Moorkoth Kumaran
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Moorkoth Kumaran | |
|---|---|
 Moorkoth Kumaran | |
| Born | 23 May 1874 |
| Died | 25 June 1941 (aged 67) Telicherry |
| Occupations | Writer, social reformer, teacher |
| Years active | 1896–1940 |
Moorkoth Kumaran (1874–1941)[1] was a social reformer, a teacher and a writer in Malayalam.[2] He hailed from Telicherry. He was a disciple of Narayana Guru and wrote the first biography of Guru. He also published some of the earliest short stories and novels in Malayalam.
Moorkoth Kumaran was born on 23 May 1874 into the Moorkoth family of North Malabar. His father was Moorkoth Ramunni (Sr.), and his mother was Parappurathu Kunchirutha. His mother died when he was aged six and his father when he was eight. Kumaran grew up under the care of his father's sister. Kumaran started his education by joining Basel Mission Parsi High School, Telicherry, in 1884 and passed FA degree from Telicherry Brennen College.[3] He joined Madras Christian College for a BA degree but could not complete the degree. He married his relative Yashoda and was sent by his father-in-law for training at Teachers' College, Saidapet. After completing his training, Kumaran became a teacher at St. Joseph's European Boy's High School in Calicut in 1897. He was the headmaster there from 1898 to 1900.[3] He then became a teacher at St. Joseph's Convent, and it was during this time that Indian women in Malabar started education in English schools. Grace Chandran, who was the first Indian woman in Malabar to pass Matriculation, was his student.[3] Moorkoth Kumaran was the editor of Mithavadi which was initially started as a newspaper (magazine) in 1907 at Thalassery. It was regarded as the "Bible of the socially oppressed". It featured articles and writings regarding the socially depressed classes and was a voice for the rights of the depressed classes. He met the great renaissance leader and social reformer of Kerala Rao Sahib DR. Ayyathan Gopalan while working as a teacher at St. Joseph's school and worked together for the rights of the Dalits of Malabar. In 1913 Mithavadi newspaper was taken over by C. Krishnan by the impetus and advice from Ayyathan Gopalan. Dr. Gopalan gave him encouragement and helped him to take over this newspaper. Later C. Krishnan came to be known as Mithavaadi Krishnan. From 1913 to 1921 it started its publication from Calicut through empire press as Monthly and then as a weekly until 1938. Moorkoth Kumaran worked as the senior Malayalam pandit at St. Aloysius College (1907–1912), headmaster at Nettur Basel Mission Middle School (1913–1924) and first assistant at Telicherry St Joseph's School (1924–1930) from where he retired in 1930.[3]
Kumaran was instrumental in spreading the ideas of Sri Narayana Guru in Malabar. It was Kumaran who initiated placing the statue of Guru at Jagannath Temple in Telicherry in 1927. It was the first statue of Narayana Guru in Kerala when he was alive.[4][5] Kumaran was also instrumental in the efforts to admit the Pulayas and other lower castes into the Jagannath Temple. He was the second general secretary of SNDP Yogam.[6]
Kumaran was active in social and literary circles post-retirement. He wrote his last story titled "Aliyante Saree" in Brennen College magazine. He died on 25 June 1941.[3] Moorkoth Kunhappa, who was a bureaucrat and prominent journalist, Moorkoth Ramunni, who was a fighter pilot, and Moorkoth Sreenivasan, who was a teacher in Pondicherry, are his sons. His daughter's name is KunzhiLakshmi.[7]
