The Travancore Dewan

The rumour that the Dewan, Mr. V. P. Madhava Rao, who ran the administration for the past two years...

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January 15, 1908

Commission on the System of Matrilineal Inheritance

(“Marumakkathayam” is defined as the system of inheritance in which descent is traced through the fe...

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July 21, 1909

News Round Up: General

A great assembly of Indians met at Caxton Hall, London, last Tuesday with Sir Charles Dilke presidin...

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September 05, 1910

Amazing Products (Advertisement)

A total of 56 items will be given as gifts to those who make a purchase of a watch worth Rs 6/- It...

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August 08, 1908

Melee at the Jubilee Hall

A few snippets have been inserted elsewhere relating to some of the incidents that occurred on the o...

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About the Collection

The Svadesabhimani was a weekly Malayalam language newspaper founded by the noted writer and journalist Vakkom Abdul Khader Moulavi (1873-1932), who was the owner and publisher and its managing editor. This digital collection contains the original Malayalam and their English translations.

Throughout its existence, it was funded through the personal funds of Vakkom Moulavi, who imported a modern press from Britain. The newspaper began publication in Anjengo, a small village in the princely state of Travancore, on 19 January 1905. Chirayinkeezhu C.P Govinda Pillai was the first editor for one year, after which Sri. K. Ramakrishna Pillai became the editor. The newspaper ceased publication on 26 September 1910, when it was banned by a Royal Proclamation, the editor Ramakrishna Pillai was exiled and the press was confiscated.

The Svadesabhimani served to inform the public in Travancore, as well as in the Malayalam speaking regions, about local, national and international issues. It stood apart from other Malayalam newspapers of the time in exposing corruption in the government, analysing and critiquing government policies, discussing important issues of social and religious reform and bringing news of the national anti-colonial movement and international developments. It is considered a trailblazer in Malayalam journalism, contributing to the development of a new political consciousness in the state.