Chennai

The name Chennai was derived from the name of Chennappa Nayaka, a Nayak ruler who served as a general under Venkata Raya of the Vijayanagara Empire from whom the British East India Company took the town in lease in 1639. The first official use of the name was in August 1639 in a sale deed to Francis Day of the East India Company. A land grant was given to the Chennakesava Perumal Temple in Chennapatanam later in 1646, which some scholars argue to be the first use of the name. The name Madras is of native origin, and has been shown to have been in use before the British established a presence in India. A Vijayanagara-era inscription found in 2015 was dated to the year 1367 and mentions the port of Mādarasanpattanam, along with other small ports on the east coast, and it was theorized that the aforementioned port is the fishing port of Royapuram. …

Stone Age implements have been found near Pallavaram in Chennai, and according to the Archaeological Survey of India, Pallavaram was a megalithic cultural establishment, with evidence of pre-historic settlements. The region around Chennai was an important administrative, military, and economic centre for many centuries. During the 1st century CE, Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar lived in the town of Mylapore, a neighbourhood of present-day Chennai. In the 2nd century CE, the region was part of Tondaimandalam ruled by the Early Cholas, who subdued the Kurumbas, the original inhabitants of the region. The Pallavas of Kanchi became the independent rulers of the region from 3rd to 9th century CE, and the areas of Mahabalipuram and Pallavaram were developed during the reign of Pallava king Mahendravarman I. In 879 CE, the Pallavas were defeated by the Later Cholas led by Aditya I. …

Tamil is the language spoken by most of Chennai's population; English is largely spoken by white-collar workers. As per the 2011 census, Tamil is the most spoken language with 3,640,389 (78.3%) of speakers followed by Telugu (432,295), Urdu (198,505), Hindi (159,474) and Malayalam (104,994). Madras Bashai is a variety of the Tamil spoken by people in the city. It originated with words introduced from other languages such as English and Telugu on the Tamil originally spoken by the native people of the city. Korean, Japanese, French, Mandarin Chinese, German and Spanish are spoken by foreign expatriates residing in the city. Chennai is home to a diverse population of ethno-religious communities. As per census of 2011, Chennai's population was majority Hindu (80.73%) with 9.45% Muslim, 7.72% Christian, 1.27% others and 0.83% with no religion or not indicating any religious preference. …

The economy of Chennai consistently exceeded national average growth rates due to reform-oriented economic policies in the 1970s. With the presence of two major ports, an international airport, and a converging road and rail networks, Chennai is often referred to as the "Gateway to South India". According to the Globalization and World Cities Research Network, Chennai is amongst the cities most integrated with the global economy, classified as a beta-city. As of 31 March 2023, Chennai had an estimated GDP of $143.9 billion, ranking it among the most productive metro areas in India. Chennai has a diversified industrial base anchored by different sectors including automobiles, software services, hardware, healthcare and financial services. As of 2021, Chennai is amongst the top export districts in the country, with more than US$2563 billion in exports. …

With temples, beaches and centres of historical and cultural significance including the UNESCO Heritage Site of Mahabalipuram, Chennai is one of the most-visited cities in India with 11 million domestic and 630,000 foreign tourists visiting in 2020. The gateway to the southern part of India, Chennai was ranked among the top hundred destinations by Euromonitor. As of 2018, the city has about 7,000 luxury rooms across four- and five-star categories, with 85 per cent of the room demand coming from business travellers. Chennai has a 19 km (12 mi) coastline with many beaches including the Marina spanning 13 km (8.1 mi) which is the second-longest urban beach in the world and Elliot's Beach south of the Adyar delta. As of 2023, Chennai has 835 public parks maintained by the corporation. …

The aviation history of Chennai began in 1910, when Giacomo D'Angelis built the first powered flight in Asia and tested it in Island Grounds. In 1915, Tata Air Mail started an airmail service between Karachi and Madras marking the beginning of civil aviation in India. In March 1930, a discussion initiated by pilot G. Vlasto led to the founding of Madras Flying Club. On 15 October 1932, J. R. D. Tata flew a Puss Moth aircraft carrying air mail from Karachi to Bombay's Juhu Airstrip and the flight was continued to Madras piloted by aviator Nevill Vintcent marking the first scheduled commercial flight. The city is served by Chennai International Airport located in Tirusulam, around 20 kilometres (12 mi) southwest of the city centre. It is the fourth-busiest airport in India in terms of passenger traffic and cargo handled. …