Sangam Age

The word ‘Sangam’ means ‘Assembly’. According to early tradition, three Sangams or
Assemblies of literary men were held at Madurai, the center of great literary activity in the Tamil
Country. It is generally accepted that these assemblies lasted from about first century BC to the
fifth century AD. Many poets, scholars and bards who gathered there, produced a large volume
of excellent Tamil poetry. These literary compositions were
collected and complied into books called the Sangam literature.
The period between the 1st century B.C. to the end of 2nd century A.D. in Southern India is
known as Sangam Period.
According to the Tamil legends, there were three Sangams (Academy of Tamil poets) held in the
ancient South India popularly called Muchchangam.

1. The First Sangam, is believed to be held at Madurai, attended by gods and legendary sages.
No literary work of this Sangam is available.
2. The Second Sangam was held at Kapadapuram, only Tolkappiyam survives from this.
3. The Third Sangam at Madurai was founded by Mudathirumaran. A few of these Tamil literary
works have survived and are a useful sources to reconstruct the history of the Sangam period.

Tinai Concept
The ancient Tamil poems gives information about the Tinai concept. In ancient times
Tamilakam was divided into five geographic regions or micro eco zones or ecotypes. The
five tinais (Aintinai) were Kurinji(hilly backwoods), mullai (pastoral tract), palai (parched
zone), marutam (wetland) and neital (coastal/littoral). Each tinai has its own inhabitants
and their own modes of adaptation. This has been understood in the past as a mechanical
compartmentalization of nature into five divisions, symbolically denoting the historical evolution
from the primitive to the civilized in S.India. The realistic interpretation of the tinai concept and
the poetic specifications about the nature, people and products of each tinai has generated
ideas regarding contemporary economic activities.
Kurinji is the forested hills or mountainous area. It was inhabited by tribes like Kuravar,
Parayar, Vettuvar, Katampar, Kanavar & Vedar . They practised hunting, food gathering and
shifting cultivation . At the time of drought some of the inhabitants have resorted to roberry for
livelihood. They also cultivated sugarcane, tubers and peas on hill tracts. Tina was their staple
food crop. They cultivated millets on hill slopes. Ceyon or Murukan(the hunter god) was their
chief deity. Teak,Sandalwood,Bamboo are the common trees found.
Mullai is characterized by the presence of foothills with open terrace and grasslands.
It is the pastoral tract. They were the high altitudinal grasslands. It was inhabited by pastoral
tribes like Ayar, Itaiyar etc. These people were cattlekeepers and farmers. They were not full time
pastoral nomads . They were agro-pastoralists and cultivated millets. They mainly cultivated
horsegram and paddy. The herdsmen of the Mullai, who lived in the forest tracts with their cattle,
buffaloes and sheep ate tinai ari(millet) varagu ari, avarai seed (beans) etc and cow products.
Mayon( the cowherd god) was their chief deity.
Palai was the dryland. A marauding tribe called Maravar inhabited palai, they were
pugnacious and ferocious. Other inhabitants were Kalavar , Eyinar and Vettuvar. Cattle lifting
was their major occupation. They earned their livelihood mainly by plundering the maruthams
and mullas. The Maravar also served as the military force of chieftains of hill fortress. Their chief
deity was Kottavai who later became a from of Bhadrakali. The dryland is viewed as a seasonal
phenomenon along parts of hilly backwoods and pastoral tracts. Parched ecosystem remained
non-productive throughour the year attracting hardly any settlements. So the inhabitants
resorted to plunder wayfarers who cross these tracts. This situation demanded armed
personages to protect the passengers which meant that both plunder and protection were
means of subsistence of the palai ecotype.
Marutham was the wetland or paddy field ecosystem (vayal). It is the cultivable
land mainly in the banks of rivers. It was the well-irrigated agrarian tracts fit for paddy and
sugarcane cultivation. It was confined to small pockets of natural wetlands or river plains. The
main inhabitants were ploughmen( uzhavar), hard labourers ( vinaialavar), tillers( tozhuvar).
Uzhavars were later known as Vellalars. Their chief deity was Venthan, the warrior god. Later he
was identified with Aryan God Indra. Marutham attracted people from other ecotypes. It required
services of artisans, craftsmen . Surplus in this ecotype was sufficient enough to sustain variety
of preceptors, bards, dancers, magicians, physicians and astrologers.
Neital is the littoral zone. It is not sea coast alone but landscape around
lakes,rivers and backwaters is also considered as part of Neital. The chief inhabitants were
Paratavar,Parathiyar,Minavar,Alavar and Alatiyar. Fishing and salt extraction was their means
of subsistence. They were also pearl-divers and gathered conch shells. A group of full-time
merchants visited them. Their chief deity was Kadalon(sea god ) and Meenachi(goddess).
The people of Neithal who depend on fish and drank a pottage made of the paste of unpounded
rice cooled in large pots and warm toddy.

