Above is a portion of Ria’s email giving me information about her translation and about Kerala.  I hope you enjoy taking a trip to Kerala from Wikipedia:

  (·) or Keralam (: , K?ra?am) is an located on the of . It was created on 1 November 1956 by the by combining various speaking regions.

The state has an area of 38,863 km2 (15,005 sq mi) and is bordered by to the north and northeast, to the south and southeast, and the on the west. The city of is the state capital. and are other major cities. According to a survey by , five out of ten best cities to live in India are located in Kerala. Kerala is a popular tourist destination for its , , and tropical greenery.

Kerala has the highest in India, comparable with that of but with a much lower per capita income. The state has the highest literacy rate in India with 99 percent. The state recently became and is currently the only one to have banking facilities in every village. A survey conducted in 2005 by ranked Kerala as the least corrupt state in the country. Kerala has witnessed significant migration of its people, especially to the during the and is heavily dependent on from its large Malayali expatriate community.

:  Evidence of Kerala’s early human occupation includes of the era, in the area. They are locally known as “muniyara”, derived from muni ( or , and ara (dolmen).  Rock-engravings in the (in ) are thought to date from the early to Late Neolithic eras around 5000 B.C. The use of a specific pictogram in these caves suggests some relationship with the during the late and early .

Early history and culture, Kerala was a major spice exporter as early as 3,000 BCE, according to .

Kerala and once shared a common language and culture, within an area known as . In the 1st century BCE, -speaking [] established the that ruled northern Kerala from a capital at . Southern Kerala was ruled by the , with a trading port variously identified by ancient Western sources as “Nelcynda” and “Neacyndi” The Cheras had trading links with , West Asia, and the . The value of Rome’s annual trade with India as a whole was estimated at no less than 50,000,000 ; contemporary describes Roman ships coming to in Kerala, laden with gold to exchange for . One of the earliest western traders to use the monsoon winds to reach Kerala may have been , around 118 or 166 BCE, under the patronage of , king of the in . Kerala is identified on the , the only known surviving map of the Roman .

The Chera kings’ dependence on trade meant that merchants from West Asia and Southern Europeestablished coastal posts and settlements in Kerala.:192–195, 303–307 The west Asian-semitic Jewish, Christian, and Muslim immigrants established , , and communities respectively. The Jews first arrived in Kerala in 573 . According to local Syriac Nasrani Christian tradition as well as the works of scholars and writings, visited in Kerala circa 52 CE to proselytize amongst Kerala’s Jewish settlements. The first , , and inIndia were built in Kerala.

A later was established c. 800–1102, with the help of Arab spice merchants. This is also called the , as it was founded by Kulasekhara Varman, a saint. kings ruled southern Kerala, but by the 10th century the Ay kingdom declined and became a part of the Chera Kingdom. A Keralite identity, distinct from the , became linguistically separate during this period. The Kulasekhara dynasty came to an end by twelfth century, weakened by the invasions of and . In the absence of a strong central power, the state fractured into small principalities governed by Nair chieftains. From these, the kingdoms of , , and emerged.

There were major revolts in Kerala against British rule in the 20th century, until Independencewas achieved. They include the 1921 and the 1946 in Travancore. Other actions by Kerala’s political and spiritual leaders protested against social traditions such as , leading to the 1936 that opened Hindu temples in Travancore to all castes; Malabar soon did likewise, and Cochin followed with a similar proclamation in 1948, after Independence. In the 1921 , Mappila Muslims rioted against Hindu zamindars (see ) and the .

Post Independence: After was in 1947 into India and , and joined the and on 1 July 1949 were merged to form . On 1 January 1950 (), was recognised as a state. The was organised to form in 1947.

On 1 November 1956, the state of Kerala was formed by the merging the Malabar district, Travancore-Cochin (excluding four southern , which were merged with Tamil Nadu), and the taluk of , . In 1957, elections for the new Kerala Legislative Assembly were held, and a reformist, Communist-led government came to power, under .The Communist government initiated pioneering land reforms, leading to lowest levels of rural poverty in India.

Kerala in religious traditions: The oldest of the surviving , the , sets the story of the first of the of Lord , the , and King (King Satyavrata, mankind’s ancestor), among Kerala’s .

The earliest Sanskrit text to mention Kerala by name is the .

The legendary king is said to have ruled from Kerala in a reign of universal happiness and prosperity. On his passing away he was appointed ruler of the netherworld (Patalam) by , the fifth avatar of Lord . There is a belief that, Once a year, during the festival, he returns to Kerala.

 is wedged between the and the . Lying between north latitudes 8°18? and 12°48? and east longitudes 74°52? and 77°22?, Kerala experiences the humid . The state has a coast of length 590 km (370 mi) and the width of the state varies between 35 and 120 km (22–75 miles). Geographically, Kerala can be divided into three climatically distinct regions: the eastern highlands (rugged and cool mountainous terrain), the central midlands (rolling hills), and the western lowlands (coastal plains). Located at the extreme southern tip of the , Kerala lies near the centre of the ; hence, most of the state is subject to comparatively little and volcanic activity. and geological formations compose the bulk of Kerala’s terrain.

