1.
Country
–
A country is a region that is identified as a distinct national entity in political geography. Sometimes the word countries is used to both to sovereign states and to other political entities, while other times it refers only to states. The word country comes from Old French contrée, itself derived from Vulgar Latin contrata and it most likely entered the English language after the Franco-Norman invasion during the 11th century. Areas much smaller than a state may be called by names such as the West Country in England, the Black Country, Constable Country. In many European countries the words are used for sub-divisions of the territory, as in the German Bundesländer. The modern Italian contrada is a word with its meaning varying locally, the term country is frequently used to refer to sovereign states. There is no agreement on the number of countries in the world. There are 206 sovereign states, of which 193 states are members of the United Nations, all are defined as states by declarative theory of statehood and constitutive theory of statehood. The latest proclaimed state is South Sudan in 2011, the Kingdom of Denmark, a sovereign state, comprises Metropolitan Denmark and two nominally separate countries—the Faroe Islands, and Greenland—which are almost fully internally self-governing. The Kingdom of the Netherlands, a state, comprises four separate countries, Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao. The degree of autonomy of non-sovereign countries varies widely, some are possessions of sovereign states, as several states have overseas territories, with citizenry at times identical and at times distinct from their own
2.
India
–
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and it is bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast. It shares land borders with Pakistan to the west, China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the northeast, in the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Indias Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a border with Thailand. The Indian subcontinent was home to the urban Indus Valley Civilisation of the 3rd millennium BCE, in the following millennium, the oldest scriptures associated with Hinduism began to be composed. Social stratification, based on caste, emerged in the first millennium BCE, early political consolidations took place under the Maurya and Gupta empires, the later peninsular Middle Kingdoms influenced cultures as far as southeast Asia. In the medieval era, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived, much of the north fell to the Delhi sultanate, the south was united under the Vijayanagara Empire. The economy expanded in the 17th century in the Mughal empire, in the mid-18th century, the subcontinent came under British East India Company rule, and in the mid-19th under British crown rule. A nationalist movement emerged in the late 19th century, which later, under Mahatma Gandhi, was noted for nonviolent resistance, in 2015, the Indian economy was the worlds seventh largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power parity. Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the major economies and is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, corruption, malnutrition, a nuclear weapons state and regional power, it has the third largest standing army in the world and ranks sixth in military expenditure among nations. India is a constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system. It is a pluralistic, multilingual and multi-ethnic society and is home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu, the latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu, which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River. The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi, which translates as The people of the Indus, the geographical term Bharat, which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in its variations. Scholars believe it to be named after the Vedic tribe of Bharatas in the second millennium B. C. E and it is also traditionally associated with the rule of the legendary emperor Bharata. Gaṇarājya is the Sanskrit/Hindi term for republic dating back to the ancient times, hindustan is a Persian name for India dating back to the 3rd century B. C. E. It was introduced into India by the Mughals and widely used since then and its meaning varied, referring to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan or India in its entirety
3.
Kerala
–
Kerala historically known as Keralam, is an Indian state in South India on the Malabar Coast. It was formed on 1 November 1956 following the States Reorganisation Act by combining Malayalam-speaking regions, spread over 38,863 km2, it is bordered by Karnataka to the north and northeast, Tamil Nadu to the east and south, and the Lakshadweep Sea to the west. With 33,387,677 inhabitants as per the 2011 Census, Malayalam is the most widely spoken language and is also the official language of the state. The region has been a prominent spice exporter since 3000 BCE, the Chera Dynasty was the first prominent kingdom based in Kerala, though it frequently struggled against attacks by the neighbouring Cholas and Pandyas. In the 15th century, the spice trade attracted Portuguese traders to Kerala, after independence, Travancore and Cochin joined the Republic of India and Travancore-Cochin was given the status of a