A Portuguese-era manuscript preserved in Portugal contains 122 Malayalam words recorded around the late 15th or early 16th century. The vocabulary, discussed by Professor Gonçalo Fernandes, offers a rare glimpse into the everyday Malayalam spoken by ordinary people in coastal Keralam, rather than the formal language found in court records, inscriptions and literary texts.
Words such as kadal (sea), kappal (ship), thandu (oar/pole), chukkan (steering) and everyday verbs such as parayunnu (speaking), thinnunnu (eating), nadakkunnu (walking), kudikkunnu (drinking), po (go) and va (come) reveal the language and experiences of working-class coastal communities. The vocabulary suggests that Keralam already possessed a rich maritime culture and knowledge system before the arrival of the Portuguese.
The article argues that maritime history should not focus only on spices, ports and international trade. It should also recover the largely invisible contributions of fishers, fish vendors, boat builders, port workers, cargo handlers and others who sustained coastal life and enabled interactions with foreign sailors. The manuscript also opens possibilities for studying maritime linguistics, labour history, gender and sexuality, and indigenous knowledge.
The author connects this forgotten linguistic archive with contemporary concerns about Keralam’s blue economy, ocean governance, coastal erosion and climate justice. As Keralam develops policies around the ocean, the article calls for greater attention to the oral histories, traditional knowledge, cultural practices and resilience of coastal communities.
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