The Geographical Dictionary of Ancient and Mediaeval India c5.s9.92

c5.s9.92

Kerala—The Malabar coast (Wilson’s Mâlatī and Mâdhava). It comprised Malabar, Travancore, and Kanara (Râmâyaṇa, Kiṣhk., ch. 41) terminating at Cape Comorin on the south and Goa on the north. It is the country of the Nairs. It is sometimes used as synonymous with Chera (Rapson’s Ancient India, p. 164 and Indian Coins, p. 36; Dr. Bhaṇḍarkar’s Hist. of the Dekkan, sec. III). In fact Kerala is the Kanarese dialectal form of the more ancient name of Chera (Hunter’s Imperial Gazetteer of India, s.v. Chera). Śaṅkarâchârya, the celebrated reformer, was born at Kâladi on the bank of the river Purṇâ at the foot of the mountain called Bṛisha in Kanara (Kerala); his father was Śivaguru and his grandfather was Vidyâdirâja. See Chittambalam. In the Mackenzie Manuscripts, the capital of Keraladeśa is said to be Ananta-śayanam. Paraśurâma is said to have caused Brâhmaṇas to inhabit this country (JASB., 1838, pp. 183, 128). Gibbon says “Every year about the summer solstice, a fleet of 120 vessels sailed from Myas Hormas, a port of Egypt on the Red Sea. The coast of Malabar or the island of Ceylon was the usual term of their navigation, and it was in those markets, that the merchants from the more remote parts of Asia expected their arrival. This fleet traversed the ocean in about forty days by the periodical assistance of the monsoons.” The Kollam era which is in use in Travancore and Malabar, and which commenced in 824 A.D., is a modification of the Saptarshi era (Ind. Ant., vol. XXVI, p. 118).