The beautiful land, Lakshadweep is dotted with monuments. Amidst the brilliance of the coral reefs, palm trees, sandy beaches and clear waters the monuments of Lakshadweep stand as the historical relics, reminding of the days faded long ago.
The tomb of Hazrat Ubaidullah, Moidin Mosque, Urja Mosque and several Buddhist archaeological are some of the major monuments of this island.
The tombs of Hazrat Ubaidullah laced with its antiquity stand as one of the important monuments of Lakshadweep.
The Light House at Minicoy Island in Lakshadweep constructed by the British regime in 1883, to provide them a vantage point for many sea battles. The entire Light House was built in brick masonry where the specific black bricks were used for its entire construction.
The Urja mosque at Kavaratti has wood-carving construction in a typical Islamic architecture that makes it unique. Houses of common people in the islands are built with Thatched roof on top of the buildings.
History
Local traditions attribute the first settlement on these islands to the period of Cheraman Perumal, the last king of Kerala. It is believed that after his conversion to Islam, at the behest of some Arab merchants, he slipped out of his capital Cranganore, the present day Kodungallor – an old harbor town Kochi, for Mecca.
Small settlements started in the Islands of Amini, Kavaratti, Andrott and Kalpeni first and later people from these islands moved to the other islands of Agatti, Kiltan, Chetlat and Kadmat.
The Arrival of the Portuguese in India again made Laccadives an important place for seafarers. The Portuguese started looting island vessels. The people killed all the invaders by poisoning, ending the Portuguese invasion.
An officer of the East India Company Sir William Robinson volunteered to accompany him. On reaching Andrott, the Rajah found it difficult to meet all the demands of the people. Sir William then offered the Rajah help in the form of a loan.
This arrangement continued for about four years but when the interest started mounting, the English asked the Rajah to repay them which he could not. In 1854 all the remaining islands were handed over to the East India Company for Administration. so, came the British rule.
On 1 November 1956, during the reorganization of Indian states, the Lakshadweep islands were separated from Malabar District and organized into a separate union territory.
The Union Territory was formed in 1956 and it was named Lakshadweep in 1973. The headquarters of the new union territory remained at Kozhikode for nearly a decade until 1964.
Demographic Location
India's smallest Union Territory Lakshadweep is an archipelago consisting of 36 islands with an area of 32 sq km.
It is a uni-district Union Territory and is comprised of 12 atolls, three reefs, five submerged banks and ten inhabited islands. The islands is a uni-district Union Territory comprise of 32 sq km.
The reefs are in fact also atolls, although mostly submerged, with only small un-vegetated sand cays above the high-water mark.
The submerged banks are sunken atolls. Almost all the atolls have a northeast–southwest orientation with the islands lying on the eastern rim, and a mostly submerged reef on the western rim, enclosing a lagoon. It has ten inhabited islands, 17 uninhabited islands, attached islets, four newly formed islets and five submerged reefs.
The inhabited islands are Kavaratti, Agatti, Amini, Kadmat, Kiltan, Chetlat, Bitra, Andrott, Kalpeni and Minicoy.
Lakshadweep, the group of 36 islands is known for its exotic and sun-kissed beaches and lush green landscape.
The name Lakshadweep in Malayalam and Sanskrit means ‘a hundred thousand islands’.
What type of tribes live in Lakshadweep?
Aminidivi, Koyas, Malmis and Melacheris are the prime human communities of Lakshadweep.
People, Rituals and Language
As to the 1681 census, 11 languages as stated in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution are spoken as the mother tongue in Lakshadweep. Most of the Lakshadweep islanders speak Malayalam. Mahi (or Mahl), which is akin to old Sinhalese, is spoken on Minicoy.
Some people also speak Hindi. The population is concentrated mostly on the islands of Andrott, Kavaratti, Minicoy, and Amini.
The migrants who work in the Union territory speak Bengali, Gujarati, Hindu, Kannada, Oriya, Tamil, Telegu, Konkani, Urdu and English.
The scripts that are used on the islands are Minicoy and the modern Malayalam Grandha. The oldest script on the islands is Vattezhuthu.
The Arabic script has become prominent among the people with the arrival of Islam, particularly for studying the Qur’an.
Season and Climate
The islands of Lakshadweep have a warm and humid tropical climate and receive an annual rainfall of about 1500 mm mainly from the southwest monsoon (June to September).
Lakshadweep has a tropical climate and it has an average temperature of 27° C – 32° C. April and May are the hottest with an average temperature of 32° C.
the South West Monsoon is active with an average rainfall of 10-40 mm. The relative humidity is 70-75%. Annual rainfall decreases from South to North.
On an average, 80-90 days a year are rainy. Winds are light to moderate from October to March.
Culture and Education
More than 93% of the indigenous population are Muslims with the majority belonging to the Shafi School of the Sunni Sect.
