Dravidian Architecture

Dravidian architecture was a style of architecture that emerged thousands of years ago in the Southern part of the Indian subcontinent or South India, built by the Dravidian peoples. It consists primarily of pyramid shaped temples called Kovils in Tamil(கோவில்) which are dependent on intricate carved stone in order to create a step design consisting of many statues of deities, warriors, kings, and dancers. Mentioned as one of three styles of temple building in the ancient book Vastu shastra, it originated mainly in the region of Tamilnadu. The majority of the existing buildings are located in the Southern Indian states of Tamilnadu, Karnataka, Kerala, and Andhra pradesh. Various kingdoms and empires such as the Cholas, Chera, Pandyas, Pallavas, Rashtrakutas, Chalukyas, Hoysalas, and Vijayanagara Empire amongst many others have made a substantial contribution to the evolution of Dravidian architecture through the ages. Dravidian styled architecture can also be found in parts of Northeastern Sri Lanka, Maldives, and various parts of Southeast Asia. Angkor Wat in Cambodia was built based on early Dravidian Architecture.