Kunhimangalam (''കുഞ്ഞിമംഗലം'') is a

census town In India and some other countries, a census town is designated as a town that satisfies certain characteristics. India In India, a census town is one which is not statutorily notified and administered as a town, but nevertheless whose population ...

situated in the northern coastal part of Kannur District in

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

state on the outskirt of

Payyanur Payyanur, , is a municipal town and a taluk, a sub-district administrative unit, in the Kannur district of Kerala, India. On 10 March 2018, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated Payyanur as the fifth taluk in the district. Payyan ...

. The population in 2011 was around 19,000 including Hindus, Christians and Muslim residents. The village lies in an agricultural region.

History

The local myth of the origin of Kunhimangalam is that a

Namboodiri The Nambudiri (), also transliterated as Nampoothiri, Nambūdiri, Namboodiri, Nampoothiri, and Nampūtiri, are a Malayali Brahmin caste, native to what is now the state of Kerala, India, where they constituted part of the traditional feudal e ...

family known as "Kunhaangalam Taravadu" were the village leaders. They ruled the village in an acceptable manner but over the time the family line ended, there was only a mother and son left. One day, the mother and son went to the

Kaveri The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats, Kodagu dis ...

river to pray for their deceased relatives. On their way back to the village, they saw from the Gadikuzhi hills some soldiers of the ruler of Chirakkal town taking Kunhimangalam. The mother and son ended their life in

fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition ...

. The mother emerged as the Goddess "Veerachamundi" and the son as the God "Veeran". The local people built a temple, the "Kunhimangalam Molom" at the site of the "

tharavad Tharavad () (തറവാട്), is the Malayalam word for the ancestral home of aristocratic families in Kerala, which usually served as the common house for the joint family system practiced in the state. The German linguist Hermann Gunder ...

" (ancestral home). Also, some recent myths say that a ruler wanted to hide his ornaments while being chased by enemies. He arrived a this place and found an ideal place to hide it. He hid his ornaments in a small mud pot, which was called as "Kunji Man Kalam". Along with the years, " Kunji Man Kalam " went on to become " Kunhimangalam" (also called as Kunjongalam while saying fast, although it is not the correct name). An early ruler in the area of Kunhimangalam was Ezhimannan of

Ezhimala Ezhimala, a hill reaching a height of , is located near Payyanur, in Kannur district of Kerala, south India. It is a part of a conspicuous and isolated cluster of hills, forming a promontory, north of Kannur (Cannanore). The Indian Naval Acad ...

. In

Sangam literature The Sangam literature (Tamil: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam'';) historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' (Tamil: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ'') connotes ...

, the area was called "Ezhil Malai" meaning "high hillock". Other terms have included "Elimala", "Mooshika Sailam", "Sapta Sailam", "Mount Eli" and "Mount the Eli". From the 6th century CE to the 11th century CE, Kunhimangalam lay in the lands of the

Mushika Kingdom Mushika dynasty, also spelled Mushaka, was a minor dynastic power that held sway over the region in and around Mount Ezhi (Ezhimala) in present-day North Malabar, Kerala, India. The country of the Mushikas, ruled by an ancient lineage of the Heh ...

. Those were the years of economic stability. The Ezhimala port came into existence. The Ezhimala hills were known for their rare medicinal herbs that had with

mythological Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

significance. Some say the mythogical

Sanjeevani (plant) Sanjeevani () is a medicinal herb featured in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Literature The herb is mentioned in the Ramayana when Ravana's son, Indrajita, hurls a powerful weapon at Lakshmana. Lakshmana is badly wounded, and is nearly killed by t ...

herb is found here. According to mythological stories, it is believed that Lord

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

had passed over here while carrying the mountain with sanjeevani for Rama and Lakshmana at

Lanka Lanka (, ) is the name given in Hindu epics to the island fortress capital of the legendary asura king Ravana in the epics of the ''Ramayana'' and the ''Mahabharata''. The fortress was situated on a plateau between three mountain peaks known ...

, a chunk fell there. The chunk separated into seven parts and fell. Thus formed seven hills or

Carved stone pillars, prehistoric stone forms, burial chambers, caves and granite platforms are visible at the foot of the hills. Sailors came to Ezhimala for the beach and views from the hills. A

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

was built at nearby Mount Dili. The western approach to Kunhimangalam is called "Changoorichal" after a Chinese ship, the ''Changu'' which visited the area in the 12th century CE. The 13th century CE merchant traveler,

Marco Polo Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...

(1254 - 1324) recorded the place name "Ezhimala". In 1962, the village of Kunhimangalam was granted its own

panchayat The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical ment ...

(local council). The council met in a rented building in Theru. The first council chairman was U. Kunhiraman who held office for twenty-four years. administered the panchayat for more than 24 years. A recent council chairman is M. Kunhiraman.

