COORG

also called Kodagu, district, southwestern Karnataka (formerly Mysore) state, southern India, at the southern end of the Western Ghats. Its 1,585-sq-mi (4,104-sq-km) area is rugged and hilly with a high rainfall and a climate tempered by the altitude. The thickly forested hills often exceed 5,000 ft (1,500 m) and rise from the Karnataka plateau. Notable summits, all above 5,300 ft, include Tadramol, Pushpagiri, and Kottebetta. The name Coorg is probably a corruption of the Kanarese kodagu (steepness). Coorg is drained by the upper Cauvery River and its tributaries, which in legend have some of the life-giving properties of the Ganges. Rice is cultivated on the valley floors. Coffee plantations occupy hillside clearings. Other crops are tea, cardamom, rubber, pepper, and millet. There are orange groves in the south and evergreen timber forest in the west. From the 9th century Coorg was an independent kingdom. A Hindu dynasty ruled almost continuously from the late 16th century until it was overthrown by the British in 1834. The region became a province (a state after 1950) of British India and because of its ruggedness was sometimes referred to as the Wales of India. Administered by the chief commissioner of Mysore from 1881 to 1947, Coorg was absorbed into Mysore in 1953. The main towns are the district headquarters, Mercara (q.v.), Somvarpet, Virarajendrapet, and Ponnampet. Pop. (1981) 461,888.