Known for the export of coir, spices, sandalwood and wood to places as far as Sumatra and Arabia, from very early times, Kannur is home to a number of forts, shrines and esteemed institutions. The Venetian traveller Marco Polo has referred to Kannur as ‘a great emporium of spice trade’.
The old name 'Cannanore' is the anglicised form of the Malayalam name Kannur. 'Kannur' is also said to be a derivation from Kanathur, an ancient village, the name of which survives even today in one of the wards of Kannur Municipality.
This stretch of land, has been a melting pot of races, religions and cultures in every inch of its history. Relics, right from the Neolothic age through the Aryan invasion, Cheran Conquests, Arab and European inroads, stand testimony to this.
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