Койланди: История древнего порта Южной Индии

Koyilandy (; formerly anglicised as Quilandy)

Pandalayani is described by different authors, all the way from Europe to Arabia to China, in different names. According to the Malabar Manual written by William Logan in 1887, Panthalayani was called by the names:

Pliny the Elder describes the place as Patale. The Odoric of Pordenone called Pandalayani as Flandarina. |source=M. G. S. Narayanan |align=right |salign=right |width=39%

Koyilandy, formerly known as Panthalayani Kollam, is one of the oldest ports in South India and is often identified with the port of Tyndis by some of the historians, which was a satellite feeding port to Muziris, according to the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. Pliny the Elder (1st century CE) states that the port of Tyndis was located at the northwestern border of Keprobotos (Chera dynasty). The North Malabar region, which lies north of the port at Tyndis, was ruled by the kingdom of Ezhimala during Sangam period. Pliny the Elder mentioned that Limyrike was prone by pirates. The Cosmas Indicopleustes mentioned that the Limyrike was a source of peppers. The medieval Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta describes Pandalayani Kollam as "A beautiful and large place, abounding with gardens and markets". According to the legend, the Masjid at Pandalayani (Koyilandy) was built by Malik Dinar, and he appointed one of his ten sons as the Quazi in the Masjid. It is believed that Malik Dinar died at Thalangara in Kasaragod town. The Koyilandy Jumu'ah Mosque contains an Old Malayalam inscription written in a mixture of Vatteluttu and Grantha scripts which dates back to the 10th century CE. It is a rare surviving document recording patronage by a Hindu king (Bhaskara Ravi) to the Muslims of Kerala.

Initially, Koyilandy was an important port town of Kolathunadu (Kingdom of Kannur) in the early medieval period. Later the Zamorin of Calicut annexed the port town to establish supremacy over the North Malabar region. The Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama visited Koyilandy in 1498, opening the sailing route directly from Europe to South Asia, during the Age of Discovery. It eventually led to the European colonisation of Indian subcontinent. In February–March 1525, A Portuguese navy led by new Viceroy Henry Menezes raided Ponnani and Koyilandy, and burned both of the towns. They were helped by a band of Muslims under the command of a European engineer.

Koyilandy is located at at an average elevation of .

As of 2011 India census, Koyilandy had a population of 71,873. Males constitute 46.78% of the population and females 53.22%. Literacy rate of Koyilandy is 95.11% (higher than Kerala average of 94.00%). Male literacy is around 97.38% while female literacy rate is 93.15%. In Koyilandy, around 10% of the population is under 6 years of age. Economy of Koyilandy revolves around fishing, local businesses and remittance from the Persian Gulf. Around 70% of population follows Hinduism, and around 30% follows Islam in Koyilandy. It administers a population of 645,979 within an area of 642 square kilometre, as of the Census 2011. The Malabar version of Biryani, popularly known as Kuzhi Mandi in Malayalam is another popular item, which has an influence from Yemen.