Kancheepuram district is a district of Tamil Nadu and located in its north-eastern side. The administrative headquarters of the district is situated at the Kancheepuram town. In the ancient Tamil literature the region Kancheepuram was known as Kachi or Kachipedu whereas in the Sanskrit literature it was changed to Kanchi or Kanchipuram. Some legends believe that the term Kanchi is taken from the word Ka meaning the Hindu god Brahma and the other term anchi, meaning to his worship of Hindu god Vishnu. At the very beginning during the Maurya period (325-185 BCE) the City was often called as Kanchipuram. Later at the time of Patanjali (150 BCE or 2nd century BCE) the name of the city was mentioned in his Mahabhasya as Kanchipuraka. The city was also addressed by various Tamil names like Kanchi, Kanchipedu, etc. Again, in the Pallava dynasty (250-355) and the Chalukya dynasty the city was known as Kanchipura. Lastly, during the British rule, the name of the city was changed to Conjeevaram and after some time the city was called as Kanchipuram. When India got independence, the municipal administration was renamed it as Kancheepuram. In the year 1999, the Kancheepuram district was emerged as a separate district in the map of Tamil Nadu.

C.N. Annadurai popularly known as Anna meaning elder brother or Arignar Anna meaning Anna, the scholar was a former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and the first member of a Dravidian party to hold that post. He was born on 15^th September, 1909 at Kancheepuram. In his honour M.G. Ramachandran in 1972 launched a separate party and he named the party after C.N. Annadurai as Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party.

Geographically, the district lies between 12°83'N latitudes, 79°70'E longitudes and 83 m altitude. In the year 2021, there was a total 7.26% forest area of total geographical area. The district encompasses a geographical area of 4,483 sq. km. and it is bounded by Vellore district and Thiruvannamalai district on the west, Tiruvallur district and Chennai district on the north, Viluppuram district on the south and the Bay of Bengal on the east. Most of the time in the year, it mainly experiences hot and humid climate. Most of its rainfall occurs in the monsoon season. The actual rainfall in the district was 1643.6 mm in the year of 2021-22.

Administration wise, the district is divided into 4 revenue divisions namely Tambaram, Chengalpattu, Kanchipuram and Madurantakam. Moreover, the district comprises 3 Lok Sabha constituencies and 12 talukas. The district also has 10 sub-districts, 75 towns and 1,019 villages. The administrative language in the district is Tamil.

According to 2011 census the district has a population of 39,98,252 out of which 20,12,958 are males and 19,85,294 are females. The district has a sex ratio of 986 females for every 1000 males. During the year 2001-2011 the population growth rate in the district was 38.95% including 38.13% were males and 39.79% were females. As per 2011 census the major religion in the district is Hindu with 88.47% of the total population. The population density in the district is 892 persons per sq. km. According to 2011 census the principal language in the district is Tamil with 90.06%. In the year 2020 the number of live births in the district was 40,362 out of which 20,899 were males and 19,463 were females. In the same year the number of deaths in the district was 31,233 out of which 18,667 were males and 12,566 were females.

The backbone of the economy of the district is agriculture. Some of its chief agricultural products are paddy, groundnut, sugarcane, cereals, millets, pulses, etc. Since most of its population are also engaged in weaving silk sarees hence the district is popularly known as “The city of silk sarees”. The district is fortunate enough to have a good reputation as the producer of the best silk sarees in the country. It is also industrially developed district and its prominent industries are Ford, Hyundai, Saint Gobain, Samsung, Dell, Mitsubishi, MNCs like TCS, Wipro, Cognizant Technologies, Infosys, etc. Every year a huge chunk of revenue comes from these industries. In the year 2011-12 the gross domestic product in the district was Rs. 45,12,061 lakhs at current price and Rs. 30,58,840 lakhs at constant prices in the year 2004-2005. The net domestic product in the district during the period 2018-19 was Rs. 1,05,00,443 lakh at current price and Rs. 78,91,871 lakh at constant prices in the year 2011-2012. The Per Capita Income or NDDP, At Factor Cost during the period 2016-17 was Rs. 1,86,932 at current price and Rs. 1,51,485 at constant prices in the year 2011-2012.

As per 2011 census the literacy rate in the district is 84.49% out of which 89.89% are males and 79.02% are females. The total number of literates in the district is 30,13,382 including 16,11,461 are males and 14,01,921 are females. It is an abode to some reputed higher educational institutions likewise Indian Institute of Information of Technology (IIT), Arignar Anna Memorial Cancer Institute and Hospital (1969), Meenakshi Medical College, etc. The government of Tamil Nadu also established some night schools in the district for the children working in the silk sarees factories.

V. Somasundaram, an eminent Indian politician and the present member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from the Kancheepuram constituency was born in the Kancheepuram district. He is the member of Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party. Earlier he was served as a minister of Handlooms and Textiles during ADMK's government from 2001 to 2006. K Maragatham, a distinguished Indian politician and Member of Parliament elected from Tamil Nadu was born in the year 1982 at Kancheepuram city. She is elected to the Lok Sabha from Kancheepuram constituency and a member of Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party.

The district has numerous sets of tourist places which allures many travellers from across the country. Kancheepuram is famous as the "city of a thousand temples". The place is full of many ancient and marvellous temples such as Ekamabaranadhar temple, Varadaraja Perumal temple, etc. Vedanthangal, one of the water-bird sanctuaries located at a distance of 48 km. from Kancheepuram. The place is full of some amazing migratory birds and also local birds from the month of October to March. Muttukadu, a large lake formed out of the backwaters from Bay of Bengal is located 80 Km. from the district. Its boating and wind surfing facilities made it a great picnic spot. Mamallapuram in the district has some monuments of excellent specimen of Dravidian temple architecture and Pallava art. UNESCO also declared some of its structures as the World Heritage Sites. Covelong, a small fishing village situated 40 km. from Chennai. There is a luxury beach resort, a dargah and an ancient church in this place. The Madras Crocodile Bank is a crocodile breeding centre, located at a distance of 14 km. from Mamallapuram. A snake farm is also there in this place where anti-venom is produced and a regular venom extraction show.