Islam in Kerala

Islam arrived in Kerala, the Malayalam-speaking region in the south-western tip of India, through Middle Eastern merchants. The Indian coast has an ancient relation with West Asia and the Middle East, even during the pre-Islamic period.

Kerala Muslims or Malayali Muslims from north Kerala are generally referred to as Mappilas. Mappilas are but one among the many communities that forms the Muslim population of Kerala. According to historian M. G. S. Narayanan and other scholars, the early members of Muslim Mappila community originated from the descendants of children born to non-Muslim Arab traders and native women along the Malabar coast, before Islam. These early individuals were referred to as ma-ppila, as they did not belong to any existing caste group. Arab traders often stayed on the Malabar coast for extended periods, sometimes up to three months, while waiting for the reverse monsoon winds, during which some formed temporary relationships with local women, often in exchange for money. The offspring of such unions were not accepted into any Hindu caste and came to be known as ma-ppila.

After the rise of Islam in Arabia, many among these Mappilas embraced the new faith. However, the majority of present-day Mappilas estimated to constitute around 90 percent are considered descendants of lower-caste Hindus, mainly Dalits, who converted to Islam at a later stage to escape caste based oppression.