Moplah

Moplah, also spelled Moplah or Mopla, is a historical term used for the Muslim communities of the Malabar region in present-day Kerala, India. More commonly, the community is known as Mappila or Mappila Muslims. They are predominantly Sunni Muslims, historically linked to Arab traders who settled along the coast from the medieval period onward, and to local Malayali communities. The Mappila have a distinct linguistic and cultural heritage within Kerala, speaking Malayalam and using Arabic script in religious and literary contexts. They developed a body of folk music and literature known as Mappila songs (Mappila pattu) and a tradition of Sufi-inspired devotion.

Historically, the Moplahs inhabited the Malabar coast when Arab, Persian, and Turkish traders settled or interacted with local polities such as the Kolathunadu and the later Zamorin of Calicut. Under colonial rule, Malabar saw frequent agrarian tensions and social change. A major episode was the Malabar Rebellion of 1921, often called the Moplah Rebellion, during the Khilafat and Non-Cooperation movements. The uprising began in August 1921 and was suppressed by British forces later that year, resulting in substantial violence, displacements, and loss of life, with effects on Hindu–Muslim relations in the region.

In contemporary India, Moplah or Mappila refers to one of Kerala's largest Muslim communities, concentrated in the Malabar districts of Kannur, Kozhikode, and Kasaragod, who participate in the state's social, political, and economic life. The term Moplah remains widely used in historical and some local contexts, though many prefer Mappila.