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Kodagu is the smallest but most picturesque district of Karnataka State in Southern India. Kodagu (Coorg), the thickly wooded grandeur on the Western Ghats, is the most beautiful hill station of Karnataka. It is the home of Kodava people. Kodagu civilization has a 2500-year-old history.
Kodagu is situated at 4000ft above sea level and is full of dense forests, plantations, orange groves and paddy fields. It has an area of 1595 square miles (4102.3 sq.km) with a population of 485,000. Coorg is four times larger than Hong Kong, and seven times larger than Singapore.
Kodagu is a land of many communities. Although Kodavas are the main ethnic group, Gowdas, Brahmins, Christians and Jains also live in Kodagu. Besides these communities, we can find tribes such as Yeravas, Kurubas, Airies and Kudiyas, who are believed to be the original settlers of the area. Muslims from the Malabar coast, the Mapilles, too have been here for several years as traders and businessmen.
The Kodavas are ancestor worshippers. The local language - Kodavatak, has influences of Kannada, Malayalam and Tamil. The rich heritage of the people of Kodagu, the land, the culture and the abundant natural beauty beckons every visitor to conserve this tiny district.
Coorg or Kodagu is known to visitors and tourists as the Scotland of India and the Kashmir of the south for its scenic beauty. Kodagu is famed for extensive coffee plantations that cover most of the hillsides, most of them under multiple cropping of coffee, orange, black pepper, and cardamom. Coorg honey and coffee are said to be rated amongst the best in the world.
The breathtakingly beautiful rolling hills nestling in cash rich coffee plantations, clear skies and a warm, friendly and hospitable people create a special aura unmatched anywhere else in the country.
Not really too far from the bustle of metropolitan cities, Kodagu or Coorg, as it is better known, has maintained its serene picturesque beauty over the centuries. Homesick always, the British called this land Scotland of India.