Ko Kizhan Adikal

Ko Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli, or Udaiyapirattiyar Kizhan Adikal, was the traditional title of the queens/princesses of the Chera Perumal kingdom in medieval south India.[1][2] It was initially assumed that Kizhan Adikal was a proper given name (and not a royal title).[1]

Chola-Chera Perumal relations (c. 9th-10th centuries AD)

The title appears in the following inscriptions discovered from Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

1. "Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli", daughter of Chera Kulasekhara (mid-9th century) and wife of Vijayaraga (mid-9th century), in Tirunandikkara inscription (9th century AD).[3]
2. "Ko Kizhan Adikal", mother of Chola prince Rajaditya, in a Tirunavalur/Tirumanallur inscription (c. 935 AD, 28th regnal year) of Chola king Parantaka I (907-955 AD).[4]
3. "Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli", daughter of Chera Vijayaraga (mid-9th century), in a Tiruvotriyur inscription (936 AD, 29th regnal year) of king Parantaka I.[5][6]
4. "Kizhan Adikal" appears in the Tiruvalla copper plates with her husband king Parantaka I (lines 109-111).[7]
5. "Kizhan Adikal Chatira Sikhamani" in a Trikkakara inscription (953 AD) with Chera Perumal king Indu Kota (c. 943 - 962 AD).[8]

There is a possibility that the princesses (2) and (3) are the same, or are sisters. If they were sisters, king Parantaka I married two distinct Chera princesses (the mothers of his two sons, Rajaditya and Arinjaya Chola).[9]

The marriage between a Chera princess and Parantaka, c. 910 CE, is mentioned in the Udayendiram plates of Ganga king Prthivipati II Hastimalla.[1][10]

The harem of the Kizhan Adikal at Tanjavur is mentioned in three Chola inscriptions.[11]

1. Saranganatha Perumal Temple, Tiruchirai, Kumbakonam (5th regnal year)[11]
2. Vedaranyeswara Temple, Vedaranyam, Tirutturaippundi, Tanjore (Parantaka I, 43rd regnal year?)[11]
3. Nageswaraswamin Temple, Kumbakonam.[11] Inscription of "Parakesari" Aditya II Karikala (4th regnal year) mentioning the mother of Rajaditya.[2]