Definition: Vijayanagara ("Victory City") was the capital city of the medieval Hindu empire of southern India of Vijayanagara. The ruins of the city are located in southern India on the Tungabhadra River, 13 kilometers southwest of Hospet in central Karnataka on the Deccan Plateau. The first occupation of the site, a small temple, was begun by the 11th century; in its heyday about 1450, Vijayanagara included an area of 300 square kilometers and perhaps as many as 500,000 people. Vijayanagara's empire, founded in 1336 by two brothers named Sangama, included much of southern India. The city was abandoned after a major military attack in AD 1565 and never reoccupied; the empire itself continued another 100 years from leaders at Andhra Pradesh. Over 200 of the buildings at Vijayanagara remain intact; and there are a large number of Kannada, Telugu and Sanskrit texts extant both from the empire and from foreign visitors.
Researchers associated with the site of Vijayanagara include Alexander Greenlaw, who mapped the city in 1856. Since 1980, an international team called the Vijayanagara Project has investigated the site, under the direction of John M. Fritz and George Michell.
This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Sources for the term include the references listed on the front page of the Dictionary, and the websites listed in the sidebar.
Researchers associated with the site of Vijayanagara include Alexander Greenlaw, who mapped the city in 1856. Since 1980, an international team called the Vijayanagara Project has investigated the site, under the direction of John M. Fritz and George Michell.
This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Sources for the term include the references listed on the front page of the Dictionary, and the websites listed in the sidebar.
