The Malabar Coast () is the southwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. It generally refers to the western coastline of India stretching from Konkan to Kanyakumari. Geographically, it comprises one of the wettest regions of the subcontinent, which includes the southern tip of Goa, Kanara region of Karnataka, all of Kerala and Kanyakumari region of Tamil Nadu.
Kuttanad, which is the point of the lowest elevation in India, lies on the Malabar Coast. Kuttanad, also known as "the Rice Bowl of Kerala", is among the few places in the world where cultivation takes place below sea level. The peak of Anamudi, which is also the point of highest elevation in India outside the Himalayas, lies parallel to the Malabar Coast on the Western Ghats.
The region parallel to the Malabar Coast gently slopes from the eastern highland of Western Ghats ranges to the western coastal lowland. The moisture-laden winds of the Southwest monsoon, on reaching the southernmost point of the Indian subcontinent, because of its topography, divide into two branches; the "Arabian Sea Branch" and the "Bay of Bengal Branch". The "Arabian Sea Branch" of the Southwest monsoon first hits the Western Ghats, making Kerala the first state in India to receive rain from the Southwest monsoon. The Malabar Coast is a source of biodiversity in India.
Ayurveda and traditional healing traditions The Malabar Coast played a significant role in the development and preservation of classical Ayurveda in Kerala. Several hereditary physician families known as the Ashtavaidya traditions emerged from different parts of Kerala and contributed to Sanskrit scholarship, medical education and clinical practice based on classical Ayurvedic texts such as the Ashtanga Hridayam.
Among the notable Ayurvedic lineages associated with Malabar is the Pulamanthole Mooss tradition from present-day Malappuram district. The family belongs to the Ashtavaidya system and has historically been associated with the preservation and practice of classical Kerala Ayurveda.
Regional traditions and historical accounts state that physicians from the Pulamanthole Mooss lineage maintained connections with the royal households of Travancore (Thiruvithamkoor), including consultation and treatment practices associated with members of the Travancore royal family during the princely state period. The royal patronage extended toward Ayurveda and Sanskrit scholarship by Travancore rulers contributed to the prominence of traditional physician families across Kerala, including those connected with Malabar.
The Pulamanthole tradition is associated with the study and application of the Ashtanga Hridayam, one of the foundational texts of Ayurveda attributed to Vagbhata. The lineage is also connected with the Sree Rudhra Dhanwanthari Temple at Pulamanthole, a temple dedicated to Lord Dhanwanthari, regarded in Hindu tradition as the deity of Ayurveda and healing.
The temple is known for rituals associated with healing traditions, including the Sarva Roga Shamana Pooja, which is conducted as a devotional observance for relief from diseases and physical suffering. The ritual attracts devotees and Ayurveda followers from different parts of Kerala and outside the state.
Institutions associated with the lineage include Pulamanthole Mooss Ayurveda Hospital and related treatment centres engaged in Panchakarma, neurological rehabilitation, musculoskeletal disorders and hereditary condition management.
The tradition gained wider cultural recognition through associations with Carnatic musician Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, who reportedly underwent Ayurvedic treatment under the Pulamanthole tradition after suffering voice-related ailments.
In contemporary times, institutions associated with the lineage have expanded their activities through charitable healthcare initiatives including Ayurveda Thanal, aimed at improving access to Ayurvedic treatment and support for economically disadvantaged communities.
Etymology
Malabar is reminiscent of the word Malanad or Malavaram in Malayalam, which means the land of mountains. The earliest recorded use of 'Malabar' is by Al-Biruni (AD 973–1048), though the name had already been in use much earlier. Authors such as Ibn Khordadbeh and Al-Baladhuri mention Malabar ports in their works.Mohammad, K.M. "Arab relations with Malabar Coast from 9th to 16th centuries" Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. Vol. 60 (1999), pp. 226–234. According to William Logan, the word Malabar comes from a combination of the Dravidian word Mala (mountain) and the Persian/Arabic word Barr (country/continent). The first element of the name is first attested in the Topography written by Cosmas Indicopleustes (6th century CE), which indicates that Arab sailors already call Kerala Male at that time. The Topography mentions a pepper emporium called Male, which clearly gave its name to Malabar ('the country of Male').C. A. Innes and F. B. Evans, Malabar and Anjengo, volume 1, Madras District Gazetteers (Madras: Government Press, 1915), p. 2.M. T. Narayanan, Agrarian Relations in Late Medieval Malabar (New Delhi: Northern Book Centre, 2003), xvi–xvii. The second part of the name is thought by scholars to be the Arabic word ('continent') or its Persian relative ('country').
Until the arrival of the British, the term Malabar was used in foreign trade circles as a general name for Kerala. Earlier, the term Malabar had also been used to denote Tulu Nadu and Kanyakumari, which lie contiguous to Kerala in the southwestern coast of India, in addition to the modern state of Kerala. The people of Malabar were known as Malabars. The term Malabar is often used to denote the entire southwestern coast of India.
Additionally, European traders and scholars referred to Tamils of Sri Lanka as Malabars. In the 18th century, J. P. Fabricius described his Tamil-English Dictionary as the "Dictionary of Malabar and English".
