Once again the Kerala assembly unanimously passed the resolution to change the state’s name to “Keralam” on Monday and urged the central government to change the state’s official name in all the languages. Let’s explore why the state has been trying to rename itself.
The actual motive behind this move is the linguistic solidarity and willingness of Keralites to hear and call the state’s name in their native language ‘Malayalam’ as the Chief Minister of Kerala, during the presentation of resolution in the assembly, clearly mentioned, “The name of our state in Malayalam is Keralam… However, the name of our state in the first Schedule of the Constitution has been written as Kerala. This Assembly is unanimously requesting the Union Government to take immediate steps under Article 3 of the Constitution to change the name of the state to Keralam.”
History of “Keralam”
The word ‘Keralam’ possibly derives its name from the Chera dynasty or from the abundance of coconut trees native to the region. European merchants and explorers also knew it as Malabar.
The India Express’ report mentioned that Kerala, known in Malayalam as Keralam, derives its English name from this regional term. Various theories exist regarding its etymological origins. The earliest known reference to the word appears in Emperor Ashoka’s Rock Edict II, dating back to 257 BCE. The edict states: “Everywhere in the dominions of King Priyadarsin, Beloved of the gods, as well as those of his frontier sovereigns, such as the Chodas [Cholas], Pandyas, Satiyaputra, Ketalaputra [Keralaputra]…” (translated by epigraphist D R Bhandarkar).
Keralaputra, meaning “son of Kerala” in Sanskrit, denotes the Chera dynasty, one of southern India’s three principal kingdoms. German linguist Dr. Herman Gundert observed that the term ‘keram’ in Kannada translates to ‘cheram’, referring to the coastal region spanning from Gokarna (in Karnataka) to Kanyakumari (at the southern tip of Tamil Nadu, India). The term’s origin may stem from ‘cher’, an Old Tamil word meaning ‘to join’.
Malayalam was the reason of today’s modern united Kerala
The movement for a unified Malayalam-speaking state gained traction in the 1920s, aiming to amalgamate the princely states of Travancore and Cochin with the Malabar district of the Madras Presidency. Following independence, on July 1, 1949, the two Malayalam-speaking princely states were merged to form the state of Travancore-Cochin. Subsequently, the state of Kerala was established based on the recommendations of the State Reorganisation Commission, which advocated for states organized along linguistic lines. The commission, led by Syed Fazl Ali, proposed the inclusion of the Malabar district and the Kasargod taluk into the Malayalam-speaking state, while suggesting the exclusion of the four southern taluks of Travancore—Tovala, Agastheeswaram, Kalkulam, and Vilayankode—along with parts of Shenkottai, which are now part of Tamil Nadu.