Madras is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Oregon, United States. Situated in Central Oregon, it is located where US Route 26 and US Route 97 interset, with the later serving as the main north-south road in the city with traffic split into a one-way pair. Originally called "The Basin" after the circular valley the city is in, it is unclear whether Madras was named in 1903 for the cotton fabric called "Madras" that originated in the city of Madras in Tamil Nadu, India, or the city itself. The population was 7456 at the 2020 census.