Ooty City Map Poster

About Ooty

The name "Ooty" is derived from the Tamil word for a palm leaf, குட ("kutta"), since the town is built on a plateau that was once covered with palm trees. Ootacamund (the anglicised version of Ooty) was established as an outpost in 1819 by John Sullivan, Madras Army during his expedition to quell local uprisings and protect British tea growers in what were then called the Wynaad Hills. The Nilgiris district came under direct British rule in 1845 with the establishment of a sanatorium and it became popular among European residents for its cool climate during summertime when temperatures elsewhere would soar to over 40 degrees Celsius. In 1861–62, it became part of independent India's Madras Presidency; later renamed Tamil Nadu).