• The first three centuries of the Common Era are widely accepted as the Sangam period, as the information for this period is mainly derived from the Sangam literature.
• Muvendars were the three ruling families known from the Sangam literature. Known as ‘muvendar’, ‘the three crowned kings’, the Cheras, the Cholas and the Pandyas.
• The Cholas controlled the central and northern parts of Tamil Nadu. Their core area of rule was Kaveri delta, later known as Cholamandalam. Their capital was Uraiyur and Puhar or Kaveripattinam was an alternative royal residence and chief port town. Tiger was their emblem. Karikalan is portrayed as the greatest Chola of the Sangam age.
• Pattinappalai gives a vivid account of his reign. Karikalan’s foremost military achievement was the defeat of the Cheras and the Pandyas. He is acredited with converting forest into habitable regions and developing agriculture by providing irrigation through the embankment of the Kaveri and building reservoirs.
• The Cheras controlled the central and northern parts of Kerala and Kongu region of Tamil Nadu. Vanji was their capital and the ports of the west coast, Muziri and Tondi, were under their control. Vanji is identified with Karur, while some scholars identify it with Tiruvanchaikkalam in Kerala. The Patitrupathu speaks of 8 Chera kings, their territory and fame.
• Imayavaramban Nedun-cheralathan and Chenguttuvan are some of the prominent Chera kings. Chenguttuvan defeated many chieftains and is said to have ensured the safety of the great port Muziri by putting down piracy. But the great north Indian expedition of Chenguttuvan mentioned in Silappathikaram is however not mentioned in the Sangam poems. He is said to have ruled for fifty-six years, patronising the orthodox and heterodox religions. Some Cheras issued copper and lead coins, with Tamil-Brahmi legends, imitating the Roman coins. There are many other Chera coins with their bow and arrow emblem, but without any writing on them.
• The Pandyas ruled from Madurai. Korkai was their main port, located near the confluence of Tambraparani and the Bay of Bengal. It was famous for pearl fishery and chank diving. Korkai is referred to in the Periplus as Kolkoi. Fish was the emblem of the Pandyas. Their coins have elephant on one side and a stylised image of fish on the other. They invaded Southern Kerala and controlled the port of Nelkynda, near Kottayam. According to the tradition, they patronized the Tamil Sangams and facilitated the compilation of the Sangam poems. Pandyas king Nedunchezhiyan is praised for his victory over the combined army of Chera, Chola and five Velir chieftains. He is praised as the lord of Korkai, and as the overlord of the southern Paratavar, a martial and fishing community of the Tirunelveli coast.
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• Women poets of the Sangam age
• Of the over 450 poets who contributed to the corpus of Sangam poetry, about 30 were women. The most prominent and prolific among them was Avvaiyar. Others include Allur Nanmullaiyaar, Kaakkaipadiniyar, Kavarpendu, Nalveliyaar, Okkur Masaathiyar and Paarimakalir.
