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Kerala Day also referred to as Kerala Piravi, marks the birth of the state of Kerala in southern India. The state of Kerala was created on 1 November 1956, long after the Independence of India. Before this, it was three major provinces and several outlying regions under various rulers.
Prior to 1956, Kerala had been divided into four regions: South Canara (Kasaragod region), Malabar, Cochin, and Travancore.
Malabar comprises the northern and north-central region around Cannanore, Calicut, Malappuram, and Palakkad, with some portions around Thrissur and Cochin. This region had been ruled by the Zamorin of Calicut, Arakkal kingdom, Kolathunadu, Kingdom of Tanur, and Kingdom of Valluvanad, with several other smaller feudal states, before being conquered by Tipu Sultan. It was then ceded to the British East India Company after the Anglo-Mysore Wars, [1] [2] and first annexed to the British Bombay Presidency, and then replaced to Madras Presidency. [3] [4] [5] The coastal town of Mahe remained a French enclave until the early 1950s when it was integrated into the Union Territory of Puducherry. The central region comprised the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin, administered from Thrissur. The southernmost province was the Kingdom of Travancore, based in the city of Thiruvananthapuram. While Cochin had been a vassal state under the British Raj, Travancore Kingdom was administered under suzerainty.
Early in the 20th century, the Mappila Muslims of the Calicut region revolted against the Zamindars who were mostly Hindus and the British Raj. [6] In the following years, agitations for political rights and a popular government took place in Travancore and Cochin as well. After India was partitioned in 1947 into India and Pakistan, Travancore and Cochin, part of India were merged on 1 July 1949 to form Travancore–Cochin (Thiru-Kochi). [7] A popular movement known as Aikya Kerala Movement, for the formation of the State of Kerala, gave motivation to the reorganization of the state on a linguistic basis. [8] [9]
On 1 November 1956, the taluk of Kasargod in the South Canara district of Madras, the Malabar district of Madras, and Travancore-Cochin, without four southern taluks (which joined Tamil Nadu), merged to form the state of Kerala under the States Reorganisation Act. [10] [11] A Communist-led government under E. M. S. Namboodiripad came to power following the first elections for the new Kerala Legislative Assembly in 1957. [11] It was one of the earliest elected Communist governments, after Communist success in the 1945 elections in the Republic of San Marino. [12] [13] [14]
The Kingdom of Travancore, also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At its zenith, the kingdom covered most of the south of modern-day Kerala and the southernmost part of modern-day Tamil Nadu with the Thachudaya Kaimal's enclave of Irinjalakuda Koodalmanikyam temple in the neighbouring Kingdom of Cochin. However Tangasseri area of Kollam city and Anchuthengu near Attingal in Thiruvananthapuram were parts of British India.
Kasaragod is a municipal town and administrative headquarters of Kasaragod district in the state of Kerala, India. Established in 1966, Kasaragod was the first municipal town in the district. It is the northernmost district of Kerala and is also known as Saptha Bhasha Sangama Bhoomi.
Palakkad is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. It was carved out from the southeastern region of the former Malabar District on 1 January 1957. It is located at the central region of Kerala and is the second largest district in the state after Idukki. The city of Palakkad is the district headquarters. Palakkad is bordered on the northwest by the Malappuram district, on the southwest by the Thrissur district, on the northeast by Nilgiris district, and on the east by Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu. The district is nicknamed "The granary of Kerala". Palakkad is the gateway to Kerala due to the presence of the Palakkad Gap, in the Western Ghats. The 2,383 m high Anginda peak, which is situated in the border of Palakkad district, Nilgiris district, and Malappuram district, in Silent Valley National Park, is the highest point of elevation in Palakkad district. Palakkad city is about 347 kilometres (216 mi) northeast of the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram.
Kodungallur is a historically significant town situated on the banks of river Periyar on the Malabar Coast in Thrissur district of Kerala, India. It is 29 kilometres (18 mi) north of Kochi (Cochin) by National Highway 66 and 38 km (24 mi) from Thrissur. Kodungallur, being a port city at the northern end of the Kerala lagoons, was a strategic entry point for the naval fleets to the extensive Kerala backwaters.
The Kingdom of Cochin, named after its capital in the city of Kochi (Cochin), was a kingdom in the central part of present-day Kerala state. It commenced at the early part of the 12th century and continued to rule until 1949, when the monarchy was abolished by the Dominion of India.
Ottapalam is a town, taluk and municipality in the Palakkad District, Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ottapalam taluk. Ottapalam is located about 36 km from district headquarters Palakkad. Ottapalam is located along the banks of Bharathapuzha, second longest river of the state.
Malabar District, also known as Malayalam District, was an administrative district on the southwestern Malabar Coast of Bombay Presidency (1792–1800), Madras Presidency (1800-1937), Madras Province (1937–1950) and finally, Madras State (1950-1956) in India. It was the most populous and the third-largest district in the erstwhile Madras State. The historic town of Kozhikode was the admisnitrative headquarters of this district.
