Text and Tradition: The Dynasty of Villarvattom among Syrian Christians in Kerala, IndiaSouth Asia: Journal of South Asian StudiesSyriaca.org: The Syriac Reference PortalThe National Endowment for the HumanitiesThe International Balzan Prize FoundationDavid A. Michelsoncbsc_adminRecord added to Zotero bycbsc_adminSyriaca.org: The Syriac Reference Portalhttp://syriaca.org/cbss/3K4GA6QR/tei
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CREATED: This bibl record was autogenerated from a Zotero record.P. K.SreekumarAdakkaravayalil YoyakkyEldhoseText and Tradition: The Dynasty of Villarvattom among Syrian Christians in Kerala, Indiahttp://syriaca.org/cbss/3K4GA6QRhttps://www.zotero.org/groups/a_comprehensive_bibliography_on_syriac_studies/items/3K4GA6QRhttps://www.zotero.org/groups/4861694/items/3K4GA6QRSouth Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies47:32024634-655The present paper introduces, inventories and interrogates prevailing narratives about the complex trajectories through which a putative Syrian Christian dynasty named Villarvattom has taken root in communal genealogies and the popular imagination of Kerala. The paper, by examining historical evidence, argues that the existing historical documents compel us to consider it as a retrospectively invented and imagined tradition necessitated and facilitated by the unique socio-political structures of Kerala viz. the ideational complexes wrought by caste and allied practices, the dislocation caused by successive colonial regimes and the overall crisis experienced by the indigenous Christian community. The paper surveys the present state of literature, discusses explanatory models, points to the possibility of cultural introjection and seeks ways in which the study can be taken forward more comprehensively and productively so that we gain perceptive insights into both the ecclesiastical and secular histories of Kerala. The paper argues that it is an invented tradition, a defence mechanism collectively, and perhaps unconsciously, evolved by the beleaguered Syrian Christians under the Portuguese, Dutch and British colonial rule, which had inflicted debilitating blows to the power and glory enjoyed by this community.
Sreekumar, P. K., and Adakkaravayalil Yoyakky Eldhose. “Text and Tradition: The Dynasty of Villarvattom among Syrian Christians in Kerala, India.” South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 47:3 (2024): 634–55. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/00856401.2024.2350890.
P. K. Sreekumar and Adakkaravayalil Yoyakky Eldhose, Text and Tradition: The Dynasty of Villarvattom among Syrian Christians in Kerala, India,South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 47:3 (2024): 634–55, https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/00856401.2024.2350890.