The name Kerala is widely explained as the "the land of coconuts", derived from Malayalam word "kera" which means coconut. However, pre historic edits of Emperor Asoka period dating back to 273-236 BC had etymological reference of Keralaputra,meaning the land of Cheras (of Chera dynasty) sons.
The present State of Kerala, a 560-km long narrow stretch of land, having not more than 15,000 square miles and at its widest a mere 120-km from the sea, was created on the 1st of November 1956, with the political merging of three earlier distinct areas; the North Malabar region, as far up the coast covering Tellicherry, Cannanore and Kasargode and excluding the tiny pocket of French possession, Mahe , the princely State of Cochin forming the middle section and the third region comprised Travancore, another princely State, covering the southern area.
Origin
There is a persistent legend which says that Parasuram, the 6th incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the preserver of the Hindu Trinity, stood on a high place in the mountains, threw an axe far in to the sea, and commanded the sea to retreat.
Geologists have postulated the elevation of Kerala from the sea was the result of some seismic activity, either suddenly or gradually. Alternate theory is the rivers of Kerala emptying into the Arabian seas bring down enormous 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.
No relic of the Stone Age, not a single authentic Neolithic implement, has been discovered in any parts of Kerala. Megaliths or huge burial stones carved by iron implements are scattered all along the ghats of Wynad in the north to Trivandrum in the south. Various researches show a pattern of distribution for these stones extending all the way from Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh along the Nepal Valley down through the Vindhya Mountains to Tamil Nadu and the High Ranges of Kerala. This pattern indicates that Kerala's early people were originally from the Northwest of India. The megalithic types of Kerala -- similar to those of Brittany and Cornwall-are isolated and multiple dolmens, port-hole cists, menhirs, kudakallus or umbrella stones, topikallus or cap stones, and rock-cut caves. In many caves archeologists have found, especially during the Varkala Tunnel construction, old pots of the "black-andred-ware" variety and human bones. At some sites even terra cotta figurines have been discovered. Topikallu and kudakallu are sepulchral monuments under which are found burial urns in pits. The remarkable thing about the Kerala megaliths is that they are not as old as the Harappan culture (2500-1500 B.C.). According to Sir Mortimer Wheeler and many historians, the megalith culture was introduced into Kerala between 300 B.C. and 50 A.D. Megalithic evidence shows that the builders came originally from Northwestern India and entered Kerala's High Ranges around 200 B.C.
The present State of Kerala, a 560-km long narrow stretch of land, having not more than 15,000 square miles and at its widest a mere 120-km from the sea, was created on the 1st of November 1956, with the political merging of three earlier distinct areas; the North Malabar region, as far up the coast covering Tellicherry, Cannanore and Kasargode and excluding the tiny pocket of French possession, Mahe , the princely State of Cochin forming the middle section and the third region comprised Travancore, another princely State, covering the southern area.
Origin
There is a persistent legend which says that Parasuram, the 6th incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the preserver of the Hindu Trinity, stood on a high place in the mountains, threw an axe far in to the sea, and commanded the sea to retreat.
Geologists have postulated the elevation of Kerala from the sea was the result of some seismic activity, either suddenly or gradually. Alternate theory is the rivers of Kerala emptying into the Arabian seas bring down enormous 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.
No relic of the Stone Age, not a single authentic Neolithic implement, has been discovered in any parts of Kerala. Megaliths or huge burial stones carved by iron implements are scattered all along the ghats of Wynad in the north to Trivandrum in the south. Various researches show a pattern of distribution for these stones extending all the way from Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh along the Nepal Valley down through the Vindhya Mountains to Tamil Nadu and the High Ranges of Kerala. This pattern indicates that Kerala's early people were originally from the Northwest of India. The megalithic types of Kerala -- similar to those of Brittany and Cornwall-are isolated and multiple dolmens, port-hole cists, menhirs, kudakallus or umbrella stones, topikallus or cap stones, and rock-cut caves. In many caves archeologists have found, especially during the Varkala Tunnel construction, old pots of the "black-andred-ware" variety and human bones. At some sites even terra cotta figurines have been discovered. Topikallu and kudakallu are sepulchral monuments under which are found burial urns in pits. The remarkable thing about the Kerala megaliths is that they are not as old as the Harappan culture (2500-1500 B.C.). According to Sir Mortimer Wheeler and many historians, the megalith culture was introduced into Kerala between 300 B.C. and 50 A.D. Megalithic evidence shows that the builders came originally from Northwestern India and entered Kerala's High Ranges around 200 B.C.
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