Bridging Geomythology and Geospatial Analysis for Flood Risk Assessment in Tamil Nadu

The need for more holistic and context‐aware approaches to flood‐risk assessment has become increasingly urgent with extreme climate change events faced globally. Modern models overlook the long‐term environmental knowledge incorporated in ancient literature, myths, and cultural memory as they rely primarily on hydrological and geospatial datasets. To address this gap, this study integrates geomythology with GIS‐based flood‐susceptibility analysis using openly available data on land cover, rainfall, elevation, slope, and topographic wetness index (TWI). The generated map depicting susceptibility to flooding on the basis of multiple criteria has been compared with five culturally relevant cases of floods from Tamil Nadu: Puhar (Kaveripattinam), Vaigai flood lore from Madurai, Thiruvaikavur, Madurantakam, and Dhanushkodi. General memories of flooding on the coast, such as those connected to Kumari Kandam, have been considered within the broader context of culture but not as directly applied cases for comparison. Ancient narratives are shown to preserve signals of persistent hydro‐geomorphic processes, as evidenced by the strong geographical alignment between high‐risk zones and culturally significant flood traditions. The results show that integrating traditional ecological memory with modern geo‐spatial modelling can enhance the contextual reliability of flood‐risk assessments and support more culturally grounded climate resilience planning.