Coastal South West India
Encyclopedia
Coastal South West India is a geo-cultural region in the Indian Subcontinent
that spans entire Coastal South Western India. . The region was referred as Sapta Konkan region in the Skanda Purana
.
coastline of the Indian subcontinent from the coastline of the Gulf of Kutch
in its western most corner and stretches across the Gulf of Khambhat
, and through the Salsette Island
and mumbai
along the Konkan
and southwards across the Raigad
region and through Kanara
and further down through Mangalapuram or Mangalore
and along the Malabar
unto the southernmost tip to Cape Comorin. In ancient tradition Coastal South West Indian Subcontinent extends till Ceylon.
The region includes Gujarati
s in the western most region, Maharashtrians and Goans along the western coastline, Kannadigas in its south western coastline and Tulus and Malayali
s in its southern most region of South India
.
s, Bohras
and Baghdadi Jews
in the western most region, the Bene Israel
along the South western region the descendants of mediterranean traders along Coorg and Mangalore
, the Jonakan Mappilas along Malabar region, and the cochin jews
and Syriac Nasranis
along the Southern most region of South India
.
The linguistic diversity of the Coastal south west India includes Languages of the Dravidian language family including Malayalam, Tulu
, and Kannada; languages belonging to the western zone of Indo Iranian langiage families
including Gujarati
, Marathi
, Konkani and languages belonging to the central zone of the Indo-Iranian language families including Urdu
and Farsi. The region also has speakers of Semitic languages like Arabic, Hebrew and Aramaic. The common elements of the people of coastal south west India includes cuisine
that consists of agrarian and coastal products and clothing that involves long flowing drapes with bare midriff for both men and women suited for humid and warm climate . Throughout the region women wear drapes called saree
in various styles. . In the western corner of the region the drapes are called as Dhoti
for men. and Chaniya choli for women , further southwards the drapes are called as lungi
or mundu
for men . and veshti for women . Another common common cultural element of coastal south west India includes relatively more role for women in social system . Towards the southern most tip of coastal south western India the social system is considerably more matri-focal with instances of matrilineal and matriarchal tradition like amongst the Bunt
community of Tulus and the Marumakkathayam
of the nair
s. This is also manifested in feminine deity oriented festivals and rituals celebrating Shakti
or feminine power like Navratri festival among the Gujarati People and Thiruvathira
festival among the malayali people.
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
that spans entire Coastal South Western India. . The region was referred as Sapta Konkan region in the Skanda Purana
Skanda Purana
The Skanda Purana is the largest Mahapurana, a genre of eighteen Hindu religious texts. The text is devoted mainly to the lilas of Kartikeya , a son of Shiva and Parvati. It also contains a number of legends about Shiva, and the holy places associated with him...
.
Region
Coastal South West India spans across the entire Arabian SeaArabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...
coastline of the Indian subcontinent from the coastline of the Gulf of Kutch
Gulf of Kutch
The Gulf of Kutch is an inlet of the Arabian Sea along the west coast of India, in the state of Gujarat, and renowned for extreme daily tides .The maximum depth of Gulf of Kutch is ....
in its western most corner and stretches across the Gulf of Khambhat
Gulf of Khambhat
The Gulf of Khambhat is an inlet of the Arabian Sea along the west coast of India, in the state of Gujarat. It is about 80 miles in length, and divides the Kathiawar peninsula to the west from the eastern part of Gujarat state on the east. The Narmada and Tapti rivers empty into the Gulf...
, and through the Salsette Island
Salsette Island
Salsette Island is an island in Maharashtra state on India's west coast. The metropolis of Mumbai and the city of Thane lie on this island, making it the 14th most populous island and the fourth most densely populated island in the world, after Migingo Island in Kenya, Ap Lei Chau in Hong Kong,...
and mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
along the Konkan
Konkan
The Konkan also called the Konkan Coast or Karavali is a rugged section of the western coastline of India from Raigad to Mangalore...
and southwards across the Raigad
Raigad
Raigad is a hill fortress situated in the modern day Raigad district of Maharashtra, India. The Maratha king Shivaji Maharaj made the fort his capital in 1674 when he was crowned King of a Maratha Kingdom which later developed into the Maratha Empire eventually covering majority of modern day...
region and through Kanara
Kanara
The Kanara or Canara region comprises three coastal districts of Karnataka, namely Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Uttara Kannada and Kasaragod district of Kerala in southwestern India. Kanara forms the southern part of the Konkan coast...
and further down through Mangalapuram or Mangalore
Mangalore
Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...
and along the Malabar
Malabar Coast
The Malabar Coast is a long and narrow coastline on the south-western shore line of the mainland Indian subcontinent. Geographically, it comprises the wettest regions of southern India, as the Western Ghats intercept the moisture-laden monsoon rains, especially on their westward-facing mountain...
unto the southernmost tip to Cape Comorin. In ancient tradition Coastal South West Indian Subcontinent extends till Ceylon.
People
The people along coastal south west India exhibit vast diversity along an underlying commonality as a result of long history of contact with west asian Mediterranean traders along the Arabian sea coastline.The region includes Gujarati
Gujarati people
Gujarati people , or Gujaratis are an ethnic group that is traditionally Gujarati-speaking and can trace their ancestry to the state of Gujarat in western India...
s in the western most region, Maharashtrians and Goans along the western coastline, Kannadigas in its south western coastline and Tulus and Malayali
Malayali
Malayali is the term used to refer to the native speakers of Malayalam, originating from the Indian state of Kerala...
s in its southern most region of South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
.
