Kannur - WikiHQ

Kannur (), formerly known in English as Cannanore, is a city and municipal corporation in the state of Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kannur district and situated north of the major port city and commercial hub Kochi and south of the major port city and commercial hub, Mangalore. It is the fifth largest city in Kerala. During British colonial rule in India, when Kannur was a part of the Malabar District (Madras Presidency), the city was known as Cannanore. Kannur is the fifth largest urban agglomeration in Kerala. As of the 2011 census, Kannur Municipal Corporation, the local body which administers mainland area of city, had a population of 232,486.

Kannur was the headquarters of Kolathunadu, one of the four most important dynasties on the Malabar Coast, along with the Zamorin of Calicut, Kingdom of Cochin and Kingdom of Quilon. The Arakkal kingdom had right over the city of Kannur and Laccadive Islands in the late medieval period. Kannur municipality was formed on 1 November 1866 by the Madras Act 10 of 1865 (Amendment of the Improvements in Towns Act 1850) of the British Indian Empire, along with the municipalities of Thalassery, Kozhikode, Palakkad and Fort Kochi, making them the first modern municipalities in the state. It was upgraded to a municipal corporation in 2015.

Kannur Cantonment is the only cantonment board in Kerala. The Indian Naval Academy at Ezhimala is Asia's largest, and the world's third-largest, naval academy. Muzhappilangad beach is the longest drive-in beach in Asia and appeared among the top six best beaches for driving in the world in a BBC Top Gear article. During British rule, Kannur's chief importance laid in producing Thalassery pepper.

History

left|thumbnail|Names, routes and locations of the [[Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (1st century CE)]]

left|thumbnail|[[Kannur Lighthouse]]

left|thumbnail|Payyambalam beach

left|thumb|[[Kolathiri|Kolathiri Raja's ( The Ruler Of Kannur ) Minister Kuruppu's Arabic Letter To Vasco da Gama (1524)|235x235px]]

Pre-history and Ancient era

The earliest evidence of human habitation in the region are rock-cut caves and megalithic burial sites of the Neolithic age. The Taliparamba-Kannur-Thalassery area abounds in rock-cut caves, dolmens, burial stone circles and menhirs, all of megalith. Kannur District was the seat of powerful kingdom based at Ezhimala in the Sangam period (1st–5th century CE). The ancient port of Naura, which is mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea as a port somewhere north of Muziris is identified with Kannur. Pliny the Elder (1st century CE) states that the port of Tyndis was located at the northwestern border of Keprobotos (Chera dynasty). The region, which lies north of the port at Tyndis, was ruled by the kingdom of Ezhimala during the Sangam period.

According to the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, a region known as Limyrike began at Naura and Tyndis. However the Ptolemy mentions only Tyndis as the Limyrikes starting point. The region probably ended at Kanyakumari; it thus roughly corresponds to the present-day Malabar Coast. The value of Rome's annual trade with the region was estimated at 50,000,000 sesterces. Pliny the Elder mentioned that Limyrike was prone by pirates. The Cosmas Indicopleustes mentioned that the Limyrike was a source of peppers.

The kingdom of Ezhimala had jurisdiction over two Nadus – The coastal Poozhinadu and the hilly eastern Karkanadu. According to the works of Sangam literature, Poozhinadu consisted much of the coastal belt between Mangalore and Kozhikode. Karkanadu consisted of Wayanad-Gudalur hilly region with parts of Kodagu (Coorg). It is said that Nannan, the most renowned ruler of Ezhimala dynasty, took refuge at Wayanad hills in the 5th century CE when he was lost to Cheras, just before his execution in a battle, according to the Sangam works. According to Qissat Shakarwati Farmad, the Masjids at Kodungallur, Kollam, Madayi, Barkur, Mangalore, Kasaragod, Kannur, Dharmadam, Panthalayani, and Chaliyam, were built during the era of Malik Dinar, and they are among the oldest Masjids in the Indian subcontinent. It is believed that Malik Dinar died at Thalangara in Kasaragod town.

left|thumbnail|[[Mappila Bay harbour at Ayikkara. On one side, there is St. Angelo Fort (built in 1505) and on the other side is Arakkal palace.]]

Ezhimala kingdom was succeeded by Mushika dynasty in the early medieval period, most possibly due to the migration of Tuluva Brahmins from Tulu Nadu. The Mushika-vamsha Mahakavya, written by Athula in the 11th century, throws light on the recorded past of the Mushika Royal Family up until that point. The kingdom of Kolathunadu, who were the descendants of Mushika dynasty, at the peak of its power reportedly extended from Netravati River (Mangalore) in the north to Korapuzha (Kozhikode) in the south with Arabian Sea on the

west and Kodagu hills on the eastern boundary, also including the isolated islands of Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea. The Arabic inscription on a copper slab within the Madayi Mosque in Kannur records its foundation year as 1124 CE. In his book on travels (Il Milione), Marco Polo recounts his visit to the area in the mid 1290s. Other visitors included Faxian, the Buddhist pilgrim and Ibn Batuta, writer and historian of Tangiers. The Kolathunadu in the late medieval period emerged into independent 10 principalities i.e., Kadathanadu (Vadakara), Randathara or Poyanad (Dharmadom), Kottayam (Thalassery), Nileshwaram, Iruvazhinadu (Panoor, Kurumbranad etc., under separate royal chieftains due to the outcome of internal dissensions. The Nileshwaram dynasty on the northernmost part of Kolathiri dominion, were relatives to both Kolathunadu as well as the Zamorin of Calicut, in the early medieval period.

