Islam arrived in Kerala, the Malayalam-speaking region in the south-western tip of India, through Middle Eastern merchants.Miller, E. Roland. "Mappila Muslim Culture" State University of New York Press, Albany (2015); p. xi. The Indian coast has an ancient relation with West Asia and the Middle East, even during the pre-Islamic period.
Kerala Muslims or Malayali Muslims from north Kerala are generally referred to as Mappilas. Mappilas are but one among the many communities that forms the Muslim population of Kerala.Kunhali, V. "Muslim Communities in Kerala to 1798" PhD Dissertation Aligarh Muslim University (1986) According to historian M. G. S. Narayanan and other scholars, the early members of Muslim Mappila community originated from the descendants of children born to non-Muslim Arab traders and native women along the Malabar coast, before Islam. These early individuals were referred to as ma-ppila, as they did not belong to any existing caste group. Arab traders often stayed on the Malabar coast for extended periods, sometimes up to three months, while waiting for the reverse monsoon winds, during which some formed temporary relationships with local women, often in exchange for money. The offspring of such unions were not accepted into any Hindu caste and came to be known as ma-ppila.
After the rise of Islam in Arabia, many among these Mappilas embraced the new faith. However, the majority of present-day Mappilas estimated to constitute around 90 percent are considered descendants of lower-caste Hindus, mainly Dalits, who converted to Islam at a later stage to escape caste based oppression. Conversion to non-Hindu religions offered them social freedom, as the Brahmanical order did not define how such converts should be treated. Scholars note that these conversions were motivated primarily by the desire for social emancipation rather than by theological comparison between the Bhagavad Gita and the Qur’an.
Even after India’s independence, the practice known as Arabikalyanam (“Arab marriage”) remained prevalent in the districts of Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode, and Malappuram, where visiting Arabs offered money or wealth in exchange for temporary marriages with Mappila women. Several Mappila families in Kozhikode and Malappuram accumulated considerable wealth through these arrangements.Miller, R. E. "Mappila" in The Encyclopedia of Islam Volume VI. Leiden E. J. Brill 1988 p. 458-66 As per some studies, the term "Mappila" denotes not a single community but a variety of Malayali Muslims from Kerala (former Malabar District) of different origins. Some were called 'Moors' in Kasargod district.Subrahmanyam, Sanjay."The Political Economy of Commerce: Southern India 1500–1650" Cambridge University Press, (2002) Unlike the common misconception, the caste system does exist among the Muslims of Kerala. Muslims in Malabar are also known as Jonakar (similar to Tamil name for Sri Lankan Moors), Koya, and Kaka (meaning “crow,” referring to its characteristics). During the colonial period, an unusual practice called Hal-ilakkam (running amok) was reportedly common among the Mappilas of Malappuram, in which a priest would select a mentally disturbed or emotionally vulnerable person, such as someone whose wife had been abducted, to incite him into attacking non-Muslims as a means of regaining his lost honour. This practice is described in detail by Lance Corporal Vincent J. Ryder of the Cheshire Regiment, in his 1907 book 'Two Years in Malabar'. The Muslims of Southern and Central Kerala or the erstwhile Kingdom of Travancore are known as Methanmar and Rowthers.
Muslims in Kerala share a common language (Malayalam) with the rest of the non-Muslim population and have a culture commonly regarded as the Malayali culture.Pg 461, Roland Miller, The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol VI, Brill 1988Panikkar, K. N., Against Lord and State: Religion and Peasant Uprisings in Malabar 1836–1921T. Nandakumar, "54.72 % of population in Kerala are Hindus" The Hindu August 26, 2015 Most of the Muslims in Kerala follow Sunni Islam of Shāfiʿī School of thought. Kerala's Muslim community has a higher Total Fertility Rate (TFR) compared to other religious groups in the state, with a TFR of 2.25, nearly double that of other religious groups in Kerala. If a typical Hindu family has 2 children, a typical Muslim family in Kerala, based on the TFR ratio, would have around 3 children.Miller, Roland. E., "Mappila" in "The Encyclopedia of Islam". Volume VI. E. J. Brill, Leiden. 1987 pp. 458–56.
History
Kerala has been a major spice exporter since 3000 BCE, according to Sumerian records and it is still referred to as the "Garden of Spices" or as the "Spice Garden of India". Kerala's spices attracted ancient Arabs, Babylonians, Assyrians and Egyptians to the Malabar Coast in the 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE. Phoenicians established trade with Kerala during this period. Arabs and Phoenicians were the first to enter Malabar Coast to trade Spices. The Arabs on the coasts of Yemen, Oman, and the Persian Gulf, must have made the first long voyage to Kerala and other eastern countries. They must have brought the Cinnamon of Kerala to the Middle East. The Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BCE) records that in his time the cinnamon spice industry was monopolized by the Egyptians and the Phoenicians.
