Introduction
The purpose of this page is to present available information on all categories of Christian songs in Malayalam, the language of Kerala. Kerala is the Cradle of Christianity in south Asia. Because of the unique historical trajectories, diverse forms of Christianity, Eastern and Western, from the earliest to the most modern, have found a space in this unique geopolitical setting. Subsequently, a wide variety of Christian practices, rituals and liturgies are present here. All these have contributed to the creation of a hugely diverse repertoire of Christian songs that contain multiple stories of interface between faith and culture. Therefore, we think it worthwhile to make these songs available to scholars as well as to anyone who is curious about the cultural complexity in India. We begin with songs that are in the public domain. Those songs that have copyright will be made available as soon as the copyright holders permit us to post them on this web page. Each song is assigned a CMSI id number and is listed in alphabetical order, based on their transliteration in the Latin script. Available audio and video clippings are linked to the list.We begin with songs that are in the public domain. Those songs that have copyrights will be made available as soon as the copyright holders permit us to post them on this web page. Each song is assigned a CMSI id number and is listed in alphabetical order, based on their transliteration in the Latin script. Available audio and video clippings are linked to this list.
An analysis of these songs can be useful in many ways. From a linguistic point of view, thesong texts can be tools to study the history of the evolution of the Malayalam language. For example, early Christian songs show instances of Tamil phonemes;as centuries went by, those Tamil influences seem to have faded. Given below are the opening verses that introduce St. Thomas the Apostle, inMārggam kaḷi(Dance of the Christian Way) of the St. Thomas Christians; the Tamil phonemes are marked in Italics.
Meykkaninthapīliyum/ The body that is covered with peacock feathers
Mayilmēlthōthummēniyum / And the body that looks like a peacock
From the melodic point of view, these songs cover a wide range of musical styles, both indigenous and foreign: South Indian Karnatak classical, North Indian bhajan, Kerala folk, film, Syriac (Aramaic), Western, etc., etc. They show how the Christian faith in India has entered into a multi-layered dialogue with a wide range of cultures.
Christianity in each linguistic region in India has its own stories to tell. In due course, we hope to open similar web pages for Christian songs in other Indian languages. Obviously, this is an ambitious project that can take several decades. Yet, that is not a reason to delay the first, baby steps. We hope interested readers will email us (info@thecmsindia.org) ideas and song texts, and we shall post them with proper acknowledgements. We also request corrections, suggestions, and comments from readers.
Joseph J. Palackal & Felix Simon
For TheCMSIndia.org
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Aramaic Project - Part I
Syro Malabar Church
The Syro Malabar Church, which is one of the eight independent churches among the St. Thomas Christians (6 million out of about thirty million Christians in India), follow the Chaldean (East Syriac) liturgical tradition. The immediate goal of this project is to locate as many singers as possible in the Syro Malabar Church, who were born in the 1950s or earlier, and record their memories of the language, melodies, and experiences in order to preserve them for posterity.
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Aramaic Project - Part II
Assyrian Church of the East
The Assyrian Church of the East in India is known as the Chaldean Syrian Church. Outside India the name Chaldean Church refers to that branch of the Church of the East which has a separate existence from 1553 AD. The Chaldean Syrian Church in India is based in Trichur, head by His Grace Dr. Mar Aprem.
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Aramaic Project - Part III
Chaldean Catholic Church Babylon
The Chaldean Catholic Church (Classical Syriac: ܥܕܬܐ ܟܠܕܝܬܐ ܩܬܘܠܝܩܝܬܐ, ʿīdtha kaldetha qāthuliqetha; Arabic: الكنيسة الكلدانية al-Kanīsa al-kaldāniyya; Latin: Ecclesia Chaldaeorum Catholica, lit. ' Catholic Church of the Chaldeans') is an Eastern Catholic particular church (sui juris) in full communion with the Holy See and the rest of the Catholic Church, with the Chaldean Patriarchate having been originally formed out of the Church of the East in 1552. Employing the East Syriac Rite in Syriac language in its liturgy, it is part of Syriac Christianity by heritage.
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Aramaic Project - Part IV
Malankara Marthoma Syrian Church
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Aramaic Project Part - V
Syrian Orthodox Churchs
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Aramaic Project - Part VI
Syro Malankara Church
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Aramaic Project - Part VII
Music of Kerala Jews
We decided to add this section to the Aramaic Project because Jews and Christians in Kerala have a shared history. Both communities share stories of immigration and practicing a foreign-born faith in a multi-religious and cultural milieu. Jews and Christian communities flourished in Kerala and enjoyed upper-caste status with several social privileges. We do not read of religious persecutions. Both communities engaged in respectful interactions with the local society and made valuable contributions.
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