Intermingling with the West Asian world
As a result of the thriving trade between the Mediterranean world and South West Indian coastline along the Arabian sea, there has been significant intermingling between the people of Coastal South West India and the west asian world. Several west asian communities have also settled and become part of the diversity of coastal south west India. These include the ParsiParsi
Parsi or Parsee refers to a member of the larger of the two Zoroastrian communities in South Asia, the other being the Irani community....
s, Bohras
Mustaali
The Musta‘lī Ismā'īlī Muslims are so named because they accept Al-Musta'li as the nineteenth Fatimid caliph and legitimate successor to his father, al-Mustansir...
and Baghdadi Jews
Baghdadi Jews
Baghdadi Jews, also known as Iraqi Jews, are Jewish emigrants from Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq, who fled religious persecution and formed immigrant communities in their new homelands...
in the western most region, the Bene Israel
Bene Israel
The Bene Israel are a group of Jews who migrated in the 19th century from villages in the Konkan area to the nearby Indian cities, primarily Mumbai, but also to Pune, and Ahmedabad. Prior to these waves of emigrations and to this day, the Bene Israel formed the largest sector of the subcontinent's...
along the South western region the descendants of mediterranean traders along Coorg and Mangalore
Mangalore
Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...
, the Jonakan Mappilas along Malabar region, and the cochin jews
Cochin Jews
Cochin Jews, also called Malabar Jews , are the oldest group of Jews in India, with roots claimed to date to the time of King Solomon, though historically attested migration dates from the fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE. Historically, they lived in the Kingdom of Cochin in South India, now part of the...
and Syriac Nasranis
Syrian Malabar Nasrani
The Syrian Malabar Nasrani people, also known as Saint Thomas Christians, "'Nasrani Mappila'" and Nasranis, are an ethnoreligious group from Kerala, India, adhering to the various churches of the Saint Thomas Christian tradition...
along the Southern most region of South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
.
Heritage
Tulu language
The Tulu language |?]]]) is a Dravidian language spoken by 1.95 million native speakers mainly in the southwest part of Indian state Karnataka known as Tulu Nadu. In India, 1.72 million people speak it as their mother tongue , increased by 10 percent over the 1991 census...
, and Kannada; languages belonging to the western zone of Indo Iranian langiage families
Indo-Iranian languages
The Indo-Iranian language group constitutes the easternmost extant branch of the Indo-European family of languages. It consists of three language groups: the Indo-Aryan, Iranian and Nuristani...
including Gujarati
Gujarati language
Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. It is derived from a language called Old Gujarati which is the ancestor language of the modern Gujarati and Rajasthani languages...
, Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
, Konkani and languages belonging to the central zone of the Indo-Iranian language families including Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
and Farsi. The region also has speakers of Semitic languages like Arabic, Hebrew and Aramaic. The common elements of the people of coastal south west India includes cuisine
Cuisine
Cuisine is a characteristic style of cooking practices and traditions, often associated with a specific culture. Cuisines are often named after the geographic areas or regions that they originate from...
that consists of agrarian and coastal products and clothing that involves long flowing drapes with bare midriff for both men and women suited for humid and warm climate . Throughout the region women wear drapes called saree
Sari
A sari or sareeThe name of the garment in various regional languages include: , , , , , , , , , , , , , is a strip of unstitched cloth, worn by females, ranging from four to nine metres in length that is draped over the body in various styles. It is popular in India, Bangladesh, Nepal,...
in various styles. . In the western corner of the region the drapes are called as Dhoti
Dhoti
The dhoti or pancha is the traditional men's garment in the in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. A similar garment is worn in some rural areas of Punjab province in Pakistan, but the use is fast declining...
for men. and Chaniya choli for women , further southwards the drapes are called as lungi
Lungi
The Lungi , also known as a sarong , is a traditional garment worn around the waist in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Burma, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Horn of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula...
or mundu
Mundu
The mundu is a garment worn around the waist in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, Kerala and Maldives. This garment is closely related to the Dhoti, Sarong, and Lungi. In South Kanara, a district of Karnataka state, the Tulu speaking folk and Beary community also wear the mundu. It is...
for men . and veshti for women . Another common common cultural element of coastal south west India includes relatively more role for women in social system . Towards the southern most tip of coastal south western India the social system is considerably more matri-focal with instances of matrilineal and matriarchal tradition like amongst the Bunt
Bunt
A bunt is a special type of offensive technique in baseball or fastpitch softball. In a bunt play, the batter loosely holds the bat in front of the plate and intentionally taps the ball into play.- Bunting technique :...
community of Tulus and the Marumakkathayam
Marumakkathayam
Marumakkathayam is a matrilinear system of inheritance which was followed by all Nair castes including of Royal Families, some of the Ambalavasis, Arayars, Ezhava, some tribal groups and Mappilas in North Malabar of Kerala state, South India. Unlike other Brahmin families, Payanoor Nambootiris...
of the nair
Nair
Nair , also known as Nayar , refers to "not a unitary group but a named category of castes", which historically embody several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom bore the Nair title. These people historically live in the present-day Indian state of Kerala...
s. This is also manifested in feminine deity oriented festivals and rituals celebrating Shakti
Shakti
Shakti from Sanskrit shak - "to be able," meaning sacred force or empowerment, is the primordial cosmic energy and represents the dynamic forces that are thought to move through the entire universe in Hinduism. Shakti is the concept, or personification, of divine feminine creative power, sometimes...
or feminine power like Navratri festival among the Gujarati People and Thiruvathira
Thiruvathira
Thiruvathira is a Hindu festival celebrated in the southern Indian state of Kerala on the full moon day of the month of Dhanu . The festival commemorates the death of Kamadeva, the Hindu god of love...
festival among the malayali people.