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==Etymology==
Madurai is one of the many temple towns in the state which is named after the groves, clusters or forests dominated by a particular variety of a tree or shrub and the same variety of tree or shrub sheltering the presiding deity. The region is believed to have been covered with Kadamba forest and hence called Kadambavanam.{{sfn|Reddy| 2013| p= 10}} The city is referred by various names including "Madurai", "Koodal", "Malligai Maanagar", "Naanmaad
akoodal" and "Thiruaalavaai". The word ''Madurai'' may be derived from Madhura (sweetness) arising out of the divine nectar showered on the city by the Hindu god [[Shiva|Siva]] from his matted hair.{{sfn|Harman| 1992| pp= 30–36}} Another theory is that ''Madurai'' is the derivative of the word ''Marutham'', which refers to the type of landscape of the [[Sangam Age|Sangam age]]. A town in the neighbouring [[Dindigul district]] is called Vada Madurai (''North Madurai'') and another in [[Sivagangai district]] is called [[Maanaamadurai]]. The different names by which the city has been referred to historically are listed in the 7th-century poem ''Thiruvilayaadal puraanam'' written by Paranjothi Munivar.{{sfn|Harman| 1992| pp= 30–36}}{{sfn|Reynolds|Bardwell| 1987| pp= 12–25}}
''Koodal'' means an assembly or congregation of scholarly people, referring to the three Tamil Sangams held at Madurai. Naanmaadakkoodal, meaning the junction of four towers, refers to the four major temples for which Madurai was known for.{{sfn|Harman| 1992| pp= 30–36}} ''[[Thevaaram (Tamil Shaivaite Hymns)|Tevaaram]]'', the 7th- or 8th-century Tamil compositions on Shiva by the three prominent [[Nayanars]] (''[[Saivites]]''), namely [[Appar]],{{sfn|Thirunaavukkarasar|2004| pp= 44–47}} [[Sundarar]] and Thirugnaanasambandar,{{sfn|Campantar Tirumurai 1|2004| p= 61}}{{sfn|Campantar Tirumurai 3|2004| pp= 56–58}} address the city as ''Thiruaalavaai''.{{sfn|Harman| 1992| pp= 30–36}}{{sfn|Prentiss| 1999| p= 43}} As per [[Iraavatham Mahaadevan]], a 2nd-century BCE [[Tamil-Brahmi]] inscription refers to the city as ''matiray'', an Old Tamil word meaning a "walled city".{{sfn|Mahadevan}}
==History==
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