THE KNANAYA PEOPLE?
1) What does Knanaya mean?
Thomas of Edessa was a merchant who traded between the Middle East and
the Malabar Coast (modern-day Kerala). The language of the Malabar Coast then was Tamil and the inhabitants were the aboriginals constituting
of Vedas (Vedan/ malavedan), Kuravas (kuravan), and Pulayas. Cheraman Perumal was the monarch
and the dynasty known as the Chera Kingdom. There
are many hypotheses for the name knanaya. One is as follows.
The king honored Thomas with a title, “Kanavan.” The name “Karnavan” may be a modified form
of “Kanavan”, which means Uncle or Elder. The group connected to this great hero was known as Kanayakar.
Thus Knanayakar means the group under the leader Thomas Kanavan.
The second one is that the name is from “kanaya”
meaning Zelot who is a strict follower of his religius principles (Malayalam erivukaran like erivukaran
Simon). The
third one has direct connection with our endogamy practice. The suggestion is that we are Kohns; meaning
we are the descendents of Aaron; the priestly class who are forbidden from marrying from outside community; Leviticus 21:14.
2) Who are the Knanaya people and what is their
origin?
The Knanaya people are known with two synonyms:
- Knanayakar: This is already explained above
- Thekkumbhagar
or Southists (Southerners): This name gives some insight to its origin and God’s purpose for its people
Joshua chapter 15:1; “This then was the tribe of the children of Judah by their
families; even to the border of Eodom the wilderness of Zin southward was the uttermost part of the south coast.” According
to Genesis 13 : 1; Abraham, Gods’ chosen went to the south. 13:18 further says :- “Then Abraham moved his tent and went and dwelt by the terebinth trees of Mamre, which are in
Hebron.” Hebron is in the south. The children of the tribe of Judah lived in the Southern country and were known
as Southists. During the siege of Nebuchadnezzar, a lot of these southists were taken as captives and some fled to neighboring
places. Later, towards the 2nd Century BC, Antiochus Epiphanus attacked Jerusalem, and a lot of the remaining Southists fled again. They settled in the Kingdom of Edessa
(Urhoi), modern day Sanali Urfa in the Anatolia province of Turkey. These children of the tribe of Judah
were called the Southists and the rest Israelites as northists. In olden days the capital of Judah was Hebron; which David changed
to Jerusalem. All the other tribes were of the north and
were known as Israelites; had capital of Shiloh. The children of
the tribe of Judah were called Southists wherever they lived.
St. Philip the disciple of Jesus preached Christianity in the Kingdom of Edessa
and the Kingdom got baptized. The children of the tribe of Judah
who got baptized are the origin of the Knanaya people.
3) They come to India in AD 345.
4)
Why did they come to India?
The princely church of Edessa flourished. It was the center of Christianity in the East. It was a buffer zone between the Persians
and the Romans. They had a tradition of going to barren lands in a group as a church. According to St. Ignatius of Antioch a Church constitutes a group of believers under a bishop. So the
group from Edessa had a Bishop, priests, deacons, and laity.
They would settle down in those distant lands and preach the God-spell. There were no Christians in South India and the word of God was never preached in the Malabar until AD 345. So they migrated
to the Malabar Coast in a group of 400 people, a Bishop; Mor Joseph,
two priests, and a few deacons. They lived there and preached. The Edessa Christians did this all over the Middle East and many parts of Eastern Europe. Remember that the Syriac language that we use in the liturgy today is the Edessan dialect of Aramaic. So much
was the influence of southist Christians in the holy church of Antioch.
4:
The saints with knanaya blood
a.
Mary and Joseph were descendents
of David of the tribe of Judah. Hence; We are related to Jesus, the Young
Lion of Judah, by blood through Mary. b.
St. Helen, the mother of Constantine
the Great, who was the daughter of a Knanaya (urhoi) priest; was God’s instrument to bring Christianity to this level;
just like queen Esther for judaism. c.
St. Knai Thoma, the great believer
who led the “word of God spreading group” of 345. Many in South India often mistake him as St. Thomas the
apostle; who never came to the malabar coast; modern day Kerala or even South India.
5) Why are the knanaya people preserved for almost two millenniums?
The purpose is divine. All Mighty has a plan; Psalms 4 : 3 – “But know
that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself.” As we still are preserving ourselves; it is concluded that
we are responsible for the Christians and their high status in Kerala. Our Edessan dialect of Aramaic; “Suriyani”
is the language of Litergy for the most ancient church of Antioch. Endogamy is what preserved us. God will preserve us the same way He
preserved the Jewish people. It is interesting to note that a migration
of the tribe of Menasha called “Bnei Menashe” is preserved in the village of Churachandpur of the state
of Manipur in India is preserved just like the knanaya people for the last 3 milleniums. Conclussion We need
to research and find out our great traditions. We should not change anything unless we educate ourselves.
As G. K. Chesterton said it. We should not remove a fence unless we know why that fence was put
there originally.
With Love; Chemmachen.
(Dn.MONSY
JACOB ) | 