In the past, there were many Muslim traders in the ports of Malabar. There had been considerable trade relations between Middle East and Malabar Coast even before the time of Muhammad (c. 570 – 632 AD).P. P., Razak Abdul "Colonialism and community formation in Malabar: a study of muslims of Malabar" Unpublished PhD thesis (2013) Department of History, University of Calicut Muslim tombstones with ancient dates, short inscriptions in medieval mosques, and rare Arab coin collections are the major sources of early Muslim presence on the Malabar Coast. Islam arrived in Kerala, a part of the larger Indian Ocean rim, via spice and silk traders from the Middle East. Historians do not rule out the possibility of Islam being introduced to Kerala as early as the seventh century CE.Katz 2000; Koder 1973; Thomas Puthiakunnel 1973; David de Beth Hillel, 1832; Lord, James Henry 1977. Notable has been the occurrence of Cheraman Perumal Tajuddin, the Hindu King that moved to Arabia to meet the Islamic prophet Muhammad and converted to Islam.Minu Ittyipe; Solomon to Cheraman; Outlook Indian Magazine; 2012 Kerala Muslims are generally referred to as the Mappilas. Mappilas are but one among the many communities that forms the Muslim population of Kerala. According to the Legend of Cheraman Perumals, the first Indian mosque was built in 624 AD at Kodungallur with the mandate of the last the ruler (the Cheraman Perumal) of Chera dynasty, who converted to Islam during the lifetime of Muhammad (c. 570–632). According to Qissat Shakarwati Farmad, the Masjids at Kodungallur, Kollam, Madayi, Barkur, Mangalore, Kasaragod, Kannur, Dharmadam, Panthalayini, and Chaliyam, were built during the era of Malik Dinar, and they are among the oldest Masjids in Indian subcontinent.Prange, Sebastian R. Monsoon Islam: Trade and Faith on the Medieval Malabar Coast. Cambridge University Press, 2018. 98. It is believed that Malik Dinar died at Thalangara in Kasaragod town.Pg 58, Cultural heritage of Kerala: an introduction, A. Sreedhara Menon, East-West Publications, 1978 According to popular tradition, Islam was brought to Lakshadweep islands, situated just to the west of Malabar Coast, by Ubaidullah in 661 CE. His grave is believed to be located on the island of Andrott. A few Umayyad (661–750 AD) coins were discovered from Kothamangalam in the eastern part of Ernakulam district.
The known earliest mention about Muslims of Kerala is in the Quilon Syrian copper plates of 9th century CE, granted by the ruler of Kollam. A number of foreign accounts have mentioned about the presence of considerable Muslim population in the Malabar Coast. Arab writers such as Al-Masudi of Baghdad (896–956 AD), Muhammad al-Idrisi (1100–1165 AD), Abulfeda (1273–1331 AD), and Al-Dimashqi (1256–1327 AD) mention the Muslim communities in Kerala. Some historians assume that the Mappilas can be considered as the first native, settled Muslim community in South Asia. Al-Biruni (973–1048 CE) appears to be the first writer to call Malabar Coast as Malabar. Authors such as Ibn Khordadbeh and Al-Baladhuri mention Malabar ports in their works. The Arab writers had called this place Malibar, Manibar, Mulibar, and Munibar. Malabar is reminiscent of the word Malanad which means the land of hills. According to William Logan, the word Malabar comes from a combination of the Dravidian word Mala (hill) and the Persian/Arabic word Barr (country/continent). The Kodungallur Mosque, has a granite foundation exhibiting 11th–12th century architectural style. The Arabic inscription on a copper slab within the Madayi Mosque in Kannur records its foundation year as 1124 CE.
The monopoly of overseas spice trade from Malabar Coast was safe with the West Asian shipping magnates of Kerala ports. The Muslims were a major financial power to be reckoned with in the kingdoms of Kerala and had great political influence in the Hindu royal courts. Travellers have recorded the considerably huge presence of Muslim merchants and settlements of sojourning traders in most of the ports of Kerala. Immigration, intermarriage and missionary activity/conversion — secured by the common interest in the spice trade — helped in this development.Prange, Sebastian R. Monsoon Islam: Trade and Faith on the Medieval Malabar Coast. Cambridge University Press, 2018. The Koyilandy Jumu'ah Mosque contains an Old Malayalam inscription written in a mixture of Vatteluttu and Grantha scripts which dates back to 10th century CE.Aiyer, K. V. Subrahmanya (ed.), South Indian Inscriptions. VIII, no. 162, Madras: Govt of India, Central Publication Branch, Calcutta, 1932. p. 69. It is a rare surviving document recording patronage by a Hindu king (Bhaskara Ravi) to the Muslims of Kerala. A 13th century granite inscription, written in a mixture of Old Malayalam and Arabic, at Muchundi Mosque in Kozhikode mentions a donation by the king to the mosque.M. G. S. Narayanan. "Kozhikkodinte Katha". Malayalam/Essays. Mathrubhumi Books. Second Edition (2017)
The Moroccan traveller Ibn Battutah (14th century) has recorded the considerably huge presence of Muslim merchants and settlements of sojourning traders in most of the ports of Kerala. By the early decades of the 14th century, travellers speak of Calicut (Kozhikode) as the major port city in Kerala. Some of the important administrative positions in the kingdom of Zamorin of Calicut, such as that of the port commissioner, were held by Muslims.K. V. Krishna Iyer, Zamorins of Calicut: From the earliest times to AD 1806. Calicut: Norman Printing Bureau, 1938. The port commissioner, the Shah Bandar, represented commercial interests of the Muslim merchants. In his account, Ibn Battutah mentions Shah Bandars in Calicut as well as Quilon (Ibrahim Shah Bandar and Muhammed Shah Bandar). The Ali Rajas of Arakkal kingdom, based at Kannur, ruled the Lakshadweep Islands. Arabs had the monopoly of trade in Malabar Coast and Indian Ocean until the Portuguese Age of Discovery. The "nakhudas", merchant magnates owning ships, spread their shipping and trading business interests across the Indian Ocean.