Kolkali and Parichakali are the two popular folk art forms in the Territory. They are an integral part of the cultural milieu except in Minicoy where “LAVA” is the most popular dance form.
The dress reflects the links to the southern states of the country, the influences of Islamic, Portuguese, and mainland Indian cultures are unique.
The traditional dress of the women is the Kachi which is a garb similar to the lungi and is typically black or white. They also wear long headdresses, called Thattam.
Jewelry is a must for Laccadivian women. The men are typically seen wearing lungis but the younger generations have transitioned into western outfits like shorts and trousers.
In the Minicoy, only the Manikfans women wear gold ornaments.
Lakshadweep’s food is marked by heavy usage of seafood and coconuts. Tuna fish dishes are quite common in the local restaurants, including dishes like the famous red tuna curry, Rayereha, and white coconut tuna, Sannath.
Malabar culture are evident in the local cuisine which consists of dishes like Parotta and Malabar Chicken.
The Mus Kavaab and Maasu Podichath are popular fish dishes, while fish pakoras are fan-favorite street food in Minicoy. Lakshadweep is known for its wonderful tradition of dance and music.
Parichakali is a popular form of dance in most of the islands, which is performed by men using wooden swords and shields. This dance form attempts to reenact Islamic tales of mighty battles fought in the days of yore. The dancers begin with a slow pace but they soon catch on to a quick tempo reaching the energetic climax which truly reminds the spectators of the valor of soldiers.
Another dance form in the islands is Kolkali, which is also performed in the nearby state of Kerala. The Kolkali dancers accompany their dance with the rhythm of the beating of wooden sticks.
The Minicoy islands of Lakshadweep have their unique dance form, named Lava. The practitioners of these dance forms make their performance extra special with unique songs.
Traditional handicrafts and art forms of the islands tend to be centered around the products of the sea- seashells, tortoise shells, or coconuts.
Education of Lakshadweep is looking brighter with the advent of the numerous schools and colleges.
Lakshadweep has progressed phenomenally from the days when education in the union territory was limited top the sacred instructions of the Koran. The various lessons of Islamic theology were imparted in the islands mosques or madrasas.
The first ever government school to open doors in Lakshadweep was established at Amini on 15th January 1904. The government schools in Lakshadweep taught the fundamentals of arithmetic, Canarese and Malayalam.
The Minicoy High School was the first school to be set up in Minicoy Island in 1891. The union territory also has its own Kendriya Vidyalaya and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya that are centers of academic excellence.
The Lakshadweep colleges are mainly affiliated to the University of Calicut. The two premier colleges of the island namely, the Government Jawaharlal Nehru College and the Mahatma Gandhi College offer degree courses in various disciplines of arts, science and technology.
The Lakshadweep colleges specialize in the departments of English, British History, World History, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Computer Applications, Physics, Botany, Zoology and Pisciculture.
Famous Spots
Clear, untarnished water makes it a nice and ideal place for diving and other activities.
The islands of Lakshadweep provide lovely shallow lagoons excellent for snorkelling and viewing exotic marine life.
The Lakshadweep Islands are a paradise for all those who adore water sports that include yachting, swimming, skiing, scuba diving, kayaking, windsurfing and paddling.
Aqua, Flora and Fauna
The lagoons and the surrounding waters and corals reefs are replete with a wide variety of flora and fauna.
Coconut cultivation and tuna fishing form the mainstay of the economy of the islanders.
Tuna is processed in the canning factory at Minicoy. A large part of the tuna catch is also dried in the sun after cooking and smoking.
The flora in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep includes Banana, Colocasia, Drumstick, bread-fruit, jack fruit and wild almond. Coconut is the only crop of economic importance in Lakshadweep.
Some of the shrub jungles and plants like Scaevola koenigii, calophyllum inophyllum, Casuarina equisetifolia and Thespesia populnea are unevenly grown throughout the islands.
Two different varieties of sea grass are seen adjacent to the beaches. They are known as Thalassia hemprichii and Cymodocea isoetifolium. They prevent sea erosion and help accumulation of the beach sediments.
The commonly seen vertebrates are cattle and poultry birds. Oceanic birds generally found in Lakshadweep are tharathasi (Sterna fuscata) and Karifetu (Anous stolidus). They are generally found in one of the uninhabited island known as Pitti. This island has been declared as a bird sanctuary.
Mollusean forms are also important from the economic point of the islands. The money cowries (cyprea monita) are also found in abundance in the shallow lagoons and reefs of the islands. Other cypraeds found here are cyprea talpa and Cypraea maculifera.
Hermit crab is the most commonly found crab in the islands. Colourful coral fish such as parrot fish (Callyedon Sordidus), butterfly fish (Chacetodon Suriga) and Surgeon fish (Acanthurus Lineotus) are found in abundance.
The following animals, bird and tree are symbols of Lakshadweep.