state in 1949. In 1956, Kerala state was formed by merging Malabar district, Travancore-Cochin, Hinduism is practised by more than half of the population, followed by Islam and Christianity. The culture is a synthesis of Aryan and Dravidian cultures, developed over millennia, under influences from other parts of India, the production of pepper and natural rubber contributes significantly to the total national output. In the agricultural sector, coconut, tea, coffee, cashew, the states coastline extends for 595 kilometres, and around 1.1 million people in the state are dependent on the fishery industry which contributes 3% to the states income. The state has the highest media exposure in India with newspapers publishing in nine languages, mainly English, Kerala is one of the prominent tourist destinations of India, with backwaters, beaches, Ayurvedic tourism and tropical greenery as its major attractions. The name Kerala has an uncertain etymology, One popular theory derives Kerala from Kera and alam is land, thus land of coconuts, this also happens to be a nickname for the state due to abundance of coconut trees and its use by the locals. The word Kerala is first recorded in a 3rd-century BCE rock inscription left by the Maurya emperor Ashoka, the inscription refers to the local ruler as Keralaputra, or son of Chera. This contradicts the theory that Kera is from coconut tree, at that time, one of three states in the region was called Cheralam in Classical Tamil, Chera and Kera are variants of the same word. The word Cheral refers to the oldest known dynasty of Kerala kings and is derived from the Proto-Tamil-Malayalam word for lake, the earliest Sanskrit text to mention Kerala is the Aitareya Aranyaka of the Rigveda. It is also mentioned in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, the two Hindu epics, the Skanda Purana mentions the ecclesiastical office of the Thachudaya Kaimal who is referred to as Manikkam Keralar, synonymous with the deity of the Koodalmanikyam temple. Keralam may stem from the Classical Tamil cherive-alam or chera alam, the Greco-Roman trade map Periplus Maris Erythraei refers to Keralaputra as Celobotra. According to Hindu mythology, the lands of Kerala were recovered from the sea by the warrior sage Parasurama. Parasurama threw his axe across the sea, and the water receded as far as it reached, according to legend, this new area of land extended from Gokarna to Kanyakumari. The land which rose from sea was filled with salt and unsuitable for habitation, so Parasurama invoked the Snake King Vasuki, out of respect, Vasuki and all snakes were appointed as protectors and guardians of the land
4.
Kasaragod district
–
Kasaragod District is one of the 14 districts in the state of Kerala, India. Kasaragod became part of Kannur district following the reorganisation of states, Kasaragod was declared as a district on 24 May 1984. To its south lies Kannur District, to the South east is Kodagu district, all along its east it is walled by the Western Ghats while along the west the Laccadive Sea borders it. The district, covering an area of around 1992 km2, has a population of 1,307,375 and has four taluks, namely, Kasaragod and Hosdurg, Vellarikundu and Manjeshwaram Taluk. Major towns in Kasaragod district are Nileshwar, Kanhangad, Kasaragod, Uppala, Kumbla and it has three municipalities (Nileshwar Kasaragod, and Kanhangad and thirty-eight grama panchayats. Kasaragod was known to the Arabs by the name Harkwillia, many Arab travelers who visited Kerala between the 9th and the 14th centuries visited Kasaragod, which was an important trade centre then. Duarte Borbosa, the Portuguese traveler who visited Kumbla, near Kasaragod in 1514, Kasaragod was part of the kumbala Kingdom in which there were 64 Tulu and Malayalam villages. When the Vijayanagara empire attacked Kasaragod, it was still under the Kolathiri Raja who had Nileshwaram as one of his capitals, during the decline of the Vijayanagara empire, the administration of this area was vested with Ikkeri Nayakas. At the onset of collapse of the Vijayanagara empire, Venkappa Nayaka declared independence to Ikkery, Kumbla, Chandragiri and Bekal are considered to be the chain of forts constructed or renovated by Shivappa Nayaka. Francis Buccanan, the doctor of Arthur Wellesley, visited Kasargod in 1800. In his travelogue, he recorded information on places like Athiraparambu, Kavvai, Nileshwaram, Bekal, Chandragiri, in 1763, Hyder Ali conquered Bedanoor, the capital of the Ikkery Naiks. His son Tippu Sultan conquered much of Malabar, as per the Sreerangapattanam Treaty of 1792, Tippu surrendered Malabar, except Kanara to the British. The British got Kanara only after the death of Tippu Sultan and it is said that Kinavoor Molom is belonging to Karinthalam. Before the formation of Kerala, Kasaragod was a part of erstwhile South Canara district of Madras Presidency, Kasaragod became part of Kannur district following the reorganisation of states and formation of Kerala in November 1,1956. Kasaragod was declared as a district on 24 May 1984, the district is the northernmost district of the State of Kerala. Kasaragod is located at 12. 5°N75. 0°E /12.5,75.0 and it has an average elevation of 19 metres. According to the 2011 census Kasaragod district has a population of 1,307,375 and this gives it a ranking of 375th in India. The district has a density of 654 inhabitants per square kilometre
5.
