dutch War was a war between the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and the Indian kingdom of Travancore, culminating in the Battle of Colachel in 1741. Causes In the early 18th century, the Malabar Coast region of present-day ...

. The origin of the name "Poovar" has a story related to Marthanda Varma. Before that it was called Pokkumoosapuram. During internal riots in Travancore and while escaping from the

Ettuveetil Pillamar The Ettuveetil Pillamar (Lords of the Eight Houses) were nobles from eight ruling Houses in erstwhile Travancore in present-day Kerala state, South India. They were associated with the Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram and the Ettara ...

(Lords of the Eight Houses), the king reached Poovar. It was a spring season and the trees on either sides of the Neyyar were full of flowers. These flowers fell into the river making it more attractive. On seeing this pleasant scenery, Marthanda Varma commented that this was ''poo-var'', a conjunction of the

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam wa ...

words for "flower" and "river".

Transportation

Nearest Airport :

Trivandrum International Airport Thiruvananthapuram International Airport , is an international airport which serves Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. Established in 1932, it is the first airport in the state of Kerala and fifth international airport of In ...

- 30 km, Nearest Railway Station :

Trivandrum Central Thiruvananthapuram Central, formerly Trivandrum Central (also known as Thampanoor railway station) (station code: TVC), is a major railway station which serves the city of Thiruvananthapuram (formerly Trivandrum), capital of Kerala state, In ...

-30 km,

Nemom Nemom is an area in the city of Thiruvananthapuram (formerly Trivandrum). It is surrounded by Thirumala in the north, Malayinkeezhu in the north-east, Balaramapuram in the south-east, Kovalam in the south and Thiruvallam in the west. Nemom fal ...

- 20 km,

Neyyattinkara Neyyattinkara, is a Municipal Town and a major industrial and commercial hub located at the southern tip of Thiruvananthapuram metropolitan area in Trivandrum, the capital of Kerala State, and also the headquarters of Neyyattinkara Taluk. The ...

- 10 km Nearest Harbour :

- 14 km

Tourism: Boating in Poovar

Poovar has emerged as a popular tourist destination recently. There are various resorts, floating restaurants and backwater cruises in Poovar. Resorts are not very costly. Starting price fo
boating in Poovar
is Rs. 200. The backwater cruise in Poovar will go through Neyyar river, mangrove forests, and the golden sand beach.

References

Poovar Wonder by G. Shrinithyaa - A book published by Amazon.com

External links

{{Tourism in Kerala History of Kerala Tourist attractions in Thiruvananthapuram district Villages in Thiruvananthapuram district Beaches of Kerala Populated coastal places in India Ophir