This region was owned by the Chera Dynasty. It includes the Districts of Salem,

Namakkal Namakkal () is a special grade municipality and the headquarters of Namakkal district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the first ISO 14001-2004 certified municipality in Asia for environmental management, specifically the provision ...

Dharmapuri Dharmapuri is a special grade town in the north western part of Tamil Nadu, India. It serves as the administrative headquarters of Dharmapuri district which is the first district created in Tamil Nadu after the independence of India by spli ...

and

Krishnagiri Krishnagiri () is a city in the state of Tamil Nadu, India, and it serves as the administrative headquarters of Krishnagiri District formed in 2004. It is located at the bottom of Krishnadevaraya Hills, and the town is fully surrounded by hill ...

. In the ancient sangam age this region was ruled by Mazhavar King Kolli Mazhavan. Famous Sangam poetess Avvaiyar had cordial relations with the chieftains like

Athiyamān Nedumān Añci Athiyamān Nedumān Añji was one of the most powerful Velir kings of the Sangam era who ruled the region called Mazhanadu, a part of ancient Kongu Nadu and the great dynasty called Chera Dynasty.''Śrī puṣpāñjali, page 125'' A famous r ...

of Thagadoor and

Valvil Ori Valvil Ori was a king and a skilled archer, who ruled Kolli Hills region in present day Tamil Nadu. He was one of the Tamil ''Kadai ezhu vallal'' (Transl. 'Last Seven Patrons'). Politically he aligned with the Cholas and fought against the Ch ...

of Kollimalai. ref> and was once ruled by Kolli Mazhavan and his successors, and was well-known for its water resources. It was mentioned in a Tamil poem.

Demographics and Geography

The table below lists geographic and demographic parameters for districts that constitute Mazhanadu.

References

{{coord missing, Tamil Nadu Regions of Tamil Nadu