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The '''Coromandel Coast''' is the southeastern coastal region of the [[Indian subcontinent]], bounded by the [[Utkal Plains]] to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east, the [[Kaveri]] delta to the south, and the [[Eastern Ghats]] to the west, extending over an area of about 22,800 square kilometres.<ref name=britannica>[{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Coromandel-Coast Encyclopædia Britannica entry on |title=Coromandel Coast]</ref> Its definition can also include&#124; theTamil northwesternNadu, coastBay of theBengal, island& ofMap [[Ceylon&#124; (Sri Lanka)]].{{citation neededBritannica|datewebsite=November 2017www.britannica.com}}</ref> The coast has an average elevation of 80 metres and is backed by the [[Eastern Ghats]], a chain of low lying and flat-topped hills.▼
[[File:Coromandel Coast 1753.jpg|thumb|A 17351753 French Map of the Coromandel coast]]
The land of the [[Chola dynasty]] was called Cholamandalam in [[Tamil language|Tamil]], literally translated as "[[Mandala (political model)|the realm]] of the Cholas", from which Coromandel is derived.
 
In historical Muslim sources from the 12th century onward, the Coromandel Coast was called '''Maʿbar'''.<ref name="Brill">{{cite book |last1=Shokoohy |first1=Mehrdad |last2=Shokoohy |first2=Natalie H. |title=Encyclopedia of Islam |date=2020 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9789004435933 |edition=third |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-3/mabar-COM_35936 |access-date=9 March 2021 |chapter=Maʿbar}}</ref>▼
▲The '''Coromandel Coast''' is the southeastern coastal region of the [[Indian subcontinent]], bounded by the [[Utkal Plains]] to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east, the [[Kaveri]] delta to the south, and the [[Eastern Ghats]] to the west, extending over an area of about 22,800 square kilometres.<ref name=britannica>[https://www.britannica.com/place/Coromandel-Coast Encyclopædia Britannica entry on Coromandel Coast]</ref> Its definition can also include the northwestern coast of the island of [[Ceylon (Sri Lanka)]].{{citation needed|date=November 2017}} The coast has an average elevation of 80 metres and is backed by the [[Eastern Ghats]], a chain of low lying and flat-topped hills.
 
▲In historical Muslim sources from the 12th century onward, the Coromandel Coast was called '''Maʿbar'''.<ref name="Brill">{{cite book |last1=Shokoohy |first1=Mehrdad |last2=Shokoohy |first2=Natalie H. |title=Encyclopedia of Islam |date=2020 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9789004435933 |edition=third |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-3/mabar-COM_35936 |access-date=9 March 2021 |chapter=Maʿbar}}</ref>
 
==Etymology==
The land of the [[Chola dynasty]] was called ''Cholamandalam'' (சோழ மண்டலம்) in [[Tamil language|Tamil]], translated as ''The realm of the Cholas'', from which the Portuguese derived the name ''Coromandel''.<ref name="TheLandoftheTamuliansandItsMissions">''The Land of the Tamulians and Its Missions'', by Eduard Raimund Baierlein, James Dunning Baker</ref><ref name="South Indian Coins - Page 61">South Indian Coins – Page 61 by T. Desikachari – Coins, Indic – 1984</ref><ref name="Indian History - Page 112">Indian History – Page 112</ref><ref name="Annals of Oriental Research - Page 1">''Annals of Oriental Research'' – Page 1 by University of Madras – 1960</ref><ref name="The Periplus of the Erythræan Sea">''The Periplus of the Erythræan Sea'' by [[Wilfred Harvey Schoff]]</ref> The name could also be derived from ''Karai mandalam'', meaning ''The realm of the Shores''.<ref>{{cite book|author=Edgar Thurston|title=The Madras Presidency with Mysore, Coorg and the Associated States|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O4VLY1KcltcC&pg=PA11|year=2011|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-107-60068-3|page=11}}</ref>
 
