Nambudiris

[Sudalaimuthu Palaniappan]

In a message dated 5/25/99 7:40:32 PM Central Daylight Time,
naga_ganesan at HOTMAIL.COM writes:

> Pl. inform us of a university level publication talking of
>  the connection between Persian and Indian churches in 4th century AD.
>  Possible, but where it is written??

See the following book for details on Kerala-Persia/Syria Christian
connections.
Saints, goddesses, and kings : Muslims and Christians in South Indian
Society, 1700-1900. / Bayly, Susan / Cambridge (England) / 1989
DS 484.4 B39 1989


>  >The translation of the copper plates can be found at
>  >www.acns.com/~mm9n/Malankara/4.httm
>
>   Which century copper plates? Will be grateful for the
>  4th century grant to Christians (I very much doubt this;
>  the honors quoted are usually Vijayanagar or later)
>  and the grant to jews (This I have seen long ago).
>
See the following book for photos and translation of two sets of copper
plates at the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church in Kottayam. A.C. Burnell
dated them in the 8th and 9th centuries AD well before Vijayanagar period. P.
Shangoonny Menon's date was 3rd century. Kookel Kelu Nair dated it in the 4th
century AD.

The Syrian Christians of Kerala. / Pothan, S. G., 1905- / New York / 1963
275.48 P848S

The following book by a Dravidian linguist and may be the earliest Dravidian
linguist of Indian origin at University of Pennsylvania gives the text of the
plates and dates them to the end of the ninth century AD. Interestingly one
of them mentions a dignitary named vELkula cuntaran2 (cuntaran2 of the vEL
kula)

Evolution of Malayalam. / Sekhar, Anantaramayyar Chandra / Poona / 1953
494.812 SE47E

Claiming Nambudiri and Nair origin by Syrian Christians may not be
believable. But there can be no doubt about the presence of Christians in
Kerala for more than thousand years.

Regards
S. Palaniappan