Socio-cultural Processes and Livelihood Patterns at Tirurangadi - CDS

IV
Tirurangadi-Historical and Cultural Setting
Walking has given us a panoramic view of the living conditions of Tirurangadi. Now we
have to go deeper into the processes that have played a role in shaping the living
conditions, for which we cannot depend entirely on oral testimony. A general awareness
of the history and culture of the region from the available secondary sources becomes
necessary in order to make sense of the oral testimony. This interlude is essential as
people converse with reference to their specific conditions, in a language that represents
these conditions. Hence it is necessary to understand the milieu before trying to make
sense of the oral testimony that has been gathered from the interviews, and from
karanavakkoottams.
Historical relevance of Kadalundi
The available sources on the early History of Tirurangadi are few, and one has to make
use of the scattered information from difference sources on Eranad and the kingdom of
the Samutiri. The earliest information on the region appears to concentrate on the coastal
village of Kadalundi, now a part of Kozhikode District, but it is possible that the name
was applied to the southern part of the deltaic region of Kadalundi River, now a part of
Vallikkunnu Panchayat. The area is called Kadalundi nagaram, nagaram being a standard
term for a merchant settlement in early times. There is also a kadalundippatam near the
nagaram, showing that the term probably had a wider spatial connotation. Kadalundi is
probably the popular abbreviation of kadal+thundi, thundi (or thundu) being a fragment
of land that stretched into the sea. It may be noted in passing that the term is close to
thondu, which also means a fragment, which denoted an ancient port town thondi in the
West coast. Such linguistic affinities may not signify much, but it worth undertaking a