Kannur was an important trading center in the 12th century, with active business connections with Persia and Arabia. The port at Kozhikode held the superior economic and political position in medieval Kerala coast, while Kannur, Kollam, and Kochi, were commercially important secondary ports, where the traders from various parts of the world would gather.

Era of European influences

Kannur served as the East India Company military headquarters on India's west coast until 1887. In 1501 a Portuguese factory was planted here by Pedro Álvares Cabral, and in 1502 da Gama made a treaty with the Raja. Arakkal Kingdom and Chirakkal kingdom were two vassal kingdoms based in the city of Kannur. The island of Dharmadom near Kannur, along with Thalassery, was ceded to the East India Company as early as 1734, which were claimed by all of the Kolattu Rajas, Kottayam Rajas, Mannanar and Arakkal Bibi in the late medieval period, where the British initiated a factory and English settlement following the cession.

Initially the British had to suffer local resistance against their rule under the leadership of Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja, who had popular support in Thalassery-Wayanad region.<gallery mode="packed" widths="175">

File:Cannonore fort & Bay'; a watercolor by John Johnston, c.1795-1801.jpg|Cannonore fort & Bay'; a watercolor by John Johnston, c.1795-1801

File:City of Cannanore, 1572.jpg|A portrait of Kannur drawn in 1572, from Georg Braun and Frans Hogenberg's atlas Civitates orbis terrarum, Volume I

</gallery>

Geography

thumbnail|Vayalapra Lake near [[Madayi]] left|thumbnail|[[Muzhappilangad Beach, the longest Drive-in Beach in Asia, is located in Kannur]]Kannur has an elevation of along the coast of the Laccadive Sea, with a sandy coastal area. The city has an -long seashore and a -long beach at Payyambalam. Kannur is located north of Kozhikode, south of Kasargod and Mangalore, west of the Western Ghat regions of Kodagu and Wayanad, and east of the Laccadive Sea. Mappila Bay harbour at Ayikkara. On one side, there is St. Angelo Fort (built in 1505) and on the other side is Arakkal palace. Muzhappilangad Beach, the longest Drive-in Beach in Asia, is located in Kannur. Vayalapra Lake is near Madayi.

Climate

Kannur experiences a very wet tropical monsoon climate (Am under the Köppen climate classification.) In the months of April and May, the average daily maximum temperature is about . Temperatures are moderate in December and January: about . Like other areas on the Malabar Coast, this city receives heavy rainfall during the Southwest monsoon. The annual average rainfall is , around 68 per cent of which is received in summer.

Civic administration

thumbnail|Skyline of Kannur city

Kannur municipality was formed on 1 November 1866 according to the Madras Act 10 of 1865 (Amendment of the Improvements in Towns act 1850)

The city is administered by the Kannur Municipal Corporation, headed by a mayor. The corporation is headed by a Mayor and council, and manages 78.35 km<sup>2</sup> of Kannur city, with a population of about 232,486 within that area. For administrative purposes, the city is divided into 55 divisions, from which the members of the corporation council are elected for five years. Kannur Municipal Corporation is divided into six zones: Kannur town, Pallikunnu, Puzhathi, Edakkad, Elayavoor, and Chelora.

|Deputy Mayor

|K.P. Thahir (IUML)

|Corporation Secretary

|NIL

Kannur Corporation is the fifth City Corporation in Kerala after the creation of the state. Established in 2015, Kannur Corporation's first mayor was E. P. Latha. Kannur corporation has two assembly constituencies – Kannur and Azhikode – both of which are part of Kannur parliamentary constituency.

Kannur Municipal Corporation Election 2020

{|class="sortable wikitable"

|+Kannur Municipal Corporation Election 2020

!S.No. !! Party name !! Party symbol !! Number of Councillors

| 01 || UDF ||50px|| 34

| 02 || LDF ||50px || 19

| 03 || BJP ||50px || 01

| 04 || Independents || 75px || 01

Kannur Municipal Corporation Election 2015

{|class="sortable wikitable"

|+Kannur Municipal Corporation Election 2015

!S.No. !! Party name !! Party symbol !! Number of Councillors

| 01 || UDF ||50px|| 27

| 02 || LDF ||50px || 27

| 03 || Independents || 75px || 01

Law and order

The Kannur City Police is headed by a Police Commissioner, an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer. The Kannur City Police is divided into three police subdivisions; Kannur, Thalassery, and Koothuparamba, each under an assistant commissioner (AC). There are 24 police stations in the Kannur City Police. Apart from regular law and order, the city police comprise the traffic police, bomb squad, dog squad, fingerprint bureau, women's cell, juvenile wing, narcotics cell, riot force, armed reserve camps, district crime records bureau and a women's station.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census of India, Kannur city has a population of . The college is among the top ten engineering colleges of the state, providing higher studies in the field of technical education.

