Nagapattinam
town in Tamil Nadu, India
Nagapattinam (nākappaṭṭinam, previously spelt Nagapatnam or Negapatam) is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Nagapattinam district. The town came to prominence during the period of Medieval Cholas (9th–12th century CE) and served as their important port for commerce and east-bound naval expeditions. The Chudamani Vihara in Nagapattinam constructed by the Srivijayan king Sri Mara Vijayattungavarman of the Sailendra dynasty with the help of Rajaraja Chola I was an important Buddhist structure in those times. Nagapattinam was settled by the Portuguese and, later, the Dutch under whom it served as the capital of Dutch Coromandel from 1660 to 1781. In November 1781, the town was conquered by the British East India Company. It served as the capital of Tanjore district from 1799 to 1845 under Madras Presidency of the British. It continued to be a part of Thanjavur district in Independent India. In 1991, it was made the headquarters of the newly created Nagapattinam District. Nagapattinam is administered by a Special grade municipality covering an area of 17.92 km2 (6.92 sq mi) and had a population of 102,905 as of 2011.
A majority of the people of Nagapattinam are employed in sea-borne trading, fishing, agriculture and tourism.
“Nagapattinam” enters the record as town in Tamil Nadu, India. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Nagapattinam, town and Tamil can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Nagapattinam” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Nagapattinam, town and Tamil provides the most credible route into that argument.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q695585. VIAF identifies the subject as 138557732. The Library of Congress control number is n98925150. Authority coordinates are 10.767, 79.833. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1660, 1781, 1799 and 1845.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. 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 “Nagapattinam”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Nagapattinam primary sources, Nagapattinam archive and Nagapattinam 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 “Nagapattinam”?
- 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 “Nagapattinam” 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.