north and settled on the outskirts of Ilaiyangudi at Thuraiyan Pacheery where potable water was available. (The area is now located near the main bazaar on Kadai Road.)The Ilaiyangudi Muslims are mostly Rowthers (traditionally Landowners and cavalry people). Geography Hydrology Ilaiyangudi lies in the southern part of the Kaveri (Cauvery) river delta. It is in a drought prone area. However, in the district there are two aquifers, the Gondwana and the Cuddalore aquifers. A water reservoir (samuthram) northwest of the town is filled from the Valasaikattu Kanmai, a branch from the Vagai River. The monsoon rain also helps fill the reservoir. The ancient Thevoorani is a small lake in the centre of the town. Geology The types of rock about Ilaiyangudi are approximately 60 percent sedimentary rock and 40 percent igneous rock. There is sandstone, laterite, charnockite, gneiss and granite covered by thick alluvium. Climate Ilaiyangudi has average minimum temperatures around 27 degrees Celsius and average maximum temperatures around 35 degrees Celsius. Demographics At the 2011 Census of India, the population of Ilaiyangudi was 24,767. 12,319 people were female. Males numbered 12,448. There are 990 females for every 1,000 males. Children under six years of age make up 10.73 percent of the population. The literacy rate in the town is 88.94 percent which exceeds the state average of 80.9 percent. 84.33 percent of women are literate. Male literacy is 93.03 percent. Religion The 2011 census of India found in Ilaiyangudi, 70 percent of residents are Tamil Muslims, 27 percent are Hindu, and 3 percent are Christians, both Catholic and Protestant. The town has four main Muslim groups (jamath) based on their members' occupation. The Ilaiyangudi Nesavu Pattadai (INP) was founded in the mid 16th century, representing textile weavers. The Mela Pattadai represented bullock cart drivers. The Kodikka Pattadai (Salai Hanafi Jamath) represented betel leaf growers and the Salaiyur Nesavu Pattadai (Salai Shaafi Jamath) represented textile weavers. A first mosque in Ilaiyangudi was built in approximately 1450 CE. It was called the Keela Pallivasal. Further construction was made on the west side of the mosque in 1744, the Mela Pallivasal are all Hanafi Mosque. While one Shafi mosque was built in 1775 CE. The INP mosque was built in 1816 CE. The land had been given to the INP Jamath by the Vijayanagara king, Sadasiva Raya in 1553 and had been associated with prayer giving from that time. Administration There are