- acc to famous historian, Nilakantha Shastri, expanse of Sangam Age = 300BC - 600AD
- 3 major dynasties in South
- Age referred as Sangam because of compilation of Sangam literature written in Tamil language
- all 3 Sangam dynasties were rich & endowed with huge natural resources
- good knowledge of ship building & dev strong Navies
- trade contacts w/ Arabs, Roman, Chinese
- major export commodities
- Pears
- Ivory
- cotton textile
- silk
- spices