North Malabar
–
The greater part of North Malabar remained as one of the two administrative divisions of the Malabar District until 1947 and later became part of Indias Madras State until 1956. Mahé remained under French jurisdiction until 13 June 1954, during the ancient and early medieval periods, North Malabar retained its distinct political identity. At no time did the Chera dynasty impose full control over the area, the socio-cultural background and geography of this area has many distinctions compared to the rest of Kerala. The population consists of native Hindus, native Mappila-Muslims, native Jains and migrant-Christian communities and is characterized by distinct socio-cultural customs, the people of North Malabar have striven to preserve their distinct and unique identity and heritage since ancient times, through colonial times into modern political India. Until the early twentieth century there were cultural taboos among various communities from North Malabar, northern Malabar identity and pride is often possessively guarded by its natives of all ethnic and religious backgrounds. Kottiyoor Vysakha Mahotsavam is a 27-day yearly pilgrimage commemorating the mythology of Daksha Yaga, the practice of matriliniality was distinctly different and was predominantly virilocal with married couples residing with or near the husbands parents. Unlike other parts of erstwhile matrilinial-Kerala, polyandry was a taboo in North Malabar. The royal position of Kolathiri, although immensely respected, was politically titular, in addition, the lineages in North Malabar claim and assert superior ritual-rank clan by clan over their equivalent clans from the southern principalities. The major festival observed by Hindus in this region is Vishu rather than Onam, in North Malabar, Vishu is celebrated as New Year. Because, the Kollavarsham month Medam - which is parallel to first Tamil month Chithirai - is the first month of the year for natives of North Malabar, the Vishu festival is spread over two days and comprises the Cheriya or small Vishu and the Valiya, or main Vishu. People from all religions participate in festivals at temples, mosques and churches. Some examples include, Nadapuram Mosque, Mahe Church, Moonnu Pettumma Palli Pappinisseri, unlike Travancore, but like in rest of Malabar and Cochin, natives of North Malabar mix coconut paste with sambar, the most common dish of South India. Bakery-cuisine is well developed in the area and has led to large numbers of natives operating popular bakeries in Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai, Coimbatore, Mysore, Pune and Southern Kerala. People from this area are characterized by a sense of socio-political aspirations often leading to large outbreaks of political violence. Textiles, beedi, hand-weaving, plywood and coir represent important industries while cashew, cinnamon, nevertheless, its people are conservatively possessive of its identity preferring a geographical endogamy culture. The version of the Malayalam calendar or Kollavarsham used in central, the year commences with Simha-raasi and not in Mesha-raasi as in other Indian calendars. However, in North Malabar and Kolathunadu the start of the Kollam era is reckoned from the month of Kanya-rasi and this variation has two accounts associated with it. Kerolopathi, a text dealing with the origins of Malabar
6.
Hosdurg taluk
–
Hosdurg is one of the four taluks that constitute the Kasaragod District, state of Kerala, the others are Kasaragod Taluk, Manjeshwaram taluk and Vellarikundu taluk. It shares its borders on the north with the Kasaragod taluk, south with the Kannur District, east with the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, with an area of 900.3 km2, it is the smaller of the two taluks. It is divided into two Firkas (Hosdurg and Nileshwaram, Kanhangad and Nileshwaram are the municipalities within the taluk. Hosdurg, a kilometer south of Kanhangad town, the latter the taluk headquarters, other major settlements include Trikarpur, Cheruvathur and Chittarikkal. Bekal Fort is situated in the taluk, etymology of Hosdurg is derived from Kannada with the meaning of new and fort. As per the 2001 census, Hosdurg taluk had a population of 449,595 persons. The literacy rate is as high as 85. 82%, higher than the national average, in Hosdurg taluk,12. 42% of the total population is between the age of 0–6 years. Malayalam is the local and the language of the region
7.
