Anchery Kudumbam
Encyclopedia
Introduction
The Anchery Kudumbam(അഞ്ചേരി കുടുംബം) family members live mainly in and around Anchery, Pariyaram, PuthuppallyPuthuppally
Puthuppally Puthupally is situated 8 km south of Kottayam town encircled by rivers, paddy fields and hills having a 30000 + population of various cast and creeds...
, Meenadom, Thottakadu
Thottakadu
Thottakadu is small village in Kottayam District, Kerala state, India. Nearest towns are Changanacherry and Kottayam. It is under the Puthupally Grama Panchayath....
, Pampady
Pampady
Pampady is a small town 16 kilometres east of Kottayam in Kerala, Southern India. It lies midway between the serene backwaters of Western Kerala and the misty mountains of Western Ghats.-History:...
and Manarcadu in Kottayam
Kottayam
Kottayam is a city in the Indian state of Kerala, spread over an area of 55.40 km2. It is the administrative capital of the Kottayam district. Kottayam Kottayam (Malayalam: കോട്ടയം) is a city in the Indian state of Kerala, spread over an area of 55.40 km2. It is the administrative...
Taluk. They also inhabit places like Kothamangalam
Kothamangalam
Kothamangalam is a town located in eastern part of Ernakulam district in the Indian state of Kerala situated 45 km north east of Kochi City. It is located around 14 km north east to the town of Muvattupuzha. The town is situated in the foothills of the Western Ghats mountain ranges. It...
, Adimali
Adimali
Adimali is a town in Idukki district of Kerala state, India.Adimali is located on the National Highway 49 connecting Kochi and Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Munnar, a famous hill station is about 30 km northeast of Adimali. The Cheeyappara and Valara waterfalls are located nearby. Pepper cultivation...
, Vandenmedu, Thiruvalla, Edathua
Edathua
Edathua is a place in Kuttanad, Alappuzha district, Kerala, India.Situated 12 km from Thiruvalla Town, Edathua is famous for the St. George Catholic Church known as 'Edathua Palli' situated here.The church was built by Fr. Thomas Olakkapadil. The Church celebrates its major feast during the...
, Varadoor and Kudamalloor. The members practice Orthodox
Orthodox Christianity
The term Orthodox Christianity may refer to:* the Eastern Orthodox Church and its various geographical subdivisions...
, Jacobite
West Syrian Rite
The West Syrian Rite, also known as the Syrian Rite or the Syro-Antiochene Rite, is a Christian liturgical rite chiefly practiced in the Syriac Orthodox Church and churches related to or descended from it. It is part of the liturgical family known as the Antiochene Rite, which originated in the...
, Marthoma, Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, Church of South India
Church of South India
The Church of South India is the successor of the Church of England in India. It came into being in 1947 as a union of Anglican and Protestant churches in South India. With a membership of over 3.8 million, it is India's second largest Christian church after the Roman Catholic Church in India...
, and Pentacost Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
faiths. The present day Anchery Kudumbam are the descendants of a great ancestor, Anchery Punnoose Mapilla who settled down at Pariyaram around 1600 A. D. Anchery need not necessarily represent Christian malayalis, many Hindu families also carry the family name Anchery.
The Anchery Family Descendant Branches
ശാഖകളുടെ പേര്(Branches Name) |
| അഞ്ചേരില്‍ കോതമംഗലം (Ancheril Kothamangalam) |
| ചേരിയില്‍/താഴത്തേല്‍ (Cheriyil/Thazhathel) |
| ഇലക്കൊടിഞ്ഞിയില്‍ (Elakodinjiyil) |
| കളപ്പുരയ്ക്കവയലില്‍ (Kalapurackavayalil) |
| കാലായിപ്പറമ്പില്‍/തെക്കേപറമ്പില്‍ (Kalayilparampil/Thekkeparampil) |
| കാരാറ്റില്‍ (Karattil) |
| കൊച്ചുപാറയ്ക്കല്‍ (Kochuparackal) |
| കോമടത്ത് (Komadathu) |
| കുഴിയാത്തുകടുപ്പില്‍ (Kuzhiyathukaduppil) |
| മഠത്തില്‍/കൊട്ടാരത്തില്‍ (Madathil/Kottarathil) |
| മഠത്തിപ്പറമ്പില്‍ (Madathiparampil) |
| നരിമറ്റത്തില്‍ (Narimattathil) |
| നിരവത്ത് (Niravathu) |
| ഓത്താപ്പറമ്പില്‍ (Othapparampil) |
| പാണൂര്‍/പാണൂര്‍ കടുപ്പില്‍ (Panoor/Panoor Kaduppil) |
| പുത്തന്‍പുരയ്ക്കല്‍ (Puthenpurackal) |
| വടക്കുംപാടത്ത് (Vadakkumpadathu) |
| വലിയപുഞ്ചാല്‍ (Valiyapunchal) |
| വലിയവീട്ടില്‍ (Valiaveettil) |
| വരിക്കപ്ലാംമൂട്ടില്‍ (Varickaplamoottil) |
| വട്ടപറമ്പില്‍ (Vattaparampil) |
| കല്ലൂപറമ്പില്‍ (Kallooparampil) |
| അഞ്ചേരില്‍ (എടത്വ) (Ancheril (Edathua)) |
| പുളിമൂട്ടില്‍ (Pulimoottil) |
The Origins
The advent of Christianity in India can be traced to the landing of St Tomas at Maalaankara near Kodungallor in A. D. 52, his preaching of the gospel to people living in “five localities” there, and the consequent evolution of the first Christian community in India – the Nasraanikal or the Suriyani kristhyaanikal. ‘Nasraanikal’ as they were the followers of Jesus the Nazarin, and ‘Suriyaanikal’ since ‘Suriyaani’ or Syriac was the language of their liturgy. The Nasraanis from the above “five localities” came to be known as Ancherrikaar. (‘anchu’ = five; ‘cherry’ = kara or localities)This time around Kozhikottu Saamoothiri, the ruler of Calicut, defeated the King of Kochi in a war and burned down Kodungalloor, the prosperous trade centre of the defeated king. This made the Nasraanis flee Kodungalloor and move to Kuravilangadu, and from there to Bharananganam. An important family among them was ‘Plaanthottathil’, and Punnoose Mapilla their prominent son. He was a successful businessman, an expert in trade and commerce, an accomplished Sanskrit scholar and above all an acknowledged astrologer. Literature on these subjects (Thaliola grandham) were among his priceless possessions. Again, he was a staunch practitioner of religious rites.
