Svetlltn at 18:57, 1 March 2026

2026-03-01T18:57:27Z

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{{Short description|Place in India}}
<mapframe text="Possible extreme points of Limyrike in present-day India" width="400" height="400" zoom="6" longitude="76.28" latitude="10.24">
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"type": "FeatureCollection",
"features": [
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"type": "Feature",
"properties": { "marker-symbol": "monument", "title": "[[Kannur|Naura]]", "description": "Identified with modern Kannur" },
"geometry": { "type": "Point", "coordinates": [75.3703662, 11.8744775] }
},
{
"type": "Feature",
"properties": { "marker-symbol": "monument", "title": "[[Tyndis]]", "description": "Identified with modern Ponnani" },
"geometry": { "type": "Point", "coordinates": [75.9259013, 10.7677201] }
},
{
"type": "Feature",
"properties": { "marker-symbol": "monument", "title": "[[Kanyakumari]]" },
"geometry": { "type": "Point", "coordinates": [77.5384507, 8.0883064] }
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</mapframe>
'''Limyrikê''' is a historical region of present-day India, mentioned in the ancient [[Greco-Roman world|Greco-Roman]] texts. It generally corresponds to the present-day [[Malabar Coast]] of [[Kerala]].

== Extent ==

According to the ''[[Periplus of the Erythraean Sea]]'' (53:17:15-27), Limyrike began at [[Kannur|Naura]] and [[Tyndis]]; [[Ptolemy]] (7.1.8) mentions only Tyndis as its starting point. The region probably ended at [[Kanyakumari]]; it thus roughly corresponds to the present-day [[Malabar Coast]].{{sfn|Lionel Casson|2012|p=213}}

==History==

[[Pliny the Elder]] mentioned that this region was prone to pirates.<ref>Bostock, John (1855). "26 (Voyages to India)". Pliny the Elder, The Natural History. London: Taylor and Francis. </ref> [[Cosmas Indicopleustes]] mentioned that it was a source of peppers.<ref>Indicopleustes, Cosmas (1897). Christian Topography. 11. United Kingdom: The Tertullian Project. pp. 358–373. </ref><ref>Das, Santosh Kumar (2006). The Economic History of Ancient India. Genesis Publishing Pvt Ltd. p. 301. </ref>

== Misidentification as Damirice ==

''[[Tabula Peutingeriana]]'', an ancient Roman map uses the name "Damirice" to describe an area between the [[Himalayas]] and the [[Ganges River]], and uses the name "Dymirice" to describe a region somewhat close to the Malabar Coast.{{sfn|Lionel Casson|2012|p=213}}

Assuming possible phonetic connection between the words "Damir-" and "[[Tamil language|Tamil]]" (the language of Limyrikê), some modern scholars have wrongly used the term "Damirice" (or "Damirica") to describe Limyrikê. [[Wilfred Harvey Schoff]]'s 1912 translation of the ''Periplus'' wrongly uses the term "Damirica" instead of "Limyrikê", because of which the error has been reproduced by several scholars relying on this faulty translation. Actually, the "Damirice" of ''Tabula Peutingeriana'' is over a thousand miles from Limyrikê.{{sfn|Lionel Casson|2012|p=214}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===

* {{cite book |author=Lionel Casson |title=The Periplus Maris Erythraei: Text with Introduction, Translation, and Commentary |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qQWYkSs51rEC&pg=PA213 |year=2012 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-1-4008-4320-6 }}

[[Category:Periplus of the Erythraean Sea]]
[[Category:Historical regions in India]]
[[Category:Malabar Coast]]
[[Category:Tamilakam]]

Limyrike - Revision history

Svetlltn at 18:57, 1 March 2026