Which came first — Madras or Chennai?

Like most others in the city, I had a very uncertain idea of ​​the chronology of Madras and Chennai names, and in August this year, he determined that I would get a clear concept at the time they were mentioned. Finally, I must say that I am older and smarter. And so, that’s going.

Madraspatnam is the first appearance. This is in Venkatadri Nayak’s 1639 Land Grant. The English translation of this document in the traces of the former Madras of HD Love shows the arrival of the British to the “Medraspatam Port, and shows that it is a village/settlement that foresees 1639 and is a port. Patnam itself is a cohaus used only for the coastal towns.

In 1645, the grant of the same land was obtained from the ruler from Raja Sriranga Raya, the capital of Chandragiri and Nayak. This claims that the British reached “Zera Renga Rayapatam, My Towne ve and built a castle there. This was built next to Madraspatnam, a new castle was built (Fort St. George), where he thought he was named as poor Raja. In addition, the grant throws the rents of the ground about the village of Madraspatam to the British and then translated as Narimedu and is a place called Jackal’s Ground, who was translated as Narimedu and assigned to the general hospital and the former MMC campus.

Chennapatnam has not been mentioned so far. HD Love, Fort St. He estimates that George is the name of the land in which he was built. We know that Madras is in the north of it, and in 1673 he was defined as the “Indian town with flat houses ,, that is, the old black town standing in the north of the castle. So far, it was very good – the village of the village of Cennapatnam was Madraspatnam.

The darkening begins with 1646 when he donates to the Chennakesava Perumal Temple, which the gunpowder manufacturer Nagabattan says he was in Cennapattanam. The temple was in the old black town in the north of the castle where the Supreme Court was located. Dubash, who has been a donation by Thimmappa since 1648, was in the temple’s Chennapattanam. He should have known, because he was the one who built him.

By 1672, this time a new grant was required from the new power, Golconda.

Neknam Khan’s grant was given that year and clearly limited the “Fort and Chinapatam Town ve and separated it from the place called Madrasapatam. Even here we can see that the castle is thought to be in Cennapatnam, now Black Town has been added.

1802 CV in Boria. Colin Mackenzie’s epigraphy revealed a Maratha manuscript that stopped most of the first theories. Accordingly, the town had four separate parts – Arkoopom, which stands in the villages of Madras Coopom, Muthialpet and Pagdalpet (New Black or George Town), where the British built the castles of the British, was said to be near Tuzlu Cotaurs.

In short, in 1802, a Marathi manuscript reversed the date. Kale was the town of Madras and Chennai. And this is still loyal – Chennai Tamil (it could be good telugu) and has become a suitable reason to rename the city.

V. Sriram is a writer and historian