Ariyalur
This article is about the city of Ariyalur. For other meanings, see Ariyalur (disambiguation).
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Ariyalur (Tamil: அரியலூர் Ariyalūr [ˈaɾijəluːr], also Ariyilur) is a town in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The population is around 29,000 (2011 census). Ariyalur is the administrative headquarters of the district of the same name. It is located in inland central Tamil Nadu about 250 kilometres southwest of the capital Chennai.
The original name of Ariyalur is Ariyilur, which is said to derive from "place (ur) of the house (il) of Hari (ari, i.e. Vishnu)". Ariyalur was once the seat of a local feudal lord (Poligar). When the British annexed the area in 1801, they installed the former rulers as zamindars (landlords). Traditionally, Ariyalur has been a centre of satin manufacturing. Today, the cement industry is the main industry. Four cement factories in and around Ariyalur make use of the rich limestone deposits in the area. Kallankurichi, about five kilometres away, is home to the Sri Kaliyuga Varadharaja Perumal Temple, known for its annual temple chariot festival held in March or April.
The railway line from Chennai to Tiruchirappalli passes through Ariyalur. On 23 November 1956, one of the worst railway accidents in the history of India occurred here with the Ariyalur railway accident, resulting in at least 144 deaths.
91 percent of the inhabitants of Ariyalur are Hindus, five percent Muslims and four percent Christians. The main language, as in the whole of Tamil Nadu, is Tamil, which is spoken by 97 percent of the population as their mother tongue.
