Perspectives of Kerala Studies (An Old and Rare Book)

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'Perspectives of Kerala Studies' is a remarkable contribution to the study of the society and culture of Kerala. It is a collection of selective articles from the souvenir published in connection with the 18th session of South Indian History Congress and a few articles contributed by eminent scholars on special request. The overall result of the effort is an outstand- ing work on different aspects of Kerala Studies.

The article written by Prof. K.S. Mathew deserves special mention as it throws light on an area which is very rarely dealt with. Shipbuilding had been a traditional occupation of the people of Malabar coast which was blessed with the availability of fine teak wood. It is quite interesting to note the evolution of the Portugese technolofy in Malabar by utilising the local resources and man power. One feels amazed to realise that some of the basic principles used by the Portughese in building ships are relevant even to the modern times. I wish if historians could concentrate their attention to such areas which are neglected due to their continuous efforts in political history.

The Eighteenth Session of South Indian History Congress (1998) held at Sree Sankaracharya University of Kalady is the inspiring force behind the publication of this volume. With the intention of publishing a Souvenir in connection with the event, we wrote to historians requesting them to contribute articles. The response was beyond our expectations. To our deep regret, we could not publish many of the articles as we had to limit the contents. After the event, we contemplated on utilising the learned articles. And this volume is the result of such an effort. To make it more meaningful and comprehensive this volume includes the relevant articles published in the Souvenir and others which are written by scholars exclusively for it.

Kerala Studies has become an area of enquiry and research recently. But enough number of publications have not yet been in this field. One of the major drawbacks faced by the historiography of Kerala is that all the early historical works on this region followed the traditional path for many years. Myths and traditions continued to be the major source for the writers. The Parasurama legend is given a pride of place even today while teaching the history of Kerala in the lower classes. Lack of original source materials especially in the case of ancient and medieval Kerala has been a problem for the historians. In fact proper attempts were not made to find out and use them. Archaeological excavations conducted in India were mainly limited to the regions of north India and no serious attempt was made by the Archaeological Survey of India in Kerala as if this part of the country is free from ancient culture. Recently, efforts have been made to excavate certain regions of Kerala. Significant discoveries have been made, thanks to the devoted works undertaken at the initiative of the universities and research centres. It has been proved beyond doubt that there are a number of sites in Kerala from where valuable remains can be discovered if intensive excavations are made. Unfortunately it is yet to be fulfilled.

**Contents and Sample Pages**