| Greater Cochin കൊച്ചി നഗരസമൂഹം |
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| — metropolitan city — | |
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| Coordinates | |
| Country | India |
| State | Kerala |
| District(s) | Ernakulam |
| Population | 2,117,990[1] (2011[update]) |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+05:30) |
The urban agglomeration (UA) of Kochi (Malayalam: കൊച്ചി [Kocci]); formerly known as Cochin) is a part of the Greater Cochin region and the largest urban agglomeration in the Indian state of Kerala.
The area constituted on the basis of census data 2011, consists of Corporation of Kochi (Cochin), 8 municipalities, 14 Panchayaths and parts of 4 Panchayaths. The 8 municipalities are Thrippunithura, Maradu, Thrikkakara, Kalamassery, Eloor, North Paravur, Aluva and Angamali. The fourteen Panchayaths consists of Cheranelloor, Varapuzha, Chennamangalam, Kadamakkudy, Mulavukad, Kadungalloor, Alengad, Chengamanad, Nedumbassery, Chottanikkara, Choornikkara, Edathala, Kumbalam , Kottuvally and Vypin Island.
Apart from these local body areas, the Census Towns (CT) of Kureekad, Chowwara, Cheriyakadavu and Kedamangalam are also part of the Kochi metropolitan area. Urban ugglomerations in India are determined on the basis of Census Towns (CT) which may or may not coincide with local bodies like Corporations, Municipalities or Panchayaths. E.g., Thrikkakara Municipality is enumerated as Census Towns of Kakkanad and Vazhakkala. Kochