KPSC - 03 - Culture and Heritage of Kerala

Culture and Heritage of Kerala

Among the people who have enriched Indian Cultural Heritage and helped the cause of national integration, the people of the Kerala region of South India have a place of honour. Kerala culture is in fact, an integral part of Indian culture. Kerala like the Indian sub-continent can claim to have a culture the history of which runs into the dim recesses of antiquity.

Kerala's culture is derived from both a Tamil-heritage region known as Tamilakam and southern coastal Karnataka. Kerala can largely trace its non-prehistoric cultural genesis to its membership in a vaguely-defined historical region known as Thamizhakam - a land defined by a common Tamil culture and encompassing the Chera, Chola, and Pandya kingdoms. At that time, the music, dance, language (first Dravid Bhasha "Dravidian language"- then Tamil), and Sangam (a vast corpus of Tamil literature composed between 1,500-2,000 years ago) found in Kerala were all similar to that found in the rest of Thamizhakam (today's Tamil Nadu). Later, Kerala's culture was elaborated upon through centuries of contact with neighboring and contact with overseas lands yet all through this time, its cultural heritage remained defined by its antiquity and organic continuity.

Kerala's culture is also a composite and cosmopolitan culture to which several people and races have made their significant contributions. The gradual evolution of composite and cosmopolitans’ culture led to the emergence of a spirit of tolerance and catholicity of outlook, which still persists among the people of Kerala, its history, unfolds the romantic fascinating story of a unique process of cultural synthesis and social assimilation. In response to every challenge Kerala has demonstrated through the ages its genius for adaptation and fusion of old traditions and new values in every sphere of human thought and endeavor persisted through the ages precisely for the reasons of antiquity, unity, continuity and universality of its nature. In its widest sense it embraces the highest achievements of the human spirit in every sphere of life. Thus, in its totality, it represents the quintessence of the collective achievements of a people in the fields of culture of Kerala has religion and philosophy, language and literature, art and architecture, education and learning and economic and social organization. In fact, all through its history the genius of Kerala has blossomed forth in all its vigour and vitality and has helped its people to reach the peak of excellence in all their endeavours.

The culture of Malayalees has a flavour of its own, even though it forms part of the Indian and Dravidian culture. This is because of the peculiar geographical features of Kerala. Bounded on the east by the Western Ghats and the west by the Arabian Sea, it has had long periods of insular existence. This has resulted in the distinctiveness of their language, dress culture and institutions. The origin of the inhabitants of Kerala is nearly lost in the hoary past. It is beyond doubt that the Malayalee culture is the offshoot of Dravidian culture. There are striking similarities in the languages, customs and other cultural aspects to the Mediterranean civilization and Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley and that of Sri Lanka. Anthropologically, the Dravidas are a mixture of Proto-Australoids, Mediterranean and Negritos. History has it that the Dravidas inhabited a land to the west of the Indian peninsula and eventually made Madurai their capital. There is a tradition in the 'Vadakkan Pattukal' that the Ezhavas arrived in Kerala by sea from Ezham, which is interpreted to be the present day Sri Lanka.