This city is situated at about
35 kilometers from Trichur, in the
state of Kerala, with the Arabian
sea on one side and Periyar river on
the other. With a rich history to go by it, the land is surrounded by backwaters and the sea. It is more like an island. Kodungallur which is now a muncipality ,is also famous as Cranganore. It has lot of tales, of its illustrious past, to tell.

Kodungallur, situated on the west coast, was once a great port of the Chera rulers of Tamilnadu, It was known by the Greek as as the Musris. Until the great floods of 1341, it was the most important Sea port of west coast. This place is a site of the ancient cities of Vanji. The latter was once upon a time, the capital of the Chera kingdom.

The harbour of Kodungallur is very ancient. Even a hundred years before the birth of Lord Jesus, the city had established trade links with Asia minor and Syria Even in those days, on an average, atleast one ship load of cargo left daily from Egypt for Kodungallur.Pepper, cardamom, spices, sandal, ivory, muslin, silk, pearl etc were exported. Liquors, porcelain, glass ware, chandeliers, tin, lead and such commodities were imported.

The origin of many main religions

The trading contacts of this port with the Roman Empire, Arabia and China from the Pre-Christian era resulted in the formation of the earliest Christian, Muslim and Jewish communities in the Indian sub continents. According to the legend of St.Thomas-Christianity arrived in Kodungallur in AD 52 and by A.D 69 . Islam also arrived along with Arabian merchants. The legend that the Cheraman Perumal the, last Emperor of Chera Dynasty introduced Islam and Left for Mecca shows the local community had no inhibiting to accept new ideas. Religious ideas from North India reach here in the form of Jainism & Buddhism.

In AD 52, the very first Christian church in India was constructed by Saint Thomas at a palace called Maliyenkara in Kodungallur. It is said to be the place where St. Thomas first preached Christianity in India.

Arabs too established their colonies in a par of Kondungallur, in the 8th century. One can vouchsafe that it was time when Islam began to spread in India.

Jews settled down there with their families in A.D. 69. The historically well-known Jew and Syrian copper-plates were published only from there. Jews persecuted by the Roman Empire also reached here. The Jews shifted to cochin only after the destruction of the port in 1341

Mathilagam near Kodungalur was the strong hold of the Jains. The Jain and Buddhist scholars and monks who lived in this town, not only transformed it into a great educational and cultural center but also began to preach their religious tenets and popularise their way of life.

Cheraman Juma Masjid the first mosque of India.

Built in 629 AD, this is the first mosque in India and the second in the world where Juma prayers were started. People from far and near irrespective of caste and creed visit this holy place and pay their homage . This mosque has a unique specialty. Mosques built all over the world face the direction of Mecca, but this particular one faces along the east.

The first mosque in India is Situated in Kodungalloor, Legend says King Cheraman Perumal of Kodungallur left for Mecca, embraced Islam, accepted the name Thajudeen, married the sister of the then King of Jeddah. Before his death Thajuddeen handed over to the King of Jeddah several letters addressed to Kerala Kings seeking their help to propagate Islam. The Jiddah king came to Kerala and met the then king of Kodungalloor who helped the former to build a Juma Masjid.The first mosque in India.

Kodungallur temple: - In the Malayalam month of Meenam(March-April) groups of men and women from the South Indian states reach Kodungallur to participate in the famous Bharani festivel. After cursing and destroying the Madurai city, Kannaki reached Kodunagallur --the capital of Chera dynasty- (according to Silappadhikaram)

Different Names of the Kodungallur

Muziris, Vangi, Musirippattinam, Musirippththanam, Mahodayapuram, Kotilingapuram, Kudalingapuram, Makodai, Kodunkaliyur, Thiruvallur, RaviVisvapuram and Balakreetapuram are the different names of Kodungallur at various points of time. In the Tamil and Greek literatures it is called Muziris.