The Government Medical College, Kannur was established in 1993 at Pariyaram to serve Kannur city and surroundings. The thirteenth National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) Campus is located at Dharmashala, Kannur north of Kannur City.

Media

thumbnail|Statue of Albert Einstein at the Science Park, Kannur

Many local cable television channels are available in Kannur. The most popular cable channels are City Channel, City Gold, City Juke, Network Channels, Zeal Network, Kannur Vision, World Vision, Worldvision Music, Chakkarakkal, Gramika channel Koothuparamba and Kannurone.

All India Radio is broadcast in Kannur at 101.5 MHz. Private FM radio stations in Kannur include: Radio Mango 91.9 (Malayala Manorama Co Ltd), Club FM 94.3 (Mathrubhumi Printing And Publishing Co Ltd), Red FM 93.5 (Sun Network) and Best FM 95.0 (Asianet Communications Ltd).

A number of newspapers are published from Kannur, including the Malayala Manorama, Mathrubhumi, Madhyamam, Deshabhimani, Deepika, Rashtra Deepika, Chandrika, Kerala Kaumudi, Mangalam, Janmabhumi, Veekshanam, Thejas, Siraj, Suprabhaatham, Janayugom and The New Indian Express.

Cuisine

The Kannur cuisine depicts it culture and heritage. It is famous for Malabar biriyani. The city is also famous for Haluva called as Sweet Meat by Europeans due to the texture of the sweet. Another specialty is banana chips, which are made crisp and wafer-thin. Other popular dishes include seafood preparations (prawns, mussels, mackerel) . Vegetarian fare includes the sadya.

Kannur cuisine is a blend of traditional Kerala, Persian, Yemenese and Arab food culture. This confluence of culinary cultures is best seen in the preparation of most dishes. are prepared here. pazham nirachathu (ripe banana filled with coconut grating, molasses or sugar), and more.

Kannur South railway station and Edakkad railway stations are located under Kannur Corporation limits. Chirakkal railway station is located north of the city. Only passenger trains halt at these three stations.

Kannur International Airport in Mattanur was inaugurated on 9 December 2018. It is the fourth international airport in Kerala. The airport has a runway (the longest in the State) and state of the art passenger terminal as well other amenities. It is well connected by a comprehensive network of roads and a proposal for railway line has also been mooted. In the 2016–17 Union Railway budget, were dedicated for this under Extra Budgetary Resource (EBR) in which a part of the bill will be borne by the State Government towards the railway line.

Notable people

Literature

Sukumar Azhikode
Oyyarathu Chandu Menon
Cherusseri Namboothiri
N. Prabhakaran
T. Padmanabhan
T. K. D. Muzhappilangad

Sports

Manuel Frederick
Jimmy George
V. P. Sathyan
Denson Devadas
C. K. Vineeth
Sahal Abdul Samad
Tintu Luka
Chundangapoyil Rizwan
Sudha Shah

Politicians

M. V. Raghavan
Pinarayi Vijayan
K. Karunakaran
E. K. Nayanar
K. K. Shailaja
P. Jayarajan
E. Ahamed
M. V. Govindan
Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
John Brittas
E. P. Jayarajan
Kadannappalli Ramachandran
A. N. Shamseer
K. Sudhakaran
M. V. Jayarajan
James Mathew
T. V. Rajesh
M. V. Nikesh Kumar

Actors

Sreenivasan
M. N. Nambiar
Malavika Mohanan
Anaswara Rajan
Samvrutha Sunil
Mamta Mohandas
Vineeth
Vineeth Kumar
Deepak Parambol
Sanusha
Sanoop Santhosh
Nikhila Vimal
Nivetha Thomas
Sreekala Sasidharan
Sneha Paliyeri
Anju Aravind
Athmiya Rajan
Sruthi Lakshmi
Parvathy Nambiar
Ganapathi S Poduval
Madonna Sebastian
Sana Khan
Santhosh Keezhattoor
Shamna Kasim

Filmmakers

Bejoy Nambiar
Salim Ahamed
Vineeth Sreenivasan
Dhyan Sreenivasan

Music (composers)

Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri
Kannur Rajan
Deepak Dev
Ifthi
Shaan Rahman
Sushin Shyam
Sayanora Philip

Music (playback singers)

Vineeth Sreenivasan
Shaan Rahman
Sushin Shyam
Sayanora Philip
Arun Alat

Cinematographer

K. U. Mohanan

References

External links

GeoHack – Kannur
Official website (archived)
Official website (alternative website; archived)