Malayalam
–
Malayalam /mʌləˈjɑːləm/ is a language spoken in India, predominantly in the state of Kerala. It is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and was designated as a Classical Language in India in 2013 and it was developed to the current form mainly by the influence of the poet Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan in the 16th century. Malayalam has official status in the state of Kerala and in the union territories of Lakshadweep. It belongs to the Dravidian family of languages and is spoken by some 38 million people, according to one theory, Malayalam originated from Middle Tamil in the 7th century. However, the current understanding proposes the separation of Malayalam from Proto-Dravidian in the pre-historic era, Malayalam incorporated many elements from Sanskrit through the ages. Before Malayalam came into being, Old Tamil was used in literature and courts of a region called Tamilakam, including present day Kerala state, silappatikaramit was written by Chera prince Ilango Adigal from Chunkaparra, and is considered a classic in Sangam literature. Modern Malayalam still preserves many words from the ancient Tamil vocabulary of Sangam literature, the earliest script used to write Malayalam was the Vatteluttu alphabet, and later the Kolezhuttu, which derived from it. As Malayalam began to borrow words as well as the rules of grammar from Sanskrit. This developed into the modern Malayalam script, many medieval liturgical texts were written in an admixture of Sanskrit and early Malayalam, called Manipravalam. The oldest literary work in Malayalam, distinct from the Tamil tradition, is dated from between the 9th and 11th centuries, the first travelogue in any Indian language is the Malayalam Varthamanappusthakam, written by Paremmakkal Thoma Kathanar in 1785. Due to its lineage deriving from both Tamil and Sanskrit, the Malayalam script has the largest number of letters among the Indian language orthographies, the Malayalam script includes letters capable of representing almost all the sounds of all Indo-Aryan and Dravidian languages. Malayalam serves as a language on the islands including the Mahl-dominated Minicoy Island. The word Malayalam originated from the Sanskrit resp, Malayalam words malai or mala, meaning hill, and elam, meaning region. Malayalam thus translates as hill region and used to refer to the land of the Chera dynasty, the language Malayalam is alternatively called Alealum, Malayalani, Malayali, Malean, Maliyad, and Mallealle. The word Malayalam originally meant only for the name of the region, Malayanma or Malayayma represented the language. With the emergence of modern Malayalam language, the name of the language started to be known by the name of the region, hence now, the word Malayanma is considered by some to represent the olden Malayalam language. The language got the name Malayalam during the mid 19th century, the origin of Malayalam, an independent offshoot of the proto-Dravidian language, has been and continues to be an engaging pursuit among comparative historical linguists. Together with Tamil, Toda, Kannada and Tulu, Malayalam belongs to the group of Dravidian languages
8.
Kasaragod
–
Kasaragod, is a town and a municipality in the Kasaragod district, state of Kerala. Kasargod is located 585 km north of Thiruvananthapuram and 50 km south of Mangalore, the major political parties are Indian Union Muslim League, CPI, INC, INL Indian National League and BJP. North Kasaragod is dominated by Indian Union Muslim League and the part of Kasaragod is dominated by CPI. The central part and some of the rural and urban areas is dominated by INC. NA Nellikkunnu is the present Member of Legislative Assembly, Kasaragod assembly constituency is part of Kasaragod. CPI member P. Karunakaran is the present MP from Kasargod, Kasaragod is home to the Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, originally established in 1916 as the Coconut Research Station. It is part of Indias National Agricultural Research System under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, according to the Institute, Kerala lies in the heart of the major coconut growing areas of the country. It is also home to the Indian Society for Plantation Crops, the primary and administrative language of the town is Malayalam. Tulu, Beary bhashe and Konkani are also used and Hindi. Havyaka speakers have a base in Kannada. The Malayalam spoken here has influences from Beary bhashe and also from the languages of Kannada, Urdu, Konkani, the Kannada and Tulu spoken here are also influenced by Malayalam. Kasaragod district is a worst HIV infected area in Kerala,970 HIV cases were registered in Kasaragod district. Ten HIV deaths were reported from Kasaragod district within a period of two months in 2016. There is no special facility or doctors for HIV patients in this area, HIV affected areas in Kasaragod include Dharmathadka, Nileshwaram, Manjeshwar, Bhandiyod, Vellarikundu, Kasaragod town and Padannakkad. Kasaragod experiences a Tropical monsoon climate under the Köppen climate classification. P. C. R. I CPCRI Official Website of the District Administration
9.
