Chennai
city and state capital of Tamil Nadu, India
Chennai, also known as Madras, is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. As per the 2011 Indian census, Chennai is the sixth-most-populous city in India and forms the fourth-most-populous urban agglomeration. The city is coterminous with Chennai district, which together with the adjoining suburbs constitutes the Chennai Metropolitan Area, one of the largest metropolitan areas of India. It is administered by the Greater Chennai Corporation, which was incorporated in 1688, and is the second oldest municipal corporation in the world after the City of London Corporation. Being the capital of the state, it houses major government institutions including the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, and the Madras High Court.
Archeological evidence points to human settlements in the region during the Stone Age. Historically, from the 1st century CE, the region was part of the Chola, Pallava, Pandya, and Vijayanagara kingdoms during various eras. In 1639, the British East India Company obtained a grant for a strip of coastal land which then contained the fishing village of Madrasapattinam. The British developed the Madras port and built Fort St.
The public source identifies “Chennai” as city and state capital of Tamil Nadu, India. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Chennai, city and state.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Chennai”, the useful work is to connect “city and state capital of Tamil Nadu, India” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1352. VIAF identifies the subject as 19145424546186831446. The Library of Congress control number is n2012073827. Authority coordinates are 13.082, 80.275. 5 of 6 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2011, 1688 and 1639.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Chennai”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Chennai primary sources, Chennai archive and Chennai research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Chennai”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Chennai” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.