The eastern Kerala region consists of high mountains, gorges and deep-cut valleys immediately west of the Western Ghats’ . Forty-one of Kerala’s west-flowing rivers, and three of its east-flowing ones originate in this region. The Western Ghats form a wall of mountains interrupted only near , where the breaks through to provide access to the rest of India. The Western Ghats rises on average to 1,500 m (4920 ft) above sea level, while the highest peaks may reach to 2,500 m (8200 ft). is the highest peak at an elevation of 2,695 metres (8,842 ft). Just west of the mountains lie the midland plains comprising central Kerala, dominated by rolling hills and valleys. Generally ranging between elevations of 250–1,000 m (820–3300 ft), the eastern portions of the and include such formations as and .

Kerala’s western coastal belt is relatively flat, and is criss-crossed by a network of interconnected , lakes, , and rivers known as the . Lake , Kerala’s largest body of water, dominates the Backwaters; it lies between and and is more than 200 km2 (77 sq mi) in area. Around 8% of India’s waterways (measured by length) are found in Kerala. The most important of Kerala’s include the (244 km), the (209 km), the (176 km), the (169 km), the (130 km), the (129 km) and the (128 km). The average length of the rivers of Kerala is 64 km. Many of the rivers are small and entirely fed by rains. These conditions result in the nearly year-round water logging of such western regions as , 500 km² of which lies below sea level. As Kerala’s rivers are small and lack , they are more prone to environmental factors. The rivers also face problems such as sand mining and pollution. The state experiences several such as , , and . The state was also affected by the .

A catastrophic flood in Kerala in 1341 CE drastically modified its terrain and consequently affected its history. The course of the river was changed, and the receded several miles. The region became cultivable, and the () became defunct. A new harbour was developed at .

Climate: With 120–140 rainy days per year, Kerala has a wet and maritime tropical climate influenced by the seasonal heavy rains of the .:80 In eastern Kerala, a drier tropical wet and dry climate prevails. Kerala’s rainfall averages 3,107 mm (122 in.) annually. Some of Kerala’s drier lowland regions average only 1,250 mm (49 in.); the mountains of eastern receive more than 5,000 mm (197 in.) of , the highest in the state.

During summer, Kerala is prone to gale force winds, storm surges, -related torrential downpours, occasional droughts, and rises in sea level.:26, 46, 52 The mean daily temperatures range from 19.8 °C to 36.7 °C. Mean annual temperatures range from 25.0–27.5 °C in the coastal lowlands to 20.0–22.5 °C in the eastern highlands.:65

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Kerala’s Government is based on rules and regulations determined by the Government of India. The State is governed via a of ; is granted to state residents. There are three branches of government.[] The legislature, the , comprises elected members and special office bearers (the Speaker and Deputy Speaker) elected by the members from among themselves. Assembly meetings are presided over by the Speaker and in the Speaker’s absence, by the Deputy Speaker. Kerala has 140 Assembly constituencies. The state sends 20 members to the and 9 to the , the ‘s upper house.

The is the constitutional head of state, and is appointed by the . The state’s 2005–2006 budget was 219 billion . The state government’s tax revenues (excluding the shares from Union tax pool) amounted to 111,248 million  in 2005, up from 63,599 million in 2000. Its non-tax revenues (excluding the shares from Union tax pool) of the Government of Kerala as assessed by the Indian Finance Commissions reached 10,809 million INR in 2005, nearly double the 6,847 million INR revenues of 2000. However, Kerala’s high ratio of taxation to has not alleviated chronic budget deficits and unsustainable levels of government debt, impacting social services.

Kerala hosts two major political alliances: the (UDF—led by the )and the (LDF—led by the (CPI(M)). At present, the UDF is the ruling coalition in government; of the is the Chief Minister of Kerala and of the LDF is the Chief Opposition leader. Strikes, protests and marches are ubiquitous in Kerala due to the comparatively strong presence of labour unions.

Since independence, Kerala was managed as a . Since the 1990s, of the allowed onerous restrictions against capitalism and to be lightened, leading to economic expansion and job creation. In fiscal year 2007–2008, nominal (GSDP) was 162,414.79 (30.86 billion). Recent GSDP growth (9.2% in 2004–2005 and 7.4% in 2003–2004) has been robust compared to historical averages (2.3% annually in the 1980s and between 5.1%:8 and 5.99% in the 1990s).:8 The state clocked 8.93% growth in enterprises from 1998 to 2005 compared with 4.80% nationally. Relatively few such enterprises are major corporations or manufacturers. Kerala’s rating is the highest in India. This apparently paradoxical “Kerala phenomenon” or “” of very high human development and not much high economic development results from the strong service sector.:48:1

Kerala’s economy depends on (mainly in the such as or ) and annually contribute more than a fifth of GSDP. As of 2008, the Gulf countries altogether have a Keralite population of more than 2.5 million, who send home annually a sum of 6.81 billion, which is more than 15.13% of .

