Tamil Identity

Jambudweep proclamation of the Maruthu brothers

The Maruthu brothers issued a proclamation calling on all people of the peninsula, whatever their religion, to fight the British.

Ellis publishes the Dravidian Proof

Francis Whyte Ellis argued that the South Indian languages form a family separate from Sanskrit.

Caldwell's Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian languages

With his Comparative Grammar, Robert Caldwell showed that the Dravidian languages make up a separate language family.

Damodaram Pillai prints Tolkappiyam with Senavaraiyar's commentary

C. W. Damodaram Pillai published the Sollathikaram of the Tolkappiyam with the medieval commentary of Senavaraiyar, an early printed edition of the grammar.

Birth of V. O. Chidambaram Pillai

V. O. Chidambaram Pillai, later the founder of the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company, was born at Ottapidaram in Tirunelveli district.

Excavations at Adichanallur

The ancient burial site of Adichanallur near Tirunelveli drew attention in 1876 and was excavated by Alexander Rea between 1899 and 1905.

C. W. Damodaram Pillai publishes Tolkappiyam commentary

C. W. Damodaram Pillai published the Porulatikaram of the Tolkappiyam with Nachinarkiniyar's commentary, part of his revival of ancient Tamil texts.

U. V. Swaminatha Iyer publishes Jeevaka Chintamani

U. V. Swaminatha Iyer published Jeevaka Chintamani, the first of his editions of classical Tamil works recovered from palm-leaf manuscripts.

Iyothee Thass founds the Dravida Mahajana Sabha

Iyothee Thass founded the Dravida Mahajana Sabha and urged Dalits to record themselves in the census as casteless Dravidians rather than Hindus.

U. V. Swaminatha Iyer publishes Purananuru

After years of manuscript research, U. V. Swaminatha Iyer published an edition of the Sangam anthology Purananuru with notes.

Pandithurai Thevar founds the Fourth Tamil Sangam in Madurai

Pandithurai Thevar, a member of the Ramnad royal family, founded the Madurai Tamil Sangam, known as the Fourth Tamil Sangam, to promote Tamil learning.

Iyothee Thass launches Oru Paisa Tamizhan

Iyothee Thass launched the Tamil weekly Oru Paisa Tamizhan, an anti-caste journal that later became The Tamilan.

Abraham Pandithar's Tamil music conferences at Thanjavur

Abraham Pandithar set up the Sangeetha Vidhyalaya Mahajana Sangam, which held six music conferences between 1912 and 1914.

Work begins on the University of Madras Tamil Lexicon

In January 1913 the University of Madras began work on the Tamil Lexicon, the most comprehensive Tamil dictionary, published in 1924-1939.

Maraimalai Adigal starts the Pure Tamil movement

Maraimalai Adigal pledged to use Tamil free of Sanskrit loanwords, starting the Tanittamil Iyakkam (Pure Tamil movement).

Abraham Pandithar publishes Karunamirdha Sagaram

Abraham Pandithar published Karunamirdha Sagaram, a large study of the history and theory of Tamil music.

Death of Subramania Bharati

The poet and nationalist Subramania Bharati died in Madras, leaving a body of work central to modern Tamil literature.

Compulsory Hindi order and first anti-Hindi agitation

The Rajaji government's move to make Hindi compulsory in schools triggered a large anti-Hindi agitation led by Periyar, the Justice Party and Tamil scholars.

Tamilar Padai march from Tiruchi to Madras

Known as the Tamilar Padai, anti-Hindi protesters marched from Tiruchirappalli to Madras, addressing meetings in towns and villages en route.

Periyar jailed and elected Justice Party president

E. V. Ramasamy was imprisoned for his role in the anti-Hindi agitation and was elected president of the Justice Party while in jail.

Periyar raises 'Dravida Nadu for Dravidians'

Periyar swapped the slogan 'Tamil Nadu for Tamils' for 'Dravida Nadu for Dravidians', setting the Justice Party on a separatist course.

Tamil Isai Movement and Tamil Isai Sangam

The Tamil Isai Sangam was founded in Madras to promote the singing of Tamil compositions in Carnatic concerts dominated by Telugu and Sanskrit songs.

Periyar calls Independence Day a day of mourning

Periyar called for 15 August 1947 to be kept as a day of mourning, a stand Annadurai rejected, deepening the rift between them.

C. Rajagopalachari becomes Governor-General of India

C. Rajagopalachari succeeded Lord Mountbatten as Governor-General, the only Indian to hold the office.

Subramania Bharati's works nationalised

The Madras government nationalised the writings of poet Subramania Bharati, the first such step for any poet in India.

State emblem designed by R. Krishna Rao

Designed in 1949, the Madras government's emblem combined a temple gopuram with the Lion Capital of Ashoka.

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam founded

Breaking away from Periyar's Dravidar Kazhagam, C. N. Annadurai and his associates formed the DMK in Madras.

Kallakudi agitation against the name Dalmiapuram

The DMK protested at Kallakudi against the renaming of the town as Dalmiapuram after an industrialist.

Rajaji and C. V. Raman among first Bharat Ratna recipients

C. Rajagopalachari and the physicist C. V. Raman, both from Tamil Nadu, were among the three first recipients of the Bharat Ratna.