Definitions
The term Malabar Coast, in historical contexts, refers to India's southwestern coast, which lies on the narrow coastal plain of Karnataka and Kerala between the Western Ghats range and the Arabian Sea.Malabar Coast, Britannica.com. Accessed 7 March 2023. The coast runs from south of Goa to Kanyakumari on India's southern tip. India's southeastern coast is called the Coromandel Coast.Map of Coromandel Coast on a website dedicated to the East Indian Campaign (1782–1783).
In ancient times the term Malabar was used to denote the entire south-western coast of the Indian peninsula. The region formed part of the ancient kingdom of Chera until the early 12th century. Following the breakup of the Chera Kingdom, the chieftains of the region proclaimed their independence. Notable among these were the Zamorins of Kozhikode, Kolathunadu, Perumbadappu Swaroopam, Venad, Kingdom of Valluvanad of Kingdom of Valluvanad.
The name Malabar Coast is sometimes used as an all-encompassing term for the entire Indian coast from Konkan to the tip of the subcontinent at Kanyakumari. It stretches approximately 845 kilometers (525 miles) along the southwestern coast of India. It extends from the southern tip of Goa to Kanyakumari, encompassing the coastal regions of Karnataka and Kerala. It is flanked by the Arabian Sea on the west and the Western Ghats on the east. The southern part of this narrow coast is referred to as the South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests.
Malabar is also used by ecologists to refer to the Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests of southwestern India (present-day Kerala).
Geography
Geographically, the Malabar Coast can be divided into three climatically distinct regions: the eastern highlands; rugged and cool mountainous terrain, the central mid-lands; rolling hills, and the western lowlands; coastal plains.
The Western Ghats mountain range lie parallel to the coast on the eastern highland and separate the plains from the Deccan Plateau. These mountains are recognised as one of the world's eight "hottest hotspots" of biological diversity and are listed among UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The peak of Anamudi in Kerala, at an elevation of , is the highest peak in India outside the Himalayas. The chain's forests are considered to be older than the Himalaya mountains.
Malabar's western coastal belt is relatively flat compared to the eastern region, and is criss-crossed by a network of interconnected brackish canals, lakes, estuaries, and rivers known as the Kerala Backwaters. The Kuttanad region, also known as The Rice Bowl of Kerala, has the lowest altitude in India. The country's longest lake Vembanad, dominates the backwaters; it lies between Alappuzha and Kochi and is about in area. Around eight percent of India's waterways are found in Kerala.
Physical geography
The term Malabar Coast is sometimes used as an all-encompassing term for the entire Indian coast from the western coast of Konkan to the tip of the subcontinent at Cape Comorin. It is over 525 miles or 845 kilometers long. It spans from the south-western coast of Maharashtra and goes along the coastal region of Goa, through the entire western coast of Karnataka and Kerala and reaches till Kanyakumari. It is flanked by the Arabian Sea on the west and the Western Ghats on the east. The Southern part of this narrow coast is the South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests. Climate-wise, the Malabar Coast, especially on its westward-facing mountain slopes, comprises the wettest region of southern India, as the Western Ghats intercept the moisture-laden Southwest monsoon rains.
Malabar rainforests
The Malabar rainforests include these ecoregions recognized by biogeographers:
the Malabar Coast moist forests formerly occupied the coastal zone, up to the 250 meters in elevation (but 95% of these forests no longer exist) the South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests grow at intermediate elevations the South Western Ghats montane rain forests cover the areas above 1000 meters
The Monsooned Malabar coffee bean comes from this area.
Port cities
The Malabar Coast featured (and in some instances still does) several historic port cities. Notable among these were/are Naura, Vizhinjam, Muziris, Nelcynda, Beypore and Thundi (near Ponnani or Kadalundi) during ancient times, and Kozhikode (Calicut), Kollam, Ponnani, Kannur (Cannanore), and Cochin in the medieval period, and have served as centers of the Indian Ocean trade for millennia.
Because of their orientation to the sea and to maritime commerce, the Malabar coast cities feel very cosmopolitan, and have been home to some of the first groups of Jews (known today as Cochin Jews), Syrian Christians (known as Saint Thomas Christians), Muslims (presently known as Mappilas), and Anglo-Indians in India.The Jews of India: A Story of Three Communities by Orpa Slapak. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. 2003. p. 27. .The Clash of Cultures in Malabar : Encounters, Conflict and Interaction with European Culture, 1498-1947 Korean Minjok Leadership Academy, Myeong, Do Hyeong, Term Paper, AP World History Class, July 2012
History
Prehistory A substantial portion of the Malabar Coast including the western coastal lowlands and the plains of the midland may have been under the sea in ancient times. Marine fossils have been found in an area near Changanassery, thus supporting the hypothesis. Pre-historical archaeological findings include dolmens of the Neolithic era in the Marayur area of the Idukki district, which lie on the eastern highland made by Western Ghats. Rock engravings in the Edakkal Caves, in Wayanad date back to the Neolithic era around 6000 BCE.
Ancient and medieval history