Sangam Literature as a source of evidence on India’s trade with the Western World: Problems of methodology and interpretation

The corpus of poems known as Sangam literature was produced over six centuries, from around 300 BC to 300 AD, by Tamils from very diverse social backgrounds. It was compiled in anthologies several centuries later. These works provide insight into early Tamil culture and into trade relations between South India and the Mediterranean, West Asia and Southeast Asia. Due to its codified nature and to the impossibility of establishing a precise chronology, the heroic Sangam poetry constitutes a difficult source for historic research. New approaches to the interpretation of these poems have used more appropriate methodologies, but further progress needs to be made, especially concerning the study of trade relations. Thus, for instance, it is essential to contextualise Sangam literature and to link it to other sources.