Another theory is that the first Dutch ship to India stopped at Karimanal, an island village to the north of [[Pulicat]]. The sailors aboard the ship mispronounced the village's name as 'Corimondal' and the name stuck thereafter.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Brief Narrative of The Danish Mission on the Coast of Coromandel par Baron Alanson Stow (1801-1869): Good Hardcover (1837) 1st Edition {{!}} The Book Collector, Inc. ABAA, ILAB |url=https://www.abebooks.fr/edition-originale/Brief-Narrative-Danish-Mission-Coast-Coromandel/75725692/bd |access-date=2024-04-01 |website=www.abebooks.fr |language=fr}}</ref>
Coromondel is the Dutch pronunciation of the word "Karimandalam", a village in the [[Sriharikota|Sriharikota island]] in the north of [[Pazhaverkadu|Pazhavercadu]] (Pulecat Lake).<ref>Topographic Map of India "66C/7 & 66C/11" by Survey of India</ref> An Italian explorer, [[Ludovico di Varthema]], perhaps first gave the name Coromandel in 1510, which was then used on maps by the Portuguese, but it was the Dutch who took up serious trading there.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thehindu.com/books/how-a-coast-got-its-name/article21386207.ece |title=How A Coast Got Its Name |last=Allen |first=Charles |date=13 December 2017 |newspaper=The Hindu |department=Books|access-date=24 December 2020 }}</ref> Pazhavercadu (Pulicat) was an early Dutch settlement along with Masoolipatnam in present-day [[Andhra Pradesh]]. There is a Dutch cemetery belonging to the 17th century at Pulicat. It is said{{by whom|date=December 2020}} that the first Dutch ship stopped here for fresh drinking water, and upon asking the name of the place Karimanal was spelled as Coromondal (K replaced with C and d inserted).▼
 
▲Coromondel is the Dutch pronunciation of the word "Karimandalam", a village in the [[Sriharikota|Sriharikota island]] in the north of [[Pazhaverkadu|Pazhavercadu]] (Pulecat Lake).<ref>Topographic Map of India "66C/7 & 66C/11" by Survey of India</ref> An Italian explorer, [[Ludovico di Varthema]], perhaps first gave the name Coromandel in 1510, which was then used on maps by the Portuguese, but it was the Dutch who took up serious trading there.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thehindu.com/books/how-a-coast-got-its-name/article21386207.ece |title=How A Coast Got Its Name |last=Allen |first=Charles |date=13 December 2017 |newspaper=The Hindu |department=Books|access-date=24 December 2020 }}</ref> Pazhavercadu (Pulicat) was an early Dutch settlement along with Masoolipatnam in present-day [[Andhra Pradesh]]. There is a Dutch cemetery belonging to the 17th century at Pulicat. It is said{{by whom|date=December 2020}} that the first Dutch ship stopped here for fresh drinking water, and upon asking the name of the place Karimanal was spelled as Coromondal (K replaced with C and d inserted).
==Description==
===Economy===
Agriculture is the mainstay of the coastal economy. Rice, pulses (legumes), sugarcane, cotton, and peanuts (groundnuts) are grown. Bananas and betel nuts are grown together with rice in the low-rainfall region of the interior. There are casuarina and coconut plantations along the coast.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}}
 
Large-scale industries produce fertilizers, chemicals, film projectors, amplifiers, trucks, and automobiles. There is a [[Heavy Vehicles Factory|heavy vehicle and armoured car factory]] at Avadi and a [[Madras Atomic Power Station|nuclear power station]] at Kalpakkam.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}}
 
Roads and railways linking Chennai, Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Chengalpattu, and Puducherry run parallel to the coast.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}}
 
===Geography===
The coast is generally low, and punctuated by the deltas of several large rivers, including the [[Kaveri]], [[Palar River|Palar]], [[Penner River|Penner]], and [[Krishna River]], which rise in the highlands of the [[Western Ghats]] and flow across the [[Deccan Plateau]] to drain into the [[Bay of Bengal]]. The [[alluvial plains]] created by these rivers are fertile and favour agriculture. The rivers remain dry during most of the year. There is little forest cover, but marshes, swamps, scrub woodlands, and thorny thickets are common.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}}
 
The coastline forms a part of [[Coastline of Tamil Nadu|Tamil Nadu]] and [[Coastline of Andhra Pradesh|Andhra Pradesh]]. The important ports include [[Chennai]], [[Thoothukkudi]], [[Nellore]], [[Ennore]] and [[Nagapattinam]], which take advantage of their close proximity with regions rich in natural and mineral resources and good transport infrastructure.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}}
 
