Malabar History journal

The notion of ‘literary culture,’ as articulated by Sheldon Pollock (2000, 2003) provides a useful framework for examining Mappila literary traditions. According to Pollock, literary culture involves the various ways people engage with texts: writing, reciting, reading, copying, printing, and circulating them (Pollock, 2000). Understanding what literary texts mean to those who compose, hear, see, read, or sing them—and how these meanings evolve over time—is crucial (Pollock, 2003). While texts can be expressive, discursive, or political (Pollock, 2000), the expressive dimension is particularly pertinent to this exploration of Mappila literary culture. The practices that constitute literary cultures are deeply embedded in the ways people live and act in the world.

Mappila Literature within the Broader Malayali Literary Context

It is essential to consider the position of Mappila literary tradition within the broader Malayali literary cultures. Although Mappila scholars have long emphasized the contributions of Arabi Malayalam to modern Malayalam language and literature (Kunhi, 1982; Kareem, 1983), Mappila literature remains largely absent from Kerala’s major historico-cultural studies There is no substantive treatment of the Mappila literary culture in any of the monographs on the history of Malayalam literature. Some historical scholarship acknowledges the existence of a Mappila tradition of literature that could be mapped onto a history of Malayalam literature, but offers little more than broad brushstrokes on the subject. The Malayalam poet Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer first mentioned Mappila songs in a history of Malayalam literature. His five-volume Kerala Sahitya Charithram (History of Kerala Literature), posthumously published in 1957, includes only one short paragraph on Mappila songs, subsuming them under the misleading category of folk songs . While some Mappila songs share features of folk songs such as oral composition and anonymous authorship (Moulavi and Kareem, 1978; Karasseri, 1987), using a simplistic category like folk songs to analyze Mappila songs results in a lopsided perspective (Karasseri, 1987). Moreover, the boundaries separating the written from the spoken, literature from orature, are porous (Bauman and Sherzer, 1975; Goody, 1987; Boyarin, 1993; Yandell, 2014), and the performance genres central to Mappila literary formation resist attempts at abstract folklorization or literarization.

Despite Ulloor’s limited acknowledgment of the Mappila literary tradition, subsequent historians and critics of Malayalam literature have not pursued this line of inquiry at length. Vallikkunnu (1983) notes that this scholarly neglect is due to a general tendency among the mainstream Malayali literati to look down upon the literary traditions of marginalized communities, including the polluting castes, that do not fit into upper-caste, Aryanized aesthetic assumptions. Krishna Chaitanya’s History of Malayalam Literature (1971) briefly discusses Arabi Malayalam literature, emphasizing the distinct nature of Christian and Muslim communities in relation to the larger Malayali Hindu society. He critiques Kerala Muslims’ traditional literacy practices involving Arabic and Arabi Malayalam, noting their belated entry into modern education, and describes Arabi Malayalam as a ‘hermetic tradition’ due to its use of the Arabic script and a blend of words from Malayalam, Arabic, Urdu, and Tamil (Chaitanya, 1971). Similarly, K. Ayyappa Paniker’s Short History of Malayalam Literature (1977) recognizes the importance of Mappila literature but repeats Ulloor’s epistemic violence by categorizing Mappila songs as ‘folk’ (Paniker, 1977). M. Leelavathy (1980) also relegates Mappila songs to the genre of ‘folk songs’ in her Malayala Kavitha Sahitya Charithram (History of Malayalam Poetry). More recently, anthropologist Rich Freeman (1998, 2003) has provided insights into the literary culture of pre-modern Kerala but has overlooked the parallel literary productions enabled by Arabi Malayalam.

Gaps in Existing Scholarship

The existing scholarship on Mappila literature reveals a significant gap in adequately addressing the unique aspects of this tradition. O. Abu’s ‘Arabi Malayala Sahitya Charithram’ (1970) was the first detailed study of the Mappila literary tradition, emphasizing Arabi Malayalam as a distinct language rather than just a variant of Malayalam in Arabic script. Abu was particularly sensitive to the performative dimensions of devotional genres like the ‘mala’ ballads, yet his focus on establishing the distinct status of Arabi Malayalam limited his exploration of these aspects. Despite his valuable contributions, the performative richness of Mappila devotional literature remains underexplored within his work.

Expanding the Scope of Mappila Literary Studies

C. N. Ahmad Moulavi and K. K. Muhammad Abdul Kareem’s ‘Mahathaya Mappila Sahitya Parambaryam’ (1978) significantly expands on Abu’s work. Their narrative aims to instill pride in the Mappila cultural heritage by introducing readers to various Mappila writers. However, their work is often descriptive and fragmented, neglecting the performative aspects of Mappila devotional narratives such as the ‘mawlid’ and ‘mala’. Despite acknowledging the artistic value of the ‘Muhyiddin Mala’, they exhibit discomfort with its content, reflecting a ‘reformist’ perspective that distances itself from traditional Sufi practices like saint veneration.

K. O. Shamsuddin’s ‘Mappila Malayalam: Oru Bhasha Mishritham’ (1978) and P. K. Muhammad Kunhi’s ‘Musliminkalum Kerala Samskaravum’ (1982) further contribute to Mappila literary studies. Shamsuddin’s work analyzes Arabi Malayalam’s unique linguistic features, while Kunhi locates Mappila literature within the broader Malayali cultural context. However, Kunhi uncritically adopts Moulavi and Kareem’s ‘Islamic puritanism’ and frames Mappila literature within the flawed trope of ‘cultural syncretism’ suggesting an exaggerated Hindu influence on Mappila devotional genres. This perspective fails to recognize the deep-rooted Islamic elements in these traditions.

In contrast, Balakrishnan Vallikkunnu (1999, 2008) examines the emergence of Mappila literary culture against the social development of Mappilas in Malayali society. He positions Mappila literature within subaltern literary traditions that challenge elite, Aryanized aesthetics in Malayali literature. Vallikkunnu highlights the thematic and stylistic features of Mappila songs, arguing that Arabi Malayalam literature represents a parallel aesthetic movement. However, he too falls short of addressing the performative aspects of Mappila literature.

Conclusion

In conclusion, while scholarship on Mappila literary culture has acknowledged the importance of Arabi Malayalam to Malayali literature, it has often overlooked the performative dimensions of Mappila devotional genres. Pioneering works by O. Abu and subsequent narratives by C. N. Ahmad Moulavi and K. K. Muhammad Abdul Kareem laid foundational understandings of Arabi Malayalam’s distinct status but fell short in fully exploring the performative richness of Mappila literature. Further contributions by K. O. Shamsuddin and P. K. Muhammad Kunhi provided insights into Arabi Malayalam’s linguistic features and cultural context but neglected to address the performative aspects adequately. Even Balakrishnan Vallikkunnu’s examination of Mappila literature within the broader social context of Malayali society did not fully delve into its performative dimensions.

This critical review underscores the necessity of integrating the performative dimensions of Mappila literature into future scholarship. Recognizing the significance of genres like the mawlid and mala enriches our understanding of Mappila literary traditions and reaffirms their centrality in Kerala’s cultural and religious landscape. Bridging the gap between textual analysis and performance studies, future research can offer a more comprehensive and nuanced appreciation of Mappila literature’s unique contributions to Malayali literary cultures.

References

• Abu, O. (1970). Arabi Malayala Sahitya Charithram. Kottayam: Sahitya Pravarthaka Co-Operative.
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