Ka means Brahma &anchi means worship, showing that Kanchi stands for the place where Lord Varadharaja Perumal Temple was worshipped by Lord Brahma. Lord Bhrama has sculpted Athi Varadhar and worshiipped here. In Sanskrit the term Kanci means girdle and explanation is given that the city is like a girdle to the earth. The earliest Sanskrit inscriptions from the Gupta period (325–185 BCE) denote the city as Kanchipuram, where King Visnugopa was defeated by Samudragupta. Patanjali (150 BCE or 2nd century BCE) refers to the city in his Mahabhasya as Kanchipuraka. The city was referred to by various names like Kanchi, Kanchipedu and " kanchipuram". The Pallava inscriptions from (250–355) and the inscriptions of the Chalukya dynasty refer the city as Kanchipura. Jaina Kanchi refers to the area around Tiruparutti Kundram. During the British rule, the city was known as Conjeevaram and later as Kanchipuram. The municipal administration was renamed Kancheepuram, while the district and city retains the name Kanchipuram. It finds its mention in Pāṇini's Ashtadhyayi as Kanchi-prastha and in several Puranas. It is also one of the 7 cities that provides liberation. History The earliest references to Kanchipuram are found in the books of the Sanskrit grammarian Patanjali, who lived between the 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE. The city was part of the Dravida Kingdom of the Mahabharata and was described as "the best among cities" (Sanskrit: Nagareshu Kanchi) by the 4th-century Sanskrit poet, Kalidasa. The city was regarded as the Banaras of the South. The city finds mention in the classical Tamil language Sangam literature dated 300 BCe like Manimegalai and Perumpāṇāṟṟuppaṭai. While it is widely accepted that Kanchipuram had served as an Early Chola capital, the claim has been contested by Indian historian P. T. Srinivasa Iyengar who wrote that the Tamil culture of the Sangam period did not spread through the Kanchipuram district and cites the Sanskritic origins of its name in support of his claim. Kanchipuram grew in importance when the Pallavas of southern Andhra Pradesh, wary of constant invasions from the north, moved their capital south to the city in the 6th century. The Pallavas fortified the city with ramparts, wide moats, well-laid-out roads, and artistic temples. During the reign of the Pallava King Mahendravarman I, the Chalukya King Pulakesin II (610642) invaded the Pallava kingdom as far as the Kaveri River. The Pallavas successfully defended Kanchipuram and foiled repeated attempts to capture