Karaikudi, Commercial city in Sivaganga district, Tamil Nadu, India.
Karaikudi is a commercial town in Sivaganga district in southern India. The townscape is marked by wide streets and older residential quarters where traditional buildings alternate with modern shop houses.
The place gained importance from the 19th century onward when Chettiar merchants built trade routes from here to Burma and Ceylon. Many of these families later returned with wealth and built their estates back home.
The town takes its name from a thorny shrub called Karai that once grew in the area. Many homes still show the handwriting of the Chettiars, a merchant community known for their elaborate residential buildings.
The town center can be explored on foot, with many sights located close together in the older quarters. The best time to visit is between October and March when temperatures are more bearable.
Some old mansions still have tiles from England and Burma that arrived here as ship ballast. The homeowners used these imported materials to display their wealth.
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