Part 1 - Andhra
In my previous article I have mentioned about Andhradesa before the Satavahana rulers. Today is when I hunt the geographical boundary of Andhra and state how over a period of time it has changed. Also one may find older names for Andhra in this article. It’s a fun read so I hope you guys enjoy.
The Andhras are mentioned in Aitareya Brahmana and the inscriptions of Asoka. The Mayidavolu inscription of about the fourth century CE locates the country of Andhrapatha in lower Krishna valley in district around Dhannakada or Amravati. The Chezerla inscription too connects the Andhras with the Krishna. During the days of the traveler Yuang Chawng, Andhra had its capital at Ping-k’i-lo or Vengipura which is thought to be today’s Pedda-vegi, about seven miles north of Ellore, in the West Godavari district. The Dhannakada was also given names like Maha-Andhra. In the eastern Chalukyan records the name Andhra is applied to a very wide region bounded on four sides by Eastern Ocean (the Bay of Bengal), the Kalahasti hill (between Nellore and Chittoor), the Mahendra mountain of Ganjam and Srisailam in Kurnool.
In the 13th century CE records Anmakonda near Warangal is mentioned to be the ‘ornament of Andhra country’ (Andhravani-mandana). In the next century that followed, Andhra –khanda-mandala was restricted to the territories that extended from the Gautama Nadi or Godavari to the borders of Kalinga. The Saktisangama Tantra, a medieval text applies the name Andhradesa to the country which stretches from Jagganaatha Puri to Bhramarambika shrine. The Serivanij Jataka places Andhrapura, the capital of Andhra on the River Telavaha which is still to be identified. Many researchers hint at the Telavaha River could be actually referring to Krishnavena or the river Krishna. The Saktisangama Tantra draws a distinction between the Andhra country and the other land which it calls the Tailanga desa. The Tailanga desa was the last mentioned territory between Srisailam and Chola country. The Tailanga desa will be covered in the second part of this article. The region between Krishna and Godavari was referred as Vengi by the poets and authors. Harisena, a poet from the court of the Gupta Kings differentiates Vengi from Pishtapura represented by modern Pithapuram in East Godavari district.
Pallavas on the other hand had two divisions, one which was Vengirashtra and the other which was Karmarashtra which included Chendalur in the Ongole taluk north of Nellore. It is interesting to note that the boundary of Vengimandala in 8th century CE extended up to the confluence of Krishna and Musi which flows past Hyderabad. In the 11th century CE the southern and northern limits of the country seem to have been fixed at the Manneru River in the Nellore district and Ganjam district.
Due to warfare and other activities, it is normal for the state boundary to extend or shrink. But it is suitably concluded that the south of Orissa which we know today was once a part of the Andhra mandalam where many different kingdoms would have ruled. Prof Hemachandra Rayachaudhuri’s analysis of ancient geography of Deccan is a good read to know the minor details and references.
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