Kumbakonam (Tamil: ) (kmpakam), also spelt as Coombaconum in the records of British India, is a town and a special grade municipality in the Thanjavur District in the southeast Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located 40 kilometres from Thanjavur and 273 kilometres from Chennai and is the headquarters of the Kumbakonam Taluk of Thanjavur District. The town is bounded by two rivers, the Kaveri River to the north and Arasalar River to the south. According to the 2001 census, Kumbakonam has a population of 140,021 and has a strong Hindu majority; but it also has sizeable Muslim and Christian populations. Kumbakonam dates back to the Sangam period and was ruled by the Early Cholas, Pallavas, Medieval Cholas, Later Cholas, Pandyas, the Vijayanagar Empire, Madurai Nayaks, Thanjavur Nayaks and the Thanjavur Marathas. It rose to be a prominent city between the 7th and 9th centuries AD, when it served as a capital of the Medieval Cholas. The town reached the zenith of its...
