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With a history that is culturally rich and
ethnically diverse, Ponnani
carves itself a niche in the history of Malabar and the country as a
whole. This tiny sea side town was the
naval base of Kunjali Marakkar , the army chief of the Samoothiri, whose
reign is known as the 'Golden era' of Malabar.
Behind the name
According to some historical records, Ponnani’s history dates back to
2000 years. There are differences of opinion regarding the evolution of
the name 'Ponnani'.
Legend has it that the Ponnana (meaning a type of elephant in Malayalam)
was auctioned in the Brahmin temples here and thus came to be known as
Ponnani. Yet another legend says that a king called ‘Ponnan’ ruled the
land and was thereafter called Ponnani.
Historical records rather point to another truth. The use of Gold coins
('Ponn - nanayam' in Malayalam) . This represents the wealth that was
brought in by the trade relations with the Arabs and Europeans.
Political History
Ponnani was the second capital town of Malabar during the reign of
Samoothiri. When Vasco De Gama landed at Kappad in Kozhikode in
1498,Sammothiri was residing in Ponnani. The rule of Samoothiris came to
an end when Hyder Ali, the then ruler of Mysore, captured the
place. Ponnani then became a part of Mysore kingdom and later under the
rule of his son Tipu Sultan. The road from Palakkad to Ponnani, Tipu
Sultan Road was named after him.
The fall of Tipu Sultan led Ponnani to be a part of Bombay Province
under the British rule. Later this place became a part of Malabar under
Madras state.
After independence,when the state of Kerala was formed in 1956, Ponnani
was included in Palakkad district. In 1969,the Malappuram district came
into being and Ponnani became part of that.
References in Malabar Manual
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William Logon, the historian, records in his Malabar manual about the
Ponnani Juma’ Masjid built in 925 Hijrah is 90 ft long and 60 ft wide.
Zainudhin Ibn Ali Ibn Ahmed Ma’bari was the one who built it. He was the
Makhdum, meaning the one who was worthy of service. |
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He held the reigns of spiritual leadership of Muslims in and around
Ponnani. He authored many books of which some of are textbooks in
Egyptian and other Arab countries’ universities.
William Logon says that in 1887 there were 400 students in the Juma’
Masjid Madrasa. Kunhai Musliyar, Umar Qazi, Sheikh Syed Hasan Jifri and Ali Musliyar were some of the products of Ponnani Madrasa of
Juma’ Masjid. This is where the Bharat river and Arabian Sea meets. Ponnani, often referred
as the cultural capital of Kerala Muslims, has some of the most rare
collection of Arabic books of the past. The 'Mounathul Islam Sabha'
of Ponnani is a century old institution and is famous for Islamic
studies in south India. The Thottungal Masjid
built by Sheikh Faridudhin, is the oldest mosque in Ponnani.
Malik Ibnu Dinar, the
first Islamic missionary who came to Kerala, was believed to have
visited Ponnani. The Juma-ath mosque, the biggest mosque in the town,
was built by Sheikh Zainuddin Makhdoom in the 16th century.
Zainuddin
Makhdom was the great historian, who wrote the first book on early
history of Kerala.
Ponnani was considered
the Al Azhar university of Kerala, for its great religious schools and
teachers. Ponnani was called the small Makkah in Kerala, Tamil Nadu,
Malaya, Indonesia, Lakshadeep etc. It was the scholars of the Makhdum
family that gave Ponnani this historic importance. They had migrated
from Yemen centuries ago. |