 Vetharanyam is named after Vedaranyeswarar, the presiding deity of the Vedaranyeswarar Temple, a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva.The place was earlier known as "Tirumaraikadu", meaning the place where Vedas, oldest scriptures of Hinduism, originated.The 7th century Saiva canonical work "Tevaram" by Appar and Tirugnanasambandar mentions the place as "Tirumaraikadu".