Punnoose Mappilla had to make frequent business trips to nearby Pala from Bhrananganam. During these trips somehow he courted the displeasure of Vadakumkoor Raja. So he moved to Thekumkoor kingdom. The Raja of Thekumkoor assigned him land in Thalikottai near Kottayam. (The name Anchery is associated with this place even today). The proud and mercurial man he is, Punnoose Mapilla would not bow before any one, and soon fell out with the Thekumkoor Raja too, and moved over to Mavelikara. Once when Mavelikara Raja made plans to attack Thekumkoor, those who wanted to see Punnoose Mapilla’s downfall, plotted to set him up as a spy. Instead, realising the treachery, the shrewd Mapilla passed on a warning to the other side. Having been forewarned, Thekumkoor could easily withstand the attack. Fearing reprisal, Punnoose Mapilla returned to Thekumkoor, and finally the Raja of Thekumkoor settled him at Pariyaram, which until some 50 years ago, used to be referred to as ‘Anchery Kara’ though not on official records. Even today private buses plying the local routes, issue tickets to ‘Anchery’ and not to the official ‘Pariyaram’.
Valiyaveedu
The location where Mr V. J. George has his house today, is where Punnoose Mapilla built his ‘Valiya Veedu’ (= big house), -1- which had a fortress and trench around it and a hide away cave in its well. The well and the cave were visible until recently when Mr. George's father filled up and leveled it.Anchery Punnoose Mapilla, the Grand Patriarch
The service rendered by the Nasraanis to the government of the Thekumkoor kingdom in the 17th century, was greatly appreciated by the King, and prominent among the Nasraanis was Punnoose Mapilla. -2- In his capacity as the Vicharakan (= advisor) -3- of the Thekumkoor Raja, Punnoose Mapilla was one of the few who could appear in person before the king to represent matters related to Christians. For his services as a Minister stretches of landed property were given to him tax-free both at Pariyaram and at Puthuppally.Punnoose Mapilla and Puthuppally Pally
His association with the St. George’s Orthodox Church, Puthuppally was long and crucial. He used his influence over the King in the establishment of the Puthuppally Valliapally and its shifting from its original site to the present one. -4- It was at Kochupallikkunnu that the first church, known as Mar Sleeba Church, was established in the name of Mar Bahanaan Sahada by Yakob and others in M.E. 815 corresponding to A.D. 1650. Saddened by the thought that he could not contribute to the original construction, Punnoose Mapilla convinced the King to shift it to a new location, Ilumthuruthikkunnu, this time involving everybody in the reconstruction. References in other family history publications -5- to Punnose Mapilla’s “interment befitting a Lord” next to the sacred altar of Mar Bahanaan Sahada in the church, -6- acknowledge the honour and reverence commanded by Punnoose Mapilla and his crucial inputs in the construction of the church.The End of the Golden Era
After Punnoose , his eldest son, Kochitty Kaaryakaar, became the governor under Thekumkoor Raja. It was during his tenure that Marthanda Varma conquered Thekumkoor, demolished the Valiaveedu of the Kaaryasthan, engaged elephants to drag away the remains and burnt them. Thus ended the period of fame and glory of Anchery Tharavadu, and the family slipped into oblivion. The second son, Pothen, stayed on at Valiayveedu; the third son Cheriyan married from Painumkal in Thiruvalla and stayed at Pulimoottil, and the fourth son Varughese married from Edathua and set up house there. Even today there are members in Edathua under the house name Anchery.Thereafter generations passed peacefully for almost two centuries. Anchery Kudumbam members were, by and large, peace-loving, God-fearing, and hard-working. Agriculture was their mainstay.
Family Reunion