The term Kerala was first epigraphically recorded as Cheras (Keralaputra) in a 3rd-century BCE rock inscription by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka of Magadha. It was mentioned as one of four independent kingdoms in southern India during Ashoka's time, the others being the Cholas, Pandyas and Satyaputras. The Cheras transformed Kerala into an international trade centre by establishing trade relations across the Arabian Sea with all major Mediterranean and Red Sea ports as well those of Eastern Africa and the Far East. The dominion of Cheras was located in one of the key routes of the ancient Indian Ocean trade. The early Cheras collapsed after repeated attacks from the neighboring Cholas and Rashtrakutas.
Kochi is a city located in the Ernakulam District in the Indian state of Kerala about 200 km from Trivandrum, the capital of Kerala.
North Malabar refers to the geographic area of southwest India covering the state of Kerala's present day Kasaragod, Kannur, and Wayanad districts, and the taluks of Vatakara, Koyilandy in the Kozhikode District of Kerala and the entire Mahé Sub-Division of the Union Territory of Puducherry. Traditionally North Malabar is defined as the northern portion of erstwhile Malabar District which lies between Chandragiri River and Korapuzha River. The region between Netravathi River and Chandragiri River, which included the portions between Mangalore and Kasaragod, are also often included in the term North Malabar, as the Kumbla dynasty in the southernmost region of Tulu Nadu, had a mixed lineage of Malayali Nairs and Tuluva Brahmins.
The Mysorean invasion of Malabar was the military invasion of the Malabar region of Kerala, including the territories of the Zamorin of Calicut, by the then-de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore, Hyder Ali. After the invasion, the Kingdom of Cochin to the south of Malabar became a tributary state of Mysore.
The Malabar Coast is the southwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. It generally refers to the western coastline of India from Konkan to Kanyakumari. Geographically, it comprises one of the wettest regions of the subcontinent, which includes the Kanara region of Karnataka, and entire Kerala.
Parappanad was a former feudal city-state in Malabar, India. The headquarters of Parappanad Royal family was at the town Parappanangadi in present-day Malappuram district. In 1425, the country divided into Northern Parappanad and Southern Parappanad. Southern Parappanad included parts of Tirurangadi Taluk and the town Parappanangadi. Northern Parappanad included Panniyankara, Beypore, and Cheruvannur of Kozhikkode Taluk. Parappanad royal family is a cousin dynasty of the Travancore royal family.
The Kozhikode, also known as Calicut, was the kingdom of the Zamorin of Calicut, in the present-day Indian state of Kerala. Present-day Kozhikode is the second largest city in Kerala, as well as the headquarters of Kozhikode district.
The Kerala Legislative Assembly election of 1957 was the first assembly election in the Indian state of Kerala. The Communist Party of India won the election with 60 seats. The election led to the formation of first democratically elected communist government in India.
Malappuram is one of the 14 districts in the South Indian state of Kerala. The district has a unique and eventful history starting from pre-historic times. During the early medieval period, the district was the home to two of the four major kingdoms that ruled Kerala. Perumpadappu was the original hometown of the Kingdom of Cochin, which is also known as Perumbadappu Swaroopam, and Nediyiruppu was the original hometown of the Zamorin of Calicut, which is also known as Nediyiruppu Swaroopam. Besides, the original headquarters of the Palakkad Rajas were also at Athavanad in the district.
Tamil Nadu Day, also referred to as Tamil Nadu Dhinam, is a holiday celebrated in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu to commemorate the formation of the state. Tamil Nadu was created on 1 November 1956 with the name Madras State. On 18 July 1967, Madras State was officially renamed to Tamil Nadu.
South Malabar refers to a geographical area of the southwestern coast of India covering some parts of the present-day Kerala. South Malabar covers the regions included in present-day Kozhikode taluk of Kozhikode district, the whole area of Malappuram district, Chavakkad taluk of Thrissur district, and Palakkad district, excluding parts of Chittur taluk. The Fort Kochi region of Kochi city also historically belongs to South Malabar. The term South Malabar refers to the region of the erstwhile Malabar District south to the river Korapuzha, and bears a high cultural similarity to both the Cochin and the North Malabar region.
Aikya Kerala Movement, the movement to establish a united Kerala was one of the political movements in present-day Kerala state of India. The term Aikya Kerala literally means 'United Kerala'. It has been a statewide peaceful movement for a united Kerala state for all Malayalam speaking people, which lasted for more than three decades. Following the movement, The Malayalam-speaking regions of the Travancore–Cochin merged with the Malabar District and the Kasaragod Taluk of South Canara district in Madras State to form the modern Kerala state on 1 November 1956, according to the States Reorganisation Act, 1956 passed by the Government of India.
