Indian state of Kerala to be renamed Keralam to reflect local pronunciation

Proposal approved by Modi government will bring official English name into line with Malayalam language

The Indian state of Kerala, known as “God’s own country” for its golden beaches and lush tea plantations, is to be given a new name.

Narendra Modi’s cabinet has approved a proposal to change the southern coastal state’s name from Kerala to Keralam. The move will bring the official English name into line with how it is pronounced in Malayalam, the primary language spoken by the state’s estimated population of 35 million.

In the Malayalam language, the state, which draws millions of domestic and foreign tourists each year, has always been called Keralam. “Kera” means coconut tree and “alam” means land – making Keralam the “land of coconut trees”. Kerala produces nearly 45% of India’s coconuts.

Supporters say the change, which won unanimous cross-party backing in the Kerala state assembly, is about dignity and linguistic authenticity. Kerala’s chief minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, who leads the leftwing alliance in power, said the state should be known by the name its people use.

Priya Matthew, a schoolteacher in Kozhikode, one of the state’s main cities, said: “Keralam is the name we use in Malayalam, so for us using it in English feels more natural and familiar.”

Still, she added, the way “Kerala” sounded in English had “a certain musical flow that ‘Keralam’ doesn’t have”.

The name change fits into a broader Indian pattern, which has accelerated under Modi, of reclaiming Indigenous spellings and shedding colonial baggage: Mumbai was once Bombay; Chennai was Madras; Kolkata replaced Calcutta; Bengaluru took the place of Bangalore, and the eastern state of Odisha was formerly Orissa.

The next step is for the proposal to be introduced to the national parliament for approval, where it is expected to have an easy passage. Once that happens, Keralam will become the official name in English-language records.

Shashi Tharoor, an author and senior member of Congress who represents the Kerala constituency of Thiruvananthapuram – formerly known as Trivandrum – welcomed the change but raised a question.

“All to the good, no doubt,” Tharoor wrote on social media. “But a small linguistic question for the anglophones among us: what happens now to the terms ‘Keralite’ and ‘Keralan’ for the denizens of the new ‘Keralam’?”