KANNUR

:''For the district with the name Kannur, see Kannur District.''
:''For town with same name in Karnataka, see Kannur, Dakshina Kannada''
'Kannur', (Malayalam:കണ്ണൂര്‍) , is a city and a municipality in Kannur district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of Kannur district. Kannur is the fourth largest urban agglomeration in Kerala after Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode with a population of 498,175. It is popularly known as the city of Looms and Lores. Theyyam is the famous performing art of Kannur. Kannur is also famous for its beautiful virgin beaches. Another attraction of Kannur is the Handlooms.

Contents

History

St. Angelo's Fort

Demographics

Tourism

Places near Kannur town

Kannur town and Kannur City

Education:

See also

References

External links

History

Kannur was an important port on the Arabian Sea which carried out trade with Persia and Arabia in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries and it was the British military headquarters on India's west coast up to 1887. In conjunction with her elder sister Tellicherry it was the third largest city on the western coast of British India in the eighteenth century, after Bombay and Karachi.

St. Angelo's Fort

St. Angelo's Fort was built in 1505 by Sir Francisco de Almeida, the first Portuguese Viceroy of India and is on the Arabian sea about 3 km from Kannur town. Historian Nandakumar Koroth in his work 'Forts in North Malabar' reveals the mighty construction of the fort. The fort changed hands several times. In 1663 the Dutch captured it and sold it to the Arakkal Royal Family. The British conquered it in 1790 and transformed it into one of their major military stations on the Malabar Coast. It is fairly well preserved as a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India. A painting of this fort and the fishing ferry behind it can be seen in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.^[1]
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Demographics

According to the 2001 census of India,^[2] Kannur has a population of 63,795. Males constitute 48% of the population and females 52%. Kannur has an average literacy rate of 83%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 84%, and female literacy is 83%. In Kannur, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Tourism

The tourism of the region is highly dependent upon the beaches and beach-side forts.

★ ''Payyambalam Beach:'' Is the beach of Kannur town. It has an unbroken coastline of a few kilometres. From the beach, one can see ships in transit along the Malabar coast, that is, beyond Calicut (Kozhikode) and moving towards Mangalore, Goa and Bombay (Mumbai). The well laid out garden and the massive landscaped sculpture of mother and child erected by noted sculptor Kanayi Kunhiraman makes it extremely captivating.

★ ''Baby Beach:'' Is so called as it is smaller than its larger neighbour, Payyambalam Beach. St. Angelo Fort is adjacent to it.

★ ''Meenkunnu Beach:'' Situated at Azhikode, it is just a few kilometres from the town. The beach is a tourist’s paradise with golden sand and surf.

★ ''Thottada Beach:'' Situated at Thottada, just 2 km from the NH 17, which connects Kannur and Thalassery, is 7 km from Kannur town. The beach is ideal for sun bathing. Tourists can stay at the beach house or guest house near the beach.

★ ''Mappila Bay:'' Is situated near St. Angelo’s Fort. It was the seat of the Kolathiri Kings. The Kadalayi Fort and Sree Krishna Temple are quite well known. The remnants of the fort and the temple are still to be seen in Mopila Bay. A fishing harbour, built with Indo-Norwegian project assistance, can also be seen in this bay. Boating, weather permitting, will be an unforgettable experience.

★ ''Dharmadam Thuruthu'' Is situated at Dharmadam in between Kannur and Talicherry on Nationa Highway 17. This is a very small island with cliffs in the Arabian Sea and can be reached by boat.

★ The ''Azhikkal Ferry:'' is located near Azhikode, about 10 km from Kannur town. This is where the ''Valapattanam'' river joins the Arabian sea. The Azhikkal ferry gives a magnificent view of the sunset. There is a granite pathway here which stretches 2 km into the sea.

Places near Kannur town

Sree Krishna Temple at Kadalayi is situated in Chirakkal, 5 km from Kannur Town.
Another well known place in Kannur is the Parassinikadavu temple. The god worshipped at this temple is Muthappan. This temple is about 15 km from Kannur Town.
Perallassery temple, with Subhramanian/Murugan as the main deity is 16 km from Kannur town. The temple has a deep pond, which is said to be the deepest in Kerala. This pond has been renovated using Red Stone and is a major attraction in the temple.
Madaipara is a significant plateau of land lying about 45 metres above sea level. It has views of up to 20 km in all directions. It is a popular tourist area and regularly used as a film location site. The Vadukunda Siva Temple is located on Madaipara.

Kannur town and Kannur City

★ Kannur town - the administrative headquarters of Kannur District and is a major commercial area. The railway station and municipal bus stand are located in Kannur town.

★ Kannur City - the old Kannur is 3kms away from the railway station. This is the ancient capital of the Arakkal kingdom. The Kannur district HQ hospital and city bus stand are located near Kannur City.
The region in and around the municipality of Kannur has been so developed, it has become known as Kannur City, but it should not be confused with Kannur city - the old town.
Pythalmala at Border of Kerala and Karnataka is situated near to Alakode, 45 km from Kannur Town.
And it is a part of Western Ghat. This mountain contains more than 2500 feet height and it is one of the important hill station in Kannur District.

Education:

'Bala Sastra Pareeksha':Payayangadi [payayangadi in malayalam] is famous all over Kerala as the birthplace of Balasasthra Pareeksha as a result of the service done by P.T.Baskara Panikker, an exponent of new methodology in education. The examination differed from all the conventional examinations.Students got enough opportunity to collect answers for the relevant questions contained in the question papers. One month time is given for the students to collect answers from all the sources. It intended to boost the qualities of students and encourage in them the habit of reading. It also promotes the skill of questioning and investigating. The introduction of DPEP and SSA shows the relevance of the Bala sasra Parreksha introduced by Sastra [Social Action Group]with their base at Payayangadi. Now a days more than one lakh studets participating yearly in the Bla sasthra pareeksha.Gold medals were issued to the winners of the competition to cultivate good spirit in students

See also

★ Kannur District

★ Chirakkal Raja

★ Arakkal Adi Raja

★ Muthappan

★ Muthappan Theyyam

★ Payyambalam Beach

★ Thalassery fort

★ Muzhappilangad

★ Dharmadam

References

1. St.Angelo's Fort Old Map
2.

External links

★ Kannur City Map

★ Official website