page_title: Johann Ernst Hanxleden
section_title: In India
hierarchical_section_title: Johann Ernst Hanxleden / In India
caption_attribution_description: English: Sampaloor Church - St: Francis Xavier's Church, Sampaloor, Near Ambazhakad, Mala Panchayat, Thrissur District, Kottappuram Diocese, Latin Rite സമ്പാളൂർ പള്ളി - സെന്റ് ഫ്രാൻസീസ് സേവ്യർ പള്ളി, സമ്പാളൂർ, അമ്പഴക്കാടിന് സമീപം, മാള പഞ്ചായത്ത്, തൃശ്ശൂർ ജില്ല, കോട്ടപ്പുറം രൂപത - ലത്തീൻ റീത്ത്
context_page_description: Johann Ernst Hanxleden, better identified as Arnos Pathiri, was a German Jesuit priest and missionary, best known for his contributions as a Malayalam and Sanskrit poet, grammarian, lexicographer, and philologist. He lived in India for most part of his life and became a scholar of Sanskrit and Malayalam languages before authoring Puthen Pana, a poem on the life of Jesus Christ, Malayalam–Portuguese Dictionary, the first dictionary in Malayalam as well as two linguistic treatises, Malayalavyaakaranam and Sidharoopam.
context_section_description: After completing his spiritual formation (Novitiate) in Goa, Hanxleden was sent to a Jesuit Seminary at Sampaloor in Thrissur District of the south Indian state of Kerala. It is at St. Paul's Seminary in Sampaloor, he did his theological studies for preparing himself to receive priesthood. He took time also to initiate himself to the local language, Malayalam and more importantly studied the Syriac, the liturgical language of the Thomas Christians of Kerala. He was ordained priest in 1706. In addition to his mother tongue German, and his mastery of Malayalam, he also had a good command over Latin, Syriac, Portuguese, Sanskrit, and Tamil.
  After moving to Palayoor, Hanxleden studied Sanskrit too and improved his Malayalam, learning under the tutelage of Namboodiri scholars such as Kunjan and Krishnan from Angamaly and Thekkemadom from Thrissur. From 1707 to 1711, he served as secretary to John Ribeiro, the then Archbishop of Cranganore and visited many places in Kerala on tasks such as preaching and Catechesis. It is recorded that he also served as the vicar of the main church in Malabar. Later, he moved to Velur, Thrissur, a small village near Thrissur District in 1712 and built the Velur Forane Church. From 1729 onward, he spent his time between Velur, Sampaloor, Palayoor and Pazhuvil and it was at Pazhuvil he suffered a snake bite which resulted in his death on March 20, 1732, at the age of 51. He was buried there but, later, when a memorial was built outside the church, his mortal remains were transferred to it; the memorial also houses a historical museum.
  The church and his home in Velur have since been declared as a protected monument by the Government of Kerala. Among various exhibits at the museum are the bed used by Hanxleden and the chathurangam (which Hanxleden used to play) columns marked on the floor of his home. Mar Francis Vazhapilly, Metropolitan Archbishop of Thrissur from 1921 to 1942, used to stay at the Velur Forane Church for a few days during Lent so that he could sleep on the bed used by Arnos Paathiri and drink from the well dug during his times.
  His life has been documented in many books; Arnos Pathiri - a Biography, written by A. Adappur, a Catholic priest Arnos Pathiri, written by Mathew Ulakamthara Arnos Pathiri - Jeevacharithram of N. K. Jos and Arnos Padri, written by C. K. Mattam count among them.
caption: Sampaloor Church
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