Travancore Tamil agitation for merger with Madras

Tamils in southern Travancore-Cochin campaigned under Marshal Nesamony for the merger of Tamil-majority taluks with Madras State.

Sankaralinganar fasts to death for renaming the state Tamil Nadu

Gandhian Sankaralinganar began a fast in Virudhunagar demanding that Madras State be renamed Tamil Nadu and died after 76 days.

Tiruttani transferred from Andhra Pradesh to Madras State

Under the Andhra Pradesh and Madras (Alteration of Boundaries) Act, Tiruttani and nearby areas joined Madras State.

E. V. K. Sampath leaves the DMK and forms the Tamil National Party

E. V. K. Sampath split from the DMK and founded the Tamil National Party with the poet Kannadasan.

Annadurai demands self-determination in the Rajya Sabha

In his Rajya Sabha speeches, C. N. Annadurai stated the DMK case for the right of self-determination for the Dravidian south.

Sirima-Shastri Pact on people of Indian origin in Ceylon

India and Ceylon agreed that 525,000 stateless people of Indian origin, mostly Tamil plantation workers, would be repatriated to India.

Second World Tamil Conference held in Madras

Madras hosted the second International Tamil Research Conference, known as the World Tamil Conference, under the Annadurai government.

Statues of Tamil literary figures erected on the Marina

Statues of Tamil poets and scholars, including Kambar, Bharathiyar and Robert Caldwell, were unveiled on Marina Beach for the World Tamil Conference.

Madras State renamed Tamil Nadu

With the Madras State (Alteration of Name) Act, 1968 in force, the state officially took the name Tamil Nadu.

Invocation to Tamil Mother adopted for state functions

Chief Minister Karunanidhi announced that verses of Manonmaniam Sundaram Pillai's invocation to Tamil Mother would open state government functions.

Valluvar Kottam inaugurated

The Valluvar Kottam memorial to the poet Thiruvalluvar, begun under the DMK government, was inaugurated in Madras during President's rule.

Fifth World Tamil Conference held in Madurai

The fifth World Tamil Conference, a gathering of Tamil scholars from many countries, was held in Madurai.

Tamil University founded at Thanjavur

The Tamil University was established in Thanjavur as a research university devoted to the Tamil language and culture.

Black July and the arrival of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees

Anti-Tamil pogroms in Sri Lanka in July 1983 sent the first large wave of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees to Tamil Nadu.

Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation (TESO) formed

TESO was formed in Tamil Nadu to mobilise support for Sri Lankan Tamils, with M. Karunanidhi among its leaders.

Eighth World Tamil Conference held in Thanjavur

The eighth World Tamil Conference was hosted in Thanjavur by the Tamil Nadu government.

Madras officially renamed Chennai

The Tamil Nadu government officially changed the capital's name from Madras to Chennai.

Thiruvalluvar Statue unveiled at Kanyakumari

A 133-foot stone statue of the poet Thiruvalluvar was unveiled on a rock off Kanyakumari on the millennium day.

Tamil Virtual University established

To provide internet-based Tamil learning around the world, the Tamil Nadu government created the Tamil Virtual University, now the Tamil Virtual Academy.

Tamil declared a classical language

The Government of India declared Tamil the first classical language of India.

First Chennai Sangamam folk arts festival

Chennai Sangamam, an open-air festival of Tamil folk and traditional arts around Pongal, was held for the first time with state government backing.

Tamil New Year moved to the first day of Thai

A DMK government law moved Tamil New Year to the first day of the Tamil month of Thai; the change was revoked in 2011.

Central Institute of Classical Tamil moves to Chennai

The Union government's Centre of Excellence for Classical Tamil moved from Mysore to Chennai and became the Central Institute of Classical Tamil.

World Classical Tamil Conference in Coimbatore

The state government hosted the World Classical Tamil Conference in Coimbatore to mark Tamil's classical status.

Pro-jallikattu protests at Marina Beach

Mass protests led largely by students and youth at Marina Beach forced an ordinance and then a state law allowing jallikattu.

Keezhadi excavation report dates Sangam-era settlement

The Tamil Nadu archaeology department reported that finds at Keezhadi near Madurai date to about the 6th century BCE.

Modi and Xi Jinping hold informal summit at Mamallapuram

Among the Pallava monuments of Mamallapuram, Prime Minister Narendra Modi received Chinese President Xi Jinping for an informal summit.

Tamil Nadu Day first observed on 1 November

The Palaniswami government began observing 1 November as Tamil Nadu Day; in 2022 the DMK government moved it to 18 July.

Keezhadi heritage museum opens

A museum displaying finds from the Keezhadi excavations was opened near the site in Sivaganga district.

Supreme Court upholds Tamil Nadu's jallikattu law

A five-judge Constitution Bench upheld the Tamil Nadu law that allowed jallikattu to be held after the 2017 protests.

Sivagalai finds push back the dating of iron in Tamil Nadu

Radiometric dates from Sivagalai in a state report pushed iron use in Tamil Nadu back to 3345 BCE, a claim that sparked broad debate.