One of the stories is that it originated in the kitchen of Thanjavur Marathas ruler

Shahuji during the 17th century from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.[1]
Shahuji, trying to make a dish called amti, experimented with pigeon peas instead
of mung beans and tamarind pulp for kokum. The court named it sambhar after the
guest of the day, Sambhaji, second emperor of the Maratha Empire.[2]

Other sources[?][citation needed] point to sambar's originating in Karnataka, where

sambaru padartha in Kannada means mix of spices and condiments. There is also an
alternate[citation needed] explanation that the origin of the name is from the old
Tamil word chaampu, meaning ground or paste, in the context of grinding coconut
and spices to be dissolved in tamarind pulp. This word is also the root for the
unrelated South East Asian dish sambol.[3]
Etymology

The word sambar (old Tamil:Champaar - ????????) stems from Tamil word Champaaram
(????????) meaning spicy condiments. Chambaram kootu (??????????????) and
chambaram podi (????????????) means sambar powder.[citation needed]

A Tamil inscription of 1530 CE evidences the use of the word champaaram, in the
sense of meaning a dish of rice accompanying other rice dishes or spice ingredients
with which a dish of vegetable rice is cooked:

???????? ???????? ?? ???????? ??????????????? ????? ????????? ???? ??????

Amuthupadi kariyamuthu pala champaaram neyyamuthulppada thalikai onrukku panam

onraak.

Meaning: Cooked rice offerings, including spiced rice (pepper rice or vegetable
rice), many types of spiced rice (pala champaaram) and ghee rice, at the rate of
one panam (a denomination of money) per one portion.

Ka'riyamuthu pala champaaram, as a compound phrase, could also mean vegetable rice
prepared with many spices.
Preparation
Typical ingredients in a sambar dish

Sambar is made either exclusively with one of these vegetables or a combination of

them:

okra
moringa
carrot
radish
pumpkin
potato
tomato
brinjal (eggplant)
whole or halved shallots or onions.

Sambar often contains sambar powder, a coarse spice mix made of roasted lentils,
dried whole red chilies, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds and sometimes asafoetida
and curry leaves. Regional variations include cumin, black pepper, grated coconut,
cinnamon, or other spices.[4]

The vegetables, tamarind pulp, sambar powder, turmeric, salt, and asafoetida are
boiled together until the vegetables are half-cooked. Then the cooked lentils (most
often the split pigeon pea) are added and allowed to cook until the vegetables are
done. A spice-scented oil is added to the cooked sambar for extra flavor and
tempering, and the dish is served garnished with fresh coriander leaves or curry
leaves.

The addition of spice-scented oils at the end of cooking is a common Indian

culinary technique. A combination of mustard seeds, black gram, dried red chillies
and curry leaves fried in ghee or vegetable oil is one example of numerous oil
flavourings used for sambar.