Population  : 29 million
Capital       : Thiruvananthapuram
Language    :  Malayalam
Area          : 39,000 sq.  km

When the British came to India they found some of the Indian names too hard, or too much trouble, to pronounce so decided to shorten them.  So in those days Thiruvananthapuram was called "Trivandrum", Udagamandalam was called "Ooty" and Tiruchirappalli was called "Trichy".  After Independence in 1947, Indians felt that the old correct names should be restored, with pride, to the towns and cities they belonged to.  Thus Kerala's capitol became, once again, Thiruvananthapuram.  Kerala's coast-line on the Arabian Sea is lined with coconut trees and white sand, and tourism is an important industry in this state.

Kerala is one of India's most well-off states.  Unlike many other states, almost every person in Kerala can read and write and has basic education.  People have better health care, and fewer children die during birth.  The minimum wage that people earn is higher than elsewhere and working conditions are better.  At least part of the reason for all this is the relatively enlightened land reform policies put in place more than a hundred years ago by the rulers of what was then the princely state of Travancore.  More land reforms were made in the state in the 1960s by what was the first democratically elected Communist government in the world and Communist governments have been in power in Kerala many times since then.  Christianity arrived in Kerala in 52 AD, about the same time it arrived in Europe, and today 20% of the population is Christian, 20% Muslim and 60% Hindu.  Many people from Kerala go to the Gulf to work and send their earnings back to their families at home, which is also an important contributor to Kerala's wealth.