Kannur
–
Kannur, also known by its English name Cannanore, is a city and a Municipal Corporation in Kannur district, state of Kerala, India. It is the headquarters of the Kannur District and situated 518 km north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. During British rule in India, Kannur was known as Cannanore, Kannur is the largest city of North Malabar region. Kannur district is known as the land of Looms and Lores, because of the weaving industry functioning in the district, Kannur is famous for its pristine beaches, Theyyam, and its handloom industry. Kannur is of strategic military importance in India. Kannur Cantonment is one of the 62 military cantonments in the country and is the headquarters of the Defence Security Corps, the Indian Naval Academy is 35 km north of Kannur City. It is Asias largest and the third largest naval academy. An Indian Coast Guard Academy has received approval to be built at Kannur and this academy will be built on the banks of Valapattanam River at Irinave, east of Azhikkal. The name Kannur may have derived from Kanathur, an ancient village. During the British Raj, the city was known as Cannanore, Kannur was an important trading center in the 12th century, with active business connections with Persia and Arabia. It served as the British military headquarters on Indias west coast until 1887, in conjunction with its sister city, Tellicherry, it was the third largest city on the western coast of British India in the 18th century after Bombay and Karachi. Kannur is an ancient city which used to be one of the three important cities of the whole western Indian sub continent 200 years ago, competing with Bombay. It is said to be that the Loud Sage – the ship of King Solomon had anchored off the coast of Kannur to gather wood for the construction of the Temple of the Lord. Kannurs name has mentions in the Periplus of the Eritrean Naura and sea, the original city of Kannur was under Keralas only Muslim Royal dynasty called the Arakkal Sultanate and it was their capital. This area is known as Kannur City. The modern town is referred as Kannur Town, Kannur, as a district and surrounding areas were mostly ruled by the famous Kolathiri rajas. When the state of Kerala was formed the district took the name Kannur, before that, Kannur was under the Chirakkal Taluk of Madras state under British rule. When the British dominated this part of the world, they preferred Madras and Cochin as their major stations and Kannur started to lose its old glory
10.
Mangalore
–
Mangalore, officially known as Mangaluru, is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is known as Kudla in Tulu, Kodial in Konkani, Maikāla in Beary and it is located about 352 kilometres west of the state capital, Bengaluru between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges. It is the headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western Karnataka. It developed as a port on the Arabian Sea—remaining, to this day, lying on the backwaters of the Netravati and Gurupura rivers, Mangalore is often used as a staging point for sea traffic along the Malabar Coast. The city has a climate and lies in the path of the Arabian Sea branch of the South-West monsoons. Mangalores port handles 75 per cent of Indias coffee and cashew exports, Mangalore was ruled by several major powers, including the Kadambas, Alupas, Vijayanagar Empire, Keladi Nayaks and the Portuguese. The city was a source of contention between the British and the Mysore rulers, Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, eventually annexed by the British in 1799, Mangalore remained part of the Madras Presidency until Indias independence in 1947. The city was unified with the state of Mysore in 1956, Mangalore is the largest city in Dakshina Kannada district and is one of the most cosmopolitan non-metro cities of India. It is also the largest city in the Coastal and Malnad regions of Karnataka, besides being a commercial, industrial, educational, Mangalore city urban agglomeration extends from Ullal in the south to Mulki in the north, covering a distance of over 40 km. The citys landscape is characterised by rolling hills, coconut palms, freshwater streams, Mangalore was ranked Indias 13th and Karnatakas second most favourable destination for business. Mangalore will be developed as a city under PM Narendra Modis flagship Smart Cities Mission. Mangalore was named after the Hindu deity Mangaladevi, the deity of the Mangaladevi temple or a synonym of Tara Bhagvati of the Vajrayana Buddhist sect. According to local legend, a princess from Malabar named Parimala or Premaladevi renounced her kingdom and became a disciple of Matsyendranath, having converted Premaladevi to the Nath sect, Matsyendranath renamed her Mangaladevi. She arrived in the area with Matsyendranath, but had to settle near Bolar in Mangalore as she fell ill on the way, eventually she died, and the Mangaladevi temple was consecrated in her honour at Bolar by the local people after her death. The city got its name from the temple, one of the earliest references to the citys name was made in 715 CE by the Pandyan King Chettian, who called the city Mangalapuram. The city and the region was a part of the Pandyan Kingdom. Ramesh, President of the Place Names Society of India, Mangaluru was first heard in 1345 CE during the Vijayanagar rule, many shilashasanas of Vijayanagar period refer the city as Mangalapura. Even before that, during the Alupas period, it was referred to as Mangalapura, the city is well known as Mangaluru in Kannada, a reference to Mangaladevi
India
