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This book provides a concise and lucid outline of the history of Kerala from the earliest period to the present, encompassing even the latest researches. It describes the early historical times that subsume the region as part of Tami?akam; the formation of agrarian settlements; the formation of state, overland and overseas trade; the arrival of the foreign trading companies; the Mysorean invasions; British dominance; the various peasant and reform movements; the impact of the national freedom movement; the Aikya Kerala movement; and the Communist movement, which led to the Communist ministry and the making of modern Kerala.

The narrative is structured in such a way that the material conditions of production in society are analysed first and the relations, institutions, structures and processes are discussed in this background. The chapters give precedence to the economic and social over the political and cultural aspects of Kerala’s history.

Written by two of Kerala’s finest historians, this book addresses the need for a credible and updated account of the history of the region in English. Along with precise and accessible narration, this book also includes various pedagogical features, such as a chronological outline, maps and a table of inscriptions.

Students of history will find this book invaluable.

Contents: Preface. 1. Landscape, Sources and Historiography. 2. Prehistory. 3. Early Historical Period (c. 300 bce–c. 300 ce) 4. Brahma?a Settlements and Agricultural Expansion (c. 800 ce–1200 ce). 5. Formation of the State under the Peruma? Regime (c. 800 ce–1124 ce). 6. Agrarian Expansion and Trade (13th–16th centuries ce). 7. Emergence of Principalities (c. 13th–16th centuries ce). 8. Arrival of the Europeans (16th–17th centuries ce). 9. Mysore Raids and the English Ascendancy (1766 ce–1792 ce). 10. Socio-religious and Caste Reform Movements (19th–20th centuries ce). 11. Peasant Movements and Nationalism (1921–1947). 12. The Making of Modern Kerala. 13. Stages of Social Development. Bibliography. Appendices. Index.