Athiyaman Neduman Anci was one of the

velir The Velir were a royal house of minor dynastic kings and aristocratic chieftains in Tamilakam in the early historic period of South India. They had close relations with Chera, Chola and Pandya rulers through ruling and coronation rights. Med ...

kings of the

Sangam period The Sangam literature ( Tamil: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam''), historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' ( Tamil: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ''), connote ...

who ruled the

Mazhanadu Mazhanadu is a region between Tondai Nadu and Karnataka, formerly known as Mazhavarnadu. This region was owned by the Chera Dynasty. It includes the Districts of Salem, Namakkal, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri Krishnagiri () is a city in the ...

region.''Śrī puṣpāñjali, page 125'' Belonging to the Athiyaman clan,''Tamil Literature, page 92''''Madras district gazetteers, page 201'' he was the contemporary and the patron of poet Avvaiyar.''The Encyclopaedia Of Indian Literature (Volume One (A To Devo), Volume 1, page 295'' He ruled over the area encompassing present day

Dharmapuri Dharmapuri is a city 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 splitting it from ...

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 r ...

, and

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada * Salem, Ontario, various places Germany * Salem, Baden-Württemberg, a municipality in the Bodensee district ** Salem Abbey (Reichskloster Salem), a monastery * Salem, Schleswig-Holstein Israel * Salem (B ...

with the capital at Tagadur.''The culture and history of the Tamils, page 17'' They were one of the kadai ezhu vallal (''last seven great patrons'') of the

ancient Tamil country Tamilakam () also known as ancient Tamil country as was the geographical region inhabited by the ancient Tamil people, covering the southernmost region of the Indian subcontinent. Tamilakam covered today's Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, Laks ...

.''Historical heritage of the Tamils, page 256''

Patron of Avvaiyar

When poet Avvaiyar visited the court of Athiyamān Nedumān Añci, he liked her so much that he deliberately delayed in giving her gifts to prolong her stay. The poet at first not realizing the game, got angry and condemned him and then later when she realized the true motive, became so fond him that she decided to stay and became his close friend. On another occasion, he gave her a rare

gooseberry Gooseberry ( or (American and northern British) or (southern British)) is a common name for many species of ''Ribes'' (which also includes Ribes, currants), as well as a large number of plants of similar appearance, and also several unrela ...

(''nelli in'' Tamil) that was considered to improve one's life expectancy.

A warrior

Avvaiyar described her patron as a hardened warrior,

Purananuru The ''Purananuru'' (, literally "four hundred oemsin the genre puram"), sometimes called ''Puram'' or ''Purappattu'', is a classical Tamil literature, Tamil poetic work and traditionally the last of the Eight Anthologies (''Ettuthokai'') i ...

, song 87: In 118 CE, another king

Malaiyamān Thirumudi Kāri Malaiyamān Thirumudi Kāri was a Tamil king of a royal house clan of the Malaiyamān dynasty.''Topics in South Indian history:from early times up to 1565 A.D., page 54'Social and cultural history of Tamilnad, Volume 1, page 230'' He is one of ...

of the ''Kadai ezhu vallal'' waged war on Thagadoor against Athiyamān Nedumān Añci. It was an attempt fuelled by his longtime desire to become an emperor equivalent in power to the Cholas. After a fierce battle, Kāri lost Kovalur to Athiyamān and only regained it much later after Peruncheral Irumporai sacked Tagadur.''History of Tamilnad:to A.D. 1565, page 66''

Friendship with the Cholas

Athiyamān Nedumān Añci lived in one of the most turbulent periods and was looking at an imminent invasion by the

Cheras The Chera dynasty ( or Cēra, ), also known as Keralaputra, from the early historic or the Sangam period in Tamil-speaking southern India, ruled over parts of present-day states Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Cheras, known as one of the mu-ventar ...