Location

Kunhimangalam is located in the northern part of Kerala state on the south-eastern outskirts of

. The village lies on the south shore of the

Perumba River The Perumba River is a 51 km long river which flows through the Kannur and Kasargod districts of the Malabar region in Kerala, India. The town of Payyannur is situated on the banks of this river subsequently the river is locally known as Payyannu ...

. The village lies on

National Highway 66 The following highways are numbered 66: Australia * Barkly Highway (Northern Territory) * Riddoch Highway Canada * Alberta Highway 66 * Highway 66 (Ontario) Finland * Kantatie 66 (Orivesi — Lapua) France * A66 autoroute Germany * Bunde ...

The village's railway station is the Ezhimala station. The nearest cities to Kunhimangalam are

payyannur Payyanur, , is a municipal town and a taluk, a sub-district administrative unit, in the Kannur district of Kerala, India. On 10 March 2018, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated Payyanur as the fifth taluk in the district. Payyan ...

(8 km)

Mangalore Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka–Ker ...

(114 km) and

Kannur Kannur (), formerly known in English as Cannanore, is a city and a municipal corporation in the state of Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kannur district and situated north of the major port city and commercial hu ...

(31 km).

Demographics

As of 2011 Census, Kunhimangalam had population of 18,965, of which 8,438 (44.5%) are males and 10,527 (55.5%) are females. Kunhimangalam

has an area of with 2,606 families residing in it. The sex ratio was 1,248 females to 1,000 males which is higher than state average of 1,084. 10.37% of the population were children under six years. Kunhimangalam had overall literacy of 94.4% higher than state average of 94%. The male literacy stands at 97.3% and female literacy was 92%.

Religion

As of 2011 Indian census, Kunhimangalam census town had total population of 18,965, of which 14,874 (78.4%) are Hindus, 3,726 (19.6%) are Muslims, 335 (1.8%) are Christians and 0.16% others. Kunhimangalam is home to

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...

and

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

. There are two main churches in the village, at Kovvappuram and the Capuchin Church at Edat. The main mosque is the Jamayeth Mosque. The two main Hindu temples is the Veerachamundeshwari temple and Malliyot Palot Kavu. There are also temples such as Sree Muthappan, the deity of the common man, Sree Trippanikkara Shiva Kshetra and the Aneekkara Poomala Bhagavathi Temple.

Temples

*Anikara *Ayyankoolam *Veerachamundeshwari(Moloth) temple *sree malliyotte pallottu kavu *Kadamkot Makkam bagavathi temple

Economy

The village is the centre of a fertile agricultural region. There are

paddy fields A paddy field is a flooded field of arable land used for growing semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in southern China, associated with pre-Aus ...

coconut trees The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

cashew nut The cashew tree (''Anacardium occidentale'') is a tropical evergreen tree native to South America in the genus ''Anacardium'' that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as , but the dwarf cult ...

trees and

areca nuts ''Areca'' is a genus of 51 species of palms in the family Arecaceae, found in humid tropical forests from the islands of the Philippines, Malaysia and India, across Southeast Asia to Melanesia. The generic name ''Areca'' is derived from a name u ...

plants. Other sources of employment are

Beedi A beedi (also spelled bidi or biri) is a thin cigarette or mini-cigar filled with tobacco flake and commonly wrapped in a tendu (''Diospyros melanoxylon'') or ''Piliostigma racemosum'' leaf tied with a string or adhesive at one end. It origi ...

cigar A cigar is a rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco leaves made to be smoked. Cigars are produced in a variety of sizes and shapes. Since the 20th century, almost all cigars are made of three distinct components: the filler, the binder l ...

works,

weaving Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal th ...

, earthen ware pottery (at Koyappara). Clothes are made at

Saliya Saliyar or Saliya or Chaliyan or Sali or Sale is an Indian caste. Their traditional occupation was that of weaving and they are found mostly in the regions of northern Kerala, southern coastal Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Caste ...

theru (weavers' market), and bronze vessels such as lamps and

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

s at Moosarikkovval.Logan W
''Malabar Manual''
Asian Educational Services, 1887. , 9788120604469 Accessed 25 June 2017. The Moosharies (Bronzesmiths) make excellent art ware from bronze. Fish are caught in the Pullankode river.

Education

Kunhimangalam has seen changes in education related to the Indian nationalist movement and the Indian agricultural movement. In 2011, at the Indian census, the rate of literacy in the village was 94.39 percent. The rate in women was 92.09 percent.Kunhimangalam
Census 2011. Accessed 25 June 2017 The schools in the village include: * Government Lower Primary School. The first school in Kunhimangalam * Edanad West Lower Primary School * Edanad Upper Primary School * Gopal Upper Primary School *

Kendriya Vidyalaya The Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan () is a system of central government schools in India that are instituted under the aegis of the Ministry of Education, Government of India. , it has a total of 1,248 schools in India, and three abroad in Moscow ...

References

{{Kannur district Villages near Payyanur Cities and towns in Kannur district