History Of Ooty

Whotakaymund, Wootacamund, Ottakalmandu are few of the versions of Ooty's etymology, which still remains a mystery. What do all these versions mean? It is a mixture of debased Toda and Tamil words. Todas, the aboriginal tribes of Ooty, lived on these hills long before anyone else did. Today, it is officially called 'Udagamandalam'.

In Tamil, the word 'whotai' stands for a species of dwarf bamboo that grows in the forests, and 'kai' for fruit or green stuff, in the middle, with the Toda 'mund', a village, clapped on at the end. However, at some unrecorded moment during the last two hundred years, a loud, calm English voice pronounced for Ooty, which suits everybody. Ooty, renamed 'Ootacamund' a few years back, is know to be founded by John Sullivan. It was he who laid the foundations that changed the social and economic face of this small town, which is now a popular tourist destination today.

However, 'The definitive history of Ooty' written by Federic Price states that in 1602, the Jesuit Fr. Jacome Ferreiri first went into 'Todamala' to search for a Syrian Christian branch of the Todas, but could not find any. The next important event would be the arrival of Sullivan in the year 1819, then Collector of Coimbatore, made his visit to these hills. This is the year that Sullivan's interest in Ooty seems to have developed. It is said that, in 1822, Sullivan acquired a property from the Todas and built a house entirely of stone. Now, popularly known as the 'Stonehouse' it nestles the Government Arts College of Ooty.

Agriculture was introduced to Ooty by Johnston, a gardener from England, leading the earliest economic development of places around Ooty. Even today, agriculture is one of the main sources of income for a lot of residents around Ooty. It is also believed that Sullivan created the famous tourist attraction 'The Boat House' around which the town of Ooty was developed

Ooty is a real beauty. In a letter written by Sullivan to Thomas Munro, he mentions about the captivating beauty of Ooty. 'This is the finest country ever' it resembles ,I suppose Switzerland more than any other part of Europe, the hills beautifully wooded and fine strong spring with running water in every valley. How else can one explain Ooty more beautifully? You have to see it, to believe it!