and the

Chola The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

s. He sent Avvaiyar as an envoy to the court of Ilantiraiyan of

Kanchi Kanchipuram (IAST: '; ), also known as Kanjeevaram, is a stand alone city corporation, satellite nodal city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from Chennaithe capital of Tamil Nadu. Known as the ''Ci ...

who was a viceroy of the

sovereign and later allied himself with the latter to deter the

Chera The Chera dynasty ( or Cēra, ), also known as Keralaputra, from the early historic or the Sangam period in Tamil-speaking southern India, ruled over parts of present-day states Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Cheras, known as one of the mu-ventar ...

king.''StudiesBut in Tamil Literature and History, page 66'' Avvaiyar was given a grand welcome by Tondaimān who then went on to proudly show her his archery. Though impressed, Avvaiyar refused to give up her patron by subtly hinting that the king's weapons sparkled as they were probably never used whereas the arsenal of her patron were all worn out as they had seen numerous wars.

Valiant opponent of Peruñcēral Irumporai

But this congregation of Nedumān Añci with the

and

Pandya The Pandya dynasty (), also referred to as the Pandyas of Madurai, was an ancient Tamil dynasty of South India, and among the four great kingdoms of Tamilakam, the other three being the Pallavas, the Cholas and the Cheras. Existing sinc ...

did not deter the

emperor, Peruñcēral Irumporai who finally arrived and sacked Tagadur. In spite of his small army, Nedumān Añci,led from the front and valiantly went down fighting in the battle field. AricilKilār, the war bard of Peruñcēral Irumporai, paid due homage to the opponent of his patron as he eulogised his king in ''Tagadur-Yāttarai''.''Epigraphia Indica, Volume 36, Part 4, page 134'' Upon his death, a distressed Avvaiyar sang a number of elegies: *an excerpt from

, song 235: *an excerpt from

, song 231:

Inscriptions

A good number of inscriptions in Jambai in

Tirukkoyilur Tirukoilur also spelt as ''Tirukkoyilur'' or ''Tirukovilur'' is a city and the headquarters of Tirukoilur taluk in Kallakurichi District, Tamil Nadu, India. The town is located on the southern bank of Thenpennai River and famous for the Ula ...

taluk have been discovered which help us identify the Satyaputras of the Ashoka's edicts: Jambai inscription on Adhiyamaan Nedumaan Anji

These put to rest any speculation regarding the identity of Satyaputras as being non-

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

and goes on to show the greatness of this line as they are mentioned on par with the other three

kingdoms.

Notes

References

* Śrī puṣpāñjali: recent researches in prehistory, protohistory, art, architecture, numismatics, iconography, and epigraphy : Dr. C.R. Srinivasan commemoration volume * The Encyclopaedia Of Indian Literature (Volume One (A To Devo), Volume 1 By Amaresh Datta * The culture and history of the Tamils By Kallidaikurichi Aiyah Nilakanta Sastri * Tamil Literature By M. S. Purnalingam Pillai * Madras district gazetteers, Volume 1, Part 2 * Historical heritage of the Tamils By Ca. Vē Cuppiramaṇiyan̲, Ka. Ta Tirunāvukkaracu, International Institute of Tamil Studies * Poems of Love and War from the Eight Anthologies and the Ten Long Poems of Classical Tamil By A. K. Ramanujan * Studies in Tamil Literature and History By Ramachandra Dikshitar * Epigraphia Indica, Volume 36, Part 4 Volumes 13-14 of eports New imperial series, India Archaeological Survey By Devadatta Ramakrishna Bhandarkar * Kongu Nadu, a history up to A.D. 1400, Makkal Veliyeedu, 2001 * Saptar̥ṣīśvara temple in the lower Kaveri Delta: a study of history, architecture, and sculpture By R. Ramasamy {{DEFAULTSORT:Athiyaman Neduman Anci Tamil monarchs Indian philanthropists Ancient Indian monarchs Kadai ezhu vallal