===Climate===
The Coromandel Coast falls in the [[rain shadow]] of the [[Western Ghats]] mountain range, and receives less rainfall during the summer [[southwest monsoon]]s, which contributes heavy rainfall in some parts of India.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}} The region averages 800&nbsp;mm/year, most of which falls between October and December. The topography of the Bay of Bengal, and the staggered weather pattern prevalent during the season favours [[northeast monsoon]]s, which have a tendency to cause [[cyclone]]s and [[hurricane]]s rather than a steady precipitation. As a result, the coast is hit by inclement weather almost every year between October and January.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}}
 
The high variability of rainfall patterns is also responsible for [[water scarcity]] and famine in most areas not served by the great rivers. For example, the city of Chennai is one of the driest cities in the country in terms of potable water availability, despite high percentage of moisture in the air, due to the unpredictable, seasonal nature of the monsoon.{{Citation needed|date= January 2020}}
 
===Flora===
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==History==
[[File:Sarasa chintz.jpg|thumb|upright|Sarasa [[chintz]] from the Coromandel Coast, 17th or 18th century, made for the Japanese market. Private collection, [[Nara Prefecture]]. ]]
By late 1530 the Coromandel Coast was home to three Portuguese settlements at [[Nagapattinam]], [[Dioceses of Saint Thomas of Mylapore|São Tomé de Meliapore]], and [[Pulicat]] . In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Coromandel Coast was the scene of rivalries among European powers for control of the India trade. The British established themselves at [[Fort St George]] ([[Chennai|Madras]]) and [[Masulipatnam]], the [[Dutch Coromandel|Dutch]] at Pulicat, [[Sadras]] and [[Covelong]], the French at [[Pondicherry (city)|Pondicherry]], [[Karaikal]] and [[Nizampatnam]], the [[Denmark|Danish]] in [[Tharangambadi|Dansborg]] at Tharangambadi.{{Citation needed|date= January 2022}}
 
The Coromandel Coast supplied [[Indian Muslim]] [[eunuch]]s to the Thai palace and court of [[History of Thailand|Siam]] (modern Thailand).<ref>Peletz (2009), p. 73 {{Google books|BFXpi5ZKKF8C|Gender Pluralism: Southeast Asia Since Early Modern Times|page=73}}</ref><ref>Peletz (2009), p. 73 {{Google books|-YnQJXxspJUC|Gender Pluralism: Southeast Asia Since Early Modern Times|page=73}}</ref> The Thai at times asked eunuchs from China to visit the court in Thailand and advise them on court ritual since they held them in high regard.<ref>Peletz (2009), p. 75 {{Google books|BFXpi5ZKKF8C|Gender Pluralism: Southeast Asia Since Early Modern Times|page=75}}</ref><ref>Peletz (2009), p. 75 {{Google books|-YnQJXxspJUC|Gender Pluralism: Southeast Asia Since Early Modern Times|page=75}}</ref>
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Eventually the British won out, although France retained the tiny enclaves of [[Pondicherry district|Pondichéry]] and [[Karaikal district|Karaikal]] until 1954. [[China|Chinese]] [[Lacquerware|lacquer goods]], including boxes, screens, and chests, became known as "Coromandel" goods in the 18th century, because many Chinese exports were consolidated at the Coromandel ports.{{Citation needed|date= March 2020}}
 
Two of the famous books on the economic history of the Coromandel Coast are ''Merchants, companies, and commerce on the Coromandel Coast, 1650–1740'' (Arasaratnam, Oxford University Press, 1986) and ''The World of the Weaver in Northern Coromandel, c.{{circa|1750-c.|1850}}'' (P. Swarnalatha, Orient Longman, 2005).
 
On 26 December 2004, one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern history, the [[2004 Indian Ocean earthquake|Indian Ocean earthquake]], struck off the western coast of [[Sumatra]] (Indonesia). The [[earthquake]] and subsequent tsunami reportedly killed over 220,000 people around the rim of the [[Indian Ocean]]. The tsunami devastated the Coromandel Coast, killing many and sweeping away many coastal communities.<ref>{{CitationCite web |last= |first= needed|date=27 MarchDecember 2020 |title=Victims of 2004 tsunami remembered |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2020/Dec/27/victims-of-2004-tsunami-remembered-2241687.html |access-date=18 September 2024 |website=The New Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>
 
==Applications of the name==
Four ships of the [[Royal Navy]] have borne the name {{HMS|Coromandel}} after the Indian coast. The [[Coromandel Peninsula]] in New Zealand was named after [[HMS Malabar (1804)|one of these ships]], and the town of [[Coromandel, New Zealand]] was named after the peninsula.
[[Coromandel Valley, South Australia]], and its neighbouring suburb, Coromandel East, gaingained their namenames from the ship ''[[Coromandel (1834 ship)|Coromandel]]'', which arrived in Holdfast Bay from London in 1837 with 156 English settlers. After the ship reached the shore, some of its sailors deserted, intending to remain behind in South Australia, and took refuge in the hills in the Coromandel Valley region.{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}
 
In [[Slovenian language|Slovene]], the [[idiom]] ''Indija Koromandija'' (India Coromandel) means a land of plenty,<ref>{{cite web |work=Slovar slovenskega knjižnega jezika [Dictionary of Slovenian Literary Language] |url=http://bos.zrc-sazu.si/cgi/a03.exe?name=sskj_testa&expression=indija+koromandija&hs=1 |title=Indija Koromandija |quote=According to popular belief, a land where everything is enough, where it is very good: their grandmother told them about India Coromandel / expressing all of her India Coromandel collapsed imaginary, expected happiness |language=sl |access-date=December 24, 2020 }}</ref> a promised land, a utopia where "Houses are bleached with cheese and covered with cake".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://razvezanijezik.org/?page=indija+koromandija |title=Razvezani jezik - Indija koromandija |language=sl |work=Free dictionary of living Slovene |access-date=December 24, 2020 |quote= A folk song sings: India Koromandija! /They cook the porridge in a spoon, /the house are bleached with cheese,/ cover them with cake,/ and curd them with cottage cheese. It also houses the first Slovene anti-utopia, created by Anton Mahnič in In 1884 he published in Slovene, a political newspaper for the Slovene nation.}}</ref>▼
 
[[Edward Lear]] situates his nonsense poem ''The Yonghy Bonghy Bo'' by citing Coromandel on the first line: ''On the Coast of Coromandel''.<ref>{{citeCite web|url=https://www.nonsenselit.org/Lear/ll/ybb.html |title=Edward Lear, HomeThe PageYonghy--Bonghy--Bò|website=www.nonsenselit.org}}</ref>▼
▲In [[Slovenian language|Slovene]] the [[idiom]] ''Indija Koromandija'' (India Coromandel) means a land of plenty,<ref>{{cite web |work=Slovar slovenskega knjižnega jezika [Dictionary of Slovenian Literary Language] |url=http://bos.zrc-sazu.si/cgi/a03.exe?name=sskj_testa&expression=indija+koromandija&hs=1 |title=Indija Koromandija |quote=According to popular belief, a land where everything is enough, where it is very good: their grandmother told them about India Coromandel / expressing all of her India Coromandel collapsed imaginary, expected happiness |language=sl |access-date=December 24, 2020 }}</ref> a promised land, a utopia where "Houses are bleached with cheese and covered with cake".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://razvezanijezik.org/?page=indija+koromandija |title=Razvezani jezik - Indija koromandija |language=sl |work=Free dictionary of living Slovene |access-date=December 24, 2020 |quote= A folk song sings: India Koromandija! /They cook the porridge in a spoon, /the house are bleached with cheese,/ cover them with cake,/ and curd them with cottage cheese. It also houses the first Slovene anti-utopia, created by Anton Mahnič in In 1884 he published in Slovene, a political newspaper for the Slovene nation.}}</ref>
 
The [[Coromandel Express]] is a train of the Indian Railways. The daily train runs down the east coast of India between [[Shalimar railway station]], West Bengal, and [[Chennai Central railway station]], Tamil Nadu.
▲[[Edward Lear]] situates his nonsense poem ''The Yonghy Bonghy Bo'' by citing Coromandel on the first line: ''On the Coast of Coromandel''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nonsenselit.org/Lear/ll/ybb.html |title=Edward Lear Home Page}}</ref>
 
==See also==
* [[Coastline of Tamil Nadu]]
*[[Malabar Coast]]
* [[Malabar Coast]]
* [[Presidency of Coromandel and Bengal Settlements]]
 
== References ==
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==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [httphttps://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/138164/Coromandel-Coast Encyclopædia Britannica: Coromandel Coast (region, India)]
 
{{GeoSouthAsia}}
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[[Category:Landforms of Puducherry]]
[[Category:Landforms of Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Landforms of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Eastern Ghats]]
[[Category:Natural regions of India]]
[[Category:Colonial India]]
[[Category:Danish India]]
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