Malayali

The Malayali people (also spelled Malayalee people) are the native speakers of the Malayalam language. They originate from the south of the current Indian state of Kerala. Sometimes they are called Keralites. There are about 39 million people who speak Malayalam as their first language. 34 million of these live in India, about 1 million in the United Arab Emirates. About 55% are Hindus, about 27% are Muslims, and about 19% are Christian.

The Malayali language is part of the Dravidian language group.  The Malayali have their own cooking styles, movies, and form of martial arts, Kalaripayattu.

The United Nations declared a Malayali dance called Kathakali Intangible Cultural Heritage.

References

Category:Dravidian peoples
Category:Ethnic groups in India
Category:Malayali people