A 3rd-century-BC rock inscription by emperor Asoka the Great attests to a Keralaputra.[4] Around 1 BC the region was ruled by the Chera Dynasty, which traded with the Greeks, Romans and Arabs. The Tamil Chera dynasty, Ays and the Pandyan Empire were the traditional rulers of Kerala whose patriarchal dynasties ruled until the 14th century.[5][6] The Chera Kingdom were Patriarchal in descendency. The Cheras collapsed after repeated attacks from the neighboring Chola and Rashtrakuta kingdoms. Feudal Namboothiri Brahmin and Nair city-states subsequently gained control of the region.[7] Kolla Varsham or Malayalam Era, which is assumed to have been established by King Udaya Marthanda Varma in 825 AD, serves as the official calendar of Kerala.[8] Early contact with Europeans gave way to struggles between colonial and native interests. After independence, the state of Kerala was created in 1956 from the former state of Travancore-Cochin, the Malabar district of Madras State, and the Kasaragod taluk of Dakshina Kannada.[9]

Kerala is a popular tourist destination famous for its backwaters, Ayurvedic treatments [10] and tropical greenery. Kerala has a higher Human Development Index than all other states in India.[11][12] The state has a literacy rate of 91 percent,[2] the highest in India. A survey conducted in 2005 by Transparency International ranked Kerala as the least corrupt state in the country.[13] Kerala has witnessed significant migration of its people, especially to the Persian Gulf countries, starting with the Kerala Gulf boom, and is uniquely dependent on remittances from its large Malayali expatriate community