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Kerala History / History of Kerala

History of Formation:

The origin legend of Kerala assigns to Parasurama's axe the credit of reclaiming 160 katam of land that lay between Gokarnam and Kanyakumari. Another Ancient legend, the story of Lord Visnu's Vamana incarnation predating Parasurama, relates the deporting of a Kerala king called Mahabali to the under world and contradicts the origin legend by implying the existence of Kerala prior to Parasurama.

Scientific Discovery :

Geologists have pointed out that the elevation of Kerala from the sea was the result of some seismic activity, either rapidly or slowly. Another Thoughts prevailing in scientific society is the rivers of Kerala emptying into the Arabian seas bring down huge quantities of silt from the hills. The ocean currents transport quantities of sand towards the shore. The coastal portions could well be due to the accumulation of this silt over thousands of years.

Ancient Inhabitants Of Kerala:

Archaeologists believe that the first citizens of Kerala were the hunter-gatherers , the ting Negrito people. These people unmoving inhabit the mountains of southern India today, consequently, they had a good knowledge of herbal medicine and were skilled in interpreting natural phenomena. The next race of people in Kerala were believed to be the Austriches. The Austric people of Kerala are of the same reserve as the present-day Australian Aborigines. Then came the Dravidians. Dravidian immersed many of the beliefs of the Negrito and Austric people, but they were strongly tending to the worship of the Mother Goddess in all her myriad forms: Protector, Avenger, Bestower of wealth, wisdom and arts.

Kerala As State In India:

With it's rich greenplants, and palm trees Kerala is one of the smallest states in India along the Malabar coast of the Arabian sea. It is a rather slim band of land measuring about 15000 square miles that stretch 75 miles at it's broadest and only 20 miles wide at certain points in the north and south. The lowland bordering the sea is dotted with innumerable coconut palms and the expansive stretches of paddy crops. The midland regions comprise valleys, punctuated here and there by isolated hills.

The recent history of Kerala includes the introduction to independence, the road to Communism and the evolution of the modern state of Kerala. Kerala was formed out of three political units- the princely state of Cochin, which dates back to the middle ages, the kingdom of Travancore, which was created in the 18th century, and the Malabar district which was the former Kingdom of the Zamorin of Calicut.

Post-Colonial

Among the modern line of traders - the Portuguese, Dutch, French and the English, it was the English that presided over the fate of Kerala from 1791, to the end of British rule in 1947. During the first eighty years of British rule life changed very small. Caste arrangement and the matrilineal joint family systems continued in the three units that were to become Kerala. By the end of the eighteenth century, tea and coffee plantations developed. An industrial revolution began in the 1850s - textiles, tiles, coir etc. Modern education took root. The influx of missionaries contributed to western education. Democratic institutions were formed in 1888, and political activity which began during the following decade, intensified during the 1920s when the Indian National congress spearheaded the national independence movement. This was a period when the communist movement gathered momentum especially in Malabar.

Modern post-colonial

After India's independence in 1947, the princely states of Travancore and Kochi were merged to form the province (after 1950 a state) of Travancore-Cochin on July 1, 1949. Madras Presidency became India's Madras State.

The state of Kerala was created on November 1, 1956 when Malabar District was merged with Tranvancore-Cochin state and Kasargod taluk of South Kanara District to form the State of Kerala. Elections for the new Kerala Legislative Assembly were held in 1957; this resulted in the formation of a communist-led government headed by E.M.S. Namboodiripad