The name Chennai is of Telugu origin.[29][30][31] It was derived from the name of a Telugu ruler, Damarla Mudirasa Chennappa Nayakudu, father of Damarla Venkatapathy Nayak, a Nayak ruler who served as a general under Venkata III of the Vijayanagar Empire from whom the British acquired the town in 1639.[32][33] The first official use of the name Chennai is said to be in a sale deed, dated August 1639, to Francis Day of the East India Company, even before[34] the Chennakesava Perumal Temple was built in 1646,[35] while some scholars argue to the contrary.[36]