Tyndis


Tyndis was an ancient south Indian seaport/harbor-town mentioned in Graeco-Roman writings. It was located about 500 stadia north of the port Muziris, in the country of the Chera rulers. No archaeological evidence of Tyndis has been found.
The Chera rulers of early historic south India had their headquarters at Karur in the interior Tamil Nadu and headquarters/harbors at Muziris and Tyndis on the Malabar Coast. Early Tamil texts contain several references to a port named "Thondi" on the Kerala coast in Chera territory.
Another town named Thondi, located in the Pandya country on the eastern coast of the peninsula, is also mentioned in early Tamil literature. This town continues to exist under the same name.

Different variations of the name

In Tamil, the term "Thondi" refers to either "a small bay-like landscape" or to the "navel".
Like Virai or Arikamedu-Virampattinam, Thondi is sometimes referred to as "Munthurai", meaning "the port in front ". It is also called "Kanalam Thondi", meaning "the coastal town with backwater lakes or backwaters with flowers". Tamil poems describe it as "valam kezhu", signifying its prosperity, much like Muziris.
The port of Thondi also had a goddess.
  • Periplus of the Erythraean Sea - Tyndis
  • Pliny the Elder - Tyndis
  • Peutinger Table - Tondis
  • Claudius Ptolemy - Tyndis

    Graeco-Roman descriptions

  • Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, 54-56, mentions Tyndis as a "village by plain sight from the sea":
  • * "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 north to Muziris "by river and sea", meaning the distance included river travel.
  • Pliny the Elder - "the Caelobothras ruled a kingdom extending to Tyndis ".
  • By the time Claudius Ptolemy wrote, Tyndis had grown large enough for him to describe it as a "town" or "polis".
  • The Tabula Peutingeriana locates "Tondis" north of Muziris.

    Early Tamil texts

There are several references to a port named Thondi on the Kerala coast in the early Tamil texts. It was under the control of the Chera rulers, probably under the Irumporai collateral branch. The port may have been associated with hinterland trade from the Malabar Coast to the interior Tamil country via the Palghat Gap.
The Chera ruler of Thondi was usually called "Poraiyan". One ruler, notably styled "Thin Ther Poraiyan" or "the Poraiyan with the Strong Chariot", is repeatedly mentioned in early Tamil literature. On some occasions, Chera ruler of Thondi is directly named as "Chenkol Kuttuvan" or Cheraman Ko Kothai Marpan.
Early Tamil poems also refer to a palace of the Chera ruler at Thondi. According to these poems, the Chera fixed the tooth of his enemy chieftain "Muvan" on the palace gate. The ruler of Thondi appears to have commanded a contingent of Marava warriors and owned several elephants. He distributed coins to bards and poets and, on one occasion, gifted varudai goats from the Deccan region to Brahmin priests.
There is mention of extensive rice or paddy cultivation in the fields in and around Thondi, described as "the coastal town with backwater lakes" or "backwaters filled with flowers". Early poems also hint at coconut groves and nearby hills.
Thondi was also noted for its fishing and its "neythal" flowers. It had a fishing community of Paratavar people.

Location

The location of Muziris provides clues for identifying Tyndis, which was 500 stadia north of it. The exact location of the port remains uncertain. Possible candidates include the following modern sites:
  • Kadalundi
  • *About 117 km north of Kodungallur
  • *At the mouth of the Chaliyar and Kadalundi rivers
  • *Etymology: Kadal + Thundi
  • *An open harbour entrance through a channel ~ 12 m deep that does not require dredging.
  • Ponnani
  • *About 74 km north of Kodungallur
  • *At the mouth of Bharathappuzha river
  • *Located opposite the Palakkad Gap
  • Panthalayini Kollam