Tribe called Panar(wandering bards) Pulavar(scholarly bards) were found in all terrains.
In the areas where tinais merged, the social groups as well as forms of subsistence made
a mixed appearance. The four forms of material production was animal husbandry, shifting
cultivation, petty commodity production and plough agriculture. People in mullai-marutham
blending zone practised spinning & weaving whereas people in neital-marutham blending zone
practised pot making & metal smelting.
The five fold landscape type threw light on the origins and development of human culture.
Each of the five terrains derive its name from a plant endemic to the ecosystem. The tertain of
hilly backwoods derive its name from Kurinji, a species of shrub vegetation which blooms once
in 12 years. Landscape with open terraces and high altitude grasslands named Mullai after a
species of tree symbolic of the ecosystem. Marutham terrain of wet-rice ecosystem of alluvial
tracts along river banks derived name from a tree nirmaruth. Neital is a flowering plant , kind
of water lilly endemic to waterlogged and marshy tracts. Palai is the name of tree typical of
parched zones.
The principal object of worship in the ecotypes was hero stones erected on the spot
where a hero was killed in a battle. The people believed in ananku an evil spirit, they followed
various magico-religious practices viz observance of omens. The dress and ornaments of
people varied from tinai to tinai. In kurinji costume was talayutai madeup of leaves, barks &
flowers. They knew of ornaments made of gold,silver and pearl, though common ones were
made out of conch shells,horns, bones & glass.

Economy during the Sangam period

According to the literary works that are gained from the lands of the Sangam period, provide
a flourishing and developing economy during the times of Cholas, Pandyas and Cheras. The
people of the Sangam period engaged in all kinds of economic activities like exports, imports,
hunting and trade in the economy.

Agriculture
The Sangam works show that Kerala enjoyed a high degree of economic
prosperity in the early centuries of the Christian era. The chief occupation of
the people was agriculture. The land was fertile and there was plentiful supply
of grain. The Chera country was famous for its jack fruit, pepper and turmeric.
Agricultural operations like harvesting, threshing and drying of grains are
vividly described in Sangam works. Private property was in existence in the Sangam age and
this gave an impetus to agriculture, but there were also places of public resort, common grazing
grounds, common cattle sheds, etc.,
in each village. Agricultural implements made of iron were in common use.
The Arival, Kalappa, Nukam, Kotali, etc., are some of the implements mentioned in Sangam
works. Though agriculture was the main occupation of the people, they followed several
other occupations like fishing, hunting, spinning, weaving, carpentry,leather work etc. Salt was
manufactured in salt pans and carried in carts for sale. The price of salt and paddy was the
same.
Next to agriculture, shipping and weaving were the most important and widely practised crafts.

Trade
Most of the trade was carried on by barter. Paddy constituted the most commonly accepted
medium of exchange.
There were established angadi (markets) in the big towns. The market place was known as
avanam. The redistribution was controlled by Muvendars & Kizhanmar. They also controlled
market system, trade& trading centres both local & international. They traded commodities
viz rice,paddy,millet,vegetables,plantation,salt,fish,coconut oil etc in the village markets. They
also traded in luxury items like pearls & ivory. Tamil Brahmins also participated in trade. Spices
were traded from Kerala. Silk,cotton,rice,chilly were traded to Kerala. Chola inscriptions refer to
merchants from different parts of Kerala. The places like Konkan,Karnataka & Andhra had trade
with Kerala.

They carried on extensive trade with foreign countries from very early times. Pepper, ginger, rice,
sandal wood, cardamum, cinnamon, ivory and pearls and always been in great demand in foreign
markets.
Large hoards of Roman gold coins in many parts of South India provide evidence of the brisk
trade between Tamilakam and Rome. There were also manufacturers or traders. The major
towns like Puhar, Uraiyur, Vanji, Tondi, Muziris, Madurai and Kanchi etc. absorbed most of the
manufactured goods.A song in the Purananuru speaks of the sale of fish for paddy, of bales of
pepper, and of the transport of a variety of merchandise in small boats from the large ships to
the shore.
Bandar was noted for its pearls and Kodumanam for rare jewels. Mention is made of the
abundance of quartzite precious stones in the hills of the Chera country. Nirpeyarru was a
seaport of which were brought horses from the west and other products from the north. Panik
Kalari was an important industrial factory where weapons of war were forged and repaired.
The merchandise brought to the port of Puhar included war-horses that came by sea, bags of
black pepper brought overland by carts, gems and gold from the northern mountain, sandal and
agil woods from the western mountain, pearls of the southern and coral of the eastern sea, food
stuffs from Sri Lanka and luxuries from Kadaram.
External trade was carried on between south India and Hellinistic kindgom of Egypt
and Arabia as well as Malaya. Later Roman trade became very important. Roman settlements
and gold coins have been discovered at Muziris in Kerala, Puhar or Kaveripattinam and
Arikamedu near Pondichery in Tamilnadu.
Cotton goods, pepper, ginger, cinnamon, turmeric, ivory, rice, cardamum, pearls, precious stones
were the items of export and main imports were horses and gold etc.