The service sector (including tourism, public administration, banking and finance, transportation, and communications—63.8% of GSDP in 2002–2003) and the agricultural and fishing industries (together 17.2% of GSDP) dominate the economy. Nearly half of Kerala’s people are dependent on agriculture alone for income. Some 600 varieties:5 of rice (Kerala’s most important and cereal crop):5 are harvested from 3105.21 km² (a decline from 5883.4 km² in 1990):5 of ; 688,859  are produced per annum. Other key crops include coconut (899,198 ha), tea, coffee (23% of Indian production,:13 or 57,000 tonnes:6–7), rubber, cashews, and —including , , vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Around 1.050 million fishermen haul an annual catch of 668,000 tonnes (1999–2000 estimate); 222 fishing villages are strung along the 590 km coast. Another 113 fishing villages dot the hinterland.

Kerala’s coastal belt of Karunagappally is known for high background radiation from thorium-containing sand. In coastal panchayats, median outdoor radiation levels are more than 4 mGy/yr and, in certain locations on the coast, it is as high as 70 mGy/yr.

Traditional industries manufacturing such items as , , and employ around one million people. Around 180,000 small-scale industries employ around 909,859 Keralites; 511 medium and large scale manufacturing firms are located in Kerala. A small mining sector (0.3% of GSDP) involves extraction of , , , , , , , and . and animal husbandry also provide work for hundreds of thousands of people. Other major sectors are , manufacturing, and . As of March 2002, Kerala’s banking sector comprised 3341 local branches; each branch served 10,000 persons, lower than the national average of 16,000; the state has the third-highest bank penetration among Indian states. On 1 October 2011, Kerala became the first state in the country to have banking facility in every village. Unemployment in 2007 was estimated at 9.4%; , low employability of youths, and a 13.5% female are chronic issues,:5, 13 as is the practice of , ‘wages for looking on’. By 1999–2000, the rural and urban poverty rates dropped to 10.0%and 9.6% respectively.

The state treasury has suffered loss of thousands of millions of thanks to the state staging over 100 annually in recent times. A record total of 223 hartals were observed in 2006, resulting in a revenue loss of over 2000 crore.

Transport: The length of the through Kerala is 416.8 km. NH 49 (Kochi – ), NH 208 (Kollam – Thirumangalam), NH 212 (Kozhikode – ), NH 213 (Kozhikode – Palakkad), NH 220 (Kollam – theni) are the other national highways serving the state of Kerala.

is medieval in origin and includes such figures as the 14th century (Madhava Panikkar, Sankara Panikkar and Rama Panikkar), and the 17th century poet whose works mark the dawn of both modern Malayalam language and indigenous Keralite poetry. and are noted for their contribution to Malayalam prose. The “” (Kavithrayam), , , and , are recognised for moving Keralite poetry away from archaic sophistry and metaphysics, and towards a more mode.

: The National Family Health Survey – 3, conducted in 2007 ranked Kerala as a state with the . Dozens of newspapers are published in Kerala, in nine major languages, but principally Malayalam and English. The most widely circulating are , , , , , , and . include , , , , , |Dhanam, , and .

is the state-owned television broadcaster. provide a mix of Malayalam, English and international channels via cable television. The major Malayalam television channels are , , , , , , ,and . , the national radio service, reaches much of Kerala via its Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Thrissur, Alappuzha, Kozhikode and Kannur Malayalam-language broadcasts. Television serials, reality shows and the Internet have become a major source of entertainment and information for the people of Kerala. A Malayalam version of was launched in September 2008. Regardless, Keralites maintain high rates[] of newspaper and magazine subscriptions. A sizeable “people’s science” movement has taken root in the state, and such activities as writers’ cooperatives are becoming increasingly common.:2

are known for their realistic portrayal of characters and being socially oriented[] without giving a lot of importance to glitz and glamour[]. Movies produced in Hindi, Tamil and English (Made inHollywood) are popular among

: The in Kochi is one of the largest multi-use stadiums in India several ancient ritualised arts are Keralite in origin. These include — (“place”, “threshing floor”, or “battlefield”) and payattu (“exercise” or “practice”). Among the world’s oldest martial arts, oral tradition attributes kalaripayattu’s emergence to Parasurama. Other ritual arts include and .

Cricket and football are the most popular sports in the state. is the franchise that plays in the . Two Kerala players gained test selection in recent years. has represented India since 2005. Among other Keralite cricketers is , son of Olympic . Notable Kerala include , C. V. Pappachan, , and .

Other popular sports include badminton, volleyball and . Among Kerala athletes are , , , , , and . Volleyball is another popular sport[] and is often played on makeshift courts on sandy beaches along the coast. was a notable Indian volleyball player, rated in his prime as among the world’s ten best players.

: Kerala is situated on the lush and tropical . Kerala is one of the popular tourist destinations in India. Its unique[] , coupled with its varied , has made Kerala one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. ‘s magazine names Kerala as one of the “ten paradises of the world” and “50 must see destinations of a lifetime”. names Kerala as “One of the 100 great trips for the 21st century”.