Ernakulam, IPA: [erɐɳɐːguɭɐm]; ISO: Eṟaṇākuḷaṁ, in Malayalam: എറണാകുളം), is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala, that takes its name from the eponymous city division in Kochi. It is situated in the central part of the state, spans an area of about 3,000 square kilometres (1,200 sq mi), and is home to over 9% of Kerala's population. Its headquarters are located at Kakkanad. The district includes Kochi, also known as the commercial capital of Kerala, which is famous for its ancient Churches, Hindu temples, synagogues and mosques. The district includes the largest metropolitan region of the state: Greater Cochin. Ernakulam is the district that yields the most revenue and the largest number of industries in the state. Ernakulam is the third most populous district in Kerala, after Malappuram and Thiruvananthapuram. The district also hosts the highest number of international and domestic tourists in Kerala state.
The Saint Thomas Christians, also called Syrian Christians of India, Marthoma Suriyani Nasrani, Malankara Nasrani, or Nasrani Mappila, are an ethno-religious community of Indian Christians in the state of Kerala, who, for the most part, employ the Eastern and Western liturgical rites of Syriac Christianity. They trace their origins to the evangelistic activity of Thomas the Apostle in the 1st century. The Saint Thomas Christians had been historically a part of the hierarchy of the Church of the East but are now divided into several different Eastern Catholic, Oriental Orthodox, Protestant, and independent bodies, each with their own liturgies and traditions. They are Malayalis and speak Malayalam. Nasrani or Nazarene is a Syriac term for Christians, who were among the first converts to Christianity in the Near East.
The Syro-Malabar Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic church based in Kerala, India. The Syro-Malabar Church is an autonomous particular church in full communion with the pope and the worldwide Catholic Church, including the Latin Church and the 22 other Eastern Catholic churches, with self-governance under the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (CCEO). The Church is headed by the Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar, currently George Alencherry. The Syro-Malabar Synod of Bishops canonically convoked and presided over by the Major Archbishop constitutes the supreme authority of the Church. The Major Archiepiscopal Curia of the Church is based in Kakkanad, Kochi. Syro-Malabar is a prefix reflecting the church's use of the East Syriac Rite liturgy and origins in Malabar. The name has been in usage in official Vatican documents since the nineteenth century.
Muvattupuzha is a town, muncipality in the midlands directly to the east of Kochi in Ernakulam district, Kerala, India. It is located about 36 km (22 mi) from downtown Kochi, and is a growing urban centre in central Kerala. The town is also the starting point of the Muvattupuzhayar, which is a confluence formed by three rivers: the Thodupuzhayar, Kaliyar, and Kothayar.
Perumbavoor is a place located at the bank of Periyar in Ernakulam District in the Indian state of Kerala. It is a part of the Kochi metropolitan area. It lies in the northeastern tip of the Greater Cochin area and is also the headquarters of Kunnathunad Taluk. Perumbavoor is famed in the state for wood industries and small-scale industries. Ernakulam lies 30 km southwest of Perumbavoor. The town lies between Angamaly and Muvattupuzha on the Main Central Road (MC), which connects Thiruvananthapuram to Angamaly through the old Travancore part of Kerala.
Pampady is a fast growing town in Kottayam district of Kerala, Southern India. It lies midway between the backwaters of Western Kerala and the mountains of the Western Ghats.
Piravom is a municipality in Ernakulam district and a suburb of Kochi in the Indian state of Kerala. It is located with in 31 km southeast of Kochi city center, at the boundary of the Ernakulam and Kottayam districts. Piravom is famous for its Hindu temples and Christian churches. Piravom has a river-front, verdant hills, and paddy fields.
Pukkattupady is a suburb of the City of Kochi, in Ernakulam District, Kerala, India. It is in intersection of major bus route from Aluva Town via F.A.C.T and BPCL to Thrippunithura and Kolenchery via Kizhakkambalam and the routes from Perumbavoor to Ernakulam via NPOL or Edappally.
This article lists the various old and ancient churches that exist among the Saint Thomas Christians in Kerala.
The Jacobite Syrian Christian Church (JSCC), or the Malankara Archdiocese of the Syrian Orthodox Church in India also known as Malankara Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church, the Jacobite Syrian Church, and the Syriac Orthodox Church in India, is a catholicate based in Kerala, India, of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch and part of the Oriental Orthodox Church. It recognizes the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East as supreme head of the church. It functions autonomously within the church, administered by the Metropolitan Trustee, under the authority of the Maphrian of India, Baselios Thomas I. Following schism with the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, is currently the only church in Malankara that is directly under a Syriac Christian Antiochian hierarchy, claiming continuity to the 1665 schism. The church employs the West Syriac Rite Liturgy of Saint James.
Vakathanam is a Panchayat in Kottayam district of Kerala, India. It is 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) from Kottayam on the way to Changanassery via Puthupally. Vakathanam panchayat consists of two villages: Vakathanam and Thottakkad.
Rayamangalam is a village in the Ernakulam district of Kerala state, India.
Koodal is the second largest town in Konni Taluk at Pathanamthitta District, located in Kerala state, India.Koodal Situates On Main Eastern Highway.
Marady is a village in Ernakulam district in the Indian state of Kerala.
Puthenkurish is a town in Ernakulam district in the Indian state of Kerala near Kolenchery town en route to Muvattupuzha. It is a part of the Greater Cochin area. Puthencruz is one of the fastest developing villages in Ernakulam district. Puthencruz plays a pivotal role in connecting different smaller villages and other surrounding towns to Ernakulam as it lies in the outer ring of Ernakulam City. Puthencruz is rapidly developing into a city and will be at the pivot of expansion of the Ernakulam municipal area.
The Saint Thomas Christian denominations are Christian denominations from Kerala, India, which traditionally trace their ultimate origins to the evangelistic activity of Thomas the Apostle in the 1st century. They are also known as "Nasranis" as well. The Syriac term "Nasrani" is still used by St. Thomas Christians in Kerala.
St. Peter's and St. Paul's Orthodox Syrian Church is an Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church church situated in Kolenchery, in Ernakulam, Kerala, India. It was established in the seventh century.
Perumbavoor has many Hindu temples, Muslim mosques and Christian churches. As the area is dominated by expatriate north Indian workers, some places of worship cater to the taste of North Indian devotees.
Reflecting the religious constitution of the population, a large number of Hindu temples and Christian churches dot the townscape of Kottayam district. Some of them are the Thirunakkara Mahadeva temple, Kumaranalloor Devi temple, Thiruvarrpu Sri Krishna Temple, Thaliyil Mahadeva Temple, Pallippurathukavu Bhagavathi Temple, Elia Cathedral, Kottayam Valiya Pally, Manarcad Cathedral, Cheriya Palli, CSI Holy Trinity cathedral, Puthuppally St. George Church and Thazhathangadi Juma Masjid. All the temples of Kottayam were also built under royal patronage of Hinduism during the 2nd millennium.
