Ramanathapuram, town, southeastern Tamil Nadu state, southeastern India. It is situated just south of the Vaigai River at the base of the peninsula that extends eastward to Adam’s Bridge, the series of shoals between southeastern India and northwestern Sri Lanka.
Ramanathapuram was a former capital of the Maravan rajas. Its name refers to the Hindu deity Rama. The modern town produces textiles and jewelry and has two colleges affiliated with Madurai Kamaraj University in Madurai.
Ramanathapuram and its surrounding region occupy part of the flat southern portion of the state’s coastal plain. Protected from the northeastern and southwestern monsoons by the Western Ghats to the west and the mountains of Sri Lanka to the southeast, it has an unusually dry climate, but irrigation tanks (embanked earth reservoirs) enable the area to produce chilies and cotton for export. Large-scale industry such as cotton milling and the manufacture of cement has been developed. Pop. (2001) 62,050; (2011) 61,440.