Kanyakumari takes its name from the Kumari Amman or the Kanyakumari Temple, situated at the shore on the confluence of the Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. According to the local lore, Kanya Devi, an avatar of Parvati, was to marry Shiva, but he failed to show up to the wedding. The rice and other grains meant for the wedding feast remained uncooked. Today tourists can buy tiny stones which look like rice, in remembrance of the marriage that was never solemnized. The princess Kanya Devi is a virgin goddess who blesses pilgrims and tourists.

According to another local myth, Lord Hanuman dropped a piece of earth as he was carrying the mount with the life-saving herb, Mrita Sanjivani from the Himalayas to Lanka during the Rama-Ravana war. This chunk of earth is called Marunthuvazh Malai, which is literally translated to "hills where medicine is found".This is said to be the reason for the abundance of unique native medicinal plants in the area. "Marunthuvazh Malai' is about 7 km from Kanyakumari town on the Kanyakumari-Nagercoil highway. The district is home to many practitioners of various branches of ancient India's health tradition, including siddha, ayurvedha, varma kalai.

Kanyakumari has been a great centre for art and religion for centuries. It was also an area of great trade and commerce. It was ruled by the Cholas, the Cheras, the Pandyas and the Nayaks. The architectural beauty of the temples is the work of these rulers. Later Kanyakumari became part of the Venad kingdom with its capital at Padmanabhapuram. The king of Venad, Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma established Travancore by extending his domain further north up to Aluva, during his reign from 1729 to 1758. By this, the present Kanyakumari District came to be known as Southern Travancore. King Marthanda Varma defeated the Dutch East India Company at the famous Battle of Colachel in 1741. Kanyakumari was under the rule of the Kings of Travancore under the overall suzerainty of the British till 1947. Travancore joined the independent Indian Union in 1947. Obviously, the royal reign came to an end. In 1949, Kanyakumari became part of the reconstituted Travancore-Cochin State. By this time, the popular agitation for the amalgamation of Kanyakumari District with Tamil Nadu by the Tamil majority under the leadership of Thiru M.A. Nesamani intensified. Eventually, in 1956, Kanyakumari was integrated with Tamil Nadu (then known as Madras State) as per the language-based reorganisation of States.

Tourist Attraction:

Though generally, only the town of Kanyakumari is mainly publicised in tourist brochures, Kanyakumari district has many more tourist attractions, from centuries-old historic and religious sites to scenic spots. It is a paradise for both the nature-lover and landscape-photographer. The district is also rich in flora and fauna. A unique feature of Kanyakumari district is that it has all kinds of natural eco-systems. Thus, one can see beaches, mountain valleys, evergreen forests in the deep interior, rubber and clove plantations on the highlands, etc. - all in a 50 km radius of Nagercoil, the headquarters of Kanyakumari district. Nagercoil is 22 km from Kanyakumari town.