Kuttuvan Kotai
Chera ruler From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kuttuvan Kotai (Tamil: குட்டுவன் கோதை), also spelled Kothai/Kodai,[1] was a Chera ruler of early historic (pre-Pallava) south India.[2][3]
| Kuttuvan Kotai | |
|---|---|
Kuttuvan Kotai. Legend in Tamil-Brahmi: "Ku-t-tu-va-n Ko-tai" | |
| House | Chera dynasty |
Silver coins bearing a portrait facing right with Tamil-Brahmi legend "Ku-t-tu-va-n Ko-tai" have been discovered from Amaravati riverbed in Karur, central Tamil Nadu.[4][3][5] The reverse of the coins are blank. The coin seems to be an imitation of the Roman portrait head coins.[5] Whether these coins were used as a currency in trade transactions is not clear.[2]
Scholars identify Kotai with "Cheraman Kuttuvan Kotai" mentioned in the early Tamil text Purananuru, 54.[5] This Chera is mentioned as Kotai, not as Kuttuvan Kotai, in the body of the poem, but the appended colophon gives the full name "Kuttuvan Kotai".[5][1] The Chera is eulogized in the Puram by Konattu Ericchalur Matalur/Matalan Madurai Kumarananar (Purananuru).[1] The son of Chera ruler Cenkuttuvan was also referred to as "Kuttuvan Cheral".[1]
Kuttuvan was probably an ancient title for the Chera rulers of south India. Early Tamil texts refer to "Kuttuvar" as a kingship group and "Kuttanatu" as the country of the Kuttuva people.[6] The term Kuttanatu is indicated in the entry in Periplus Maris Erythraei, referring to "Cottonora", ‘where the pepper grows’.[6] The estuarine region Kottayam and Alappuzha districts of Kerala is now known as Kuttanatu.[6]
References
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