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Tyndis (, Tamil language: Thondi) was an ancient south Indian seaport/harbor-town mentioned in Graeco-Roman writings. It was located about 500 stadia north of the port Muziris, in the country of the Chera dynasty rulers. No archaeological evidence of Tyndis has been found.
The Chera rulers of early historic south India (c. second century BCE - c. third century CE) had their headquarters at Karur in the interior Tamil Nadu and headquarters/harbors at Muziris and Tyndis (Thondi) on the Malabar Coast (present-day Kerala). Early Tamil texts contain several references to a port named "Thondi" on the Kerala coast in Chera territory.
Another town named Thondi, located in the Pandya dynasty country on the eastern coast of the peninsula, is also mentioned in early Tamil literature. This town continues to exist under the same name.
Like Virai or Arikamedu-Virampattinam, Thondi is sometimes referred to as "Munthurai", meaning "the port in front of". It is also called "Kanalam Thondi", meaning "the coastal town with backwater lakes or backwaters with flowers". Tamil poems describe it as "valam kezhu", signifying its prosperity, much like Muziris.
The port of Thondi also had a goddess ("Ananku").
The Chera ruler of Thondi was usually called "Poraiyan". One ruler, notably styled "Thin Ther Poraiyan" or "the Poraiyan with the Strong Chariot", is repeatedly mentioned in early Tamil literature. On some occasions, Chera ruler of Thondi is directly named as "Chenkol Kuttuvan" or Cheraman Ko Kothai Marpan.
Early Tamil poems also refer to a palace of the Chera ruler at Thondi. According to these poems, the Chera fixed the tooth of his enemy chieftain "Muvan" on the palace gate. The ruler of Thondi appears to have commanded a contingent of Maravar warriors and owned several elephants. He distributed coins to bards and poets and, on one occasion, gifted varudai (mountain) goats from the Deccan Plateau (?) to Brahmin priests.
There is mention of extensive Paddy field cultivation in the fields in and around Thondi, described as "the coastal town with backwater lakes" or "backwaters filled with flowers". Early poems also hint at coconut groves and nearby hills.
Thondi was also noted for its fishing and its "neythal" flowers. It had a fishing community of Paravar people.
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