Ancient era at Ananthapura,
Kumbla The ancient Tamil works of the Sangam Age record that the area covering the district was part of
Puzhinadu which consists of the coastal belt from
Kozhikode to
Mangalore. Politically the area was part of the
Ezhimala Kingdom with its capital at
Ezhimala in present-day
Kannur district. The most famous king of Ezhimala was Nannan whose kingdom extended up to Gudalur and northern parts of Coimbatore. Poozhinad, along with Karkanad which included the eastern regions of
Ezhimala dynasty (
Wayanad-
Gudalur region with some portions of
Kodagu), had its capital at
Ezhimala. The Mooshaka kings were considered descendants of Nannan. By the 14th century,
Mooshaka Kingdom was known as Kolathirinad and the rulers as Kolathiris. The Kolathunad Kingdom 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
Arabian Sea.
Medieval era ,
Thalangara, Kasaragod, is one of the oldest mosques in India. Kasaragod, about 50 km south of
Mangalore city, was an important centre of trade in earlier times.
Ramacharitam, probably the oldest literary work written in
Old Malayalam, which dates back to the 12th century CE, is thought to have written in Kasaragod district as its manuscripts were discovered from
Nileshwaram and the poem mentions about
Ananthapura Lake Temple in
Kumbla in detail. Kasaragod was known to the
Arabs by the name
Harkwillia. According to
Qissat Shakarwati Farmad, the
Masjids at
Kodungallur,
Kollam,
Madayi,
Barkur,
Mangalore, Kasaragod,
Kannur,
Dharmadam,
Panthalayini, 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. Until the 16th century CE, Kasaragod town was known by the name
Kanhirakode (may be by the meaning, 'the land of
Kanhira trees') in
Malayalam. The Kumbla dynasty had a mixed lineage of
Malayali Nairs and
Tuluva Brahmins. Many portions of the present-day
Hosdurg taluk (Kanhangad) and
Vellarikundu were parts of the
Nileshwaram dynasty, who were relatives to both
Kolathunadu as well as
Zamorin of
Calicut, in the early medieval period. The areas north to the
Chandragiri river (present-day Taluks of Manjeshwaram and Kasaragod) were ruled by the Kumbala dynasty.
Colonial era beach (Malayalam district) drawn by
Francis Buchanan-Hamilton in 1807. A portion of Kasaragod taluk of erstwhile British
South Canara district to the south of Payaswini/Chandragiri river was also included in Malayalam region (just above the blue shaded region). Francis Buchanan, the family doctor of
Arthur Wellesley, visited Kasaragod in 1800. In 1763,
Hyder Ali raided Bedanoor (Bidnur), the capital of the Ikkery Naiks. His son
Tippu Sultan raided much of
Malabar region in Kerala. As per the
Treaty of Seringapatam of 1792, Tippu surrendered Malabar, except
Kanara to the
British. The British occupied Kanara only after the death of Tippu Sultan. Later on 16 April 1862, South Canara was transferred to
Madras Presidency and Kasaragod taluk was formed by replacing the erstwhile
Bekal taluk.
Post-Independence Before the formation of Kerala, Kasaragod was a part of
South Canara district of erstwhile
Madras Presidency. However, in the 19th century CE, Kasaragod Taluk witnessed many struggles to separate the region from South Canara and to merge it with the
Malabar District as it was the only Malayalam-majority region in South Canara. Kasaragod became a part of
Kannur district of
Kerala following the reorganization of states and the formation of Kerala on 1 November 1956. Later Kasaragod was divided into two taluks for the ease of administration - Kasaragod and Hosdurg. Kasaragod was declared a district in 1984. 14.2% chose
Tulu and 6.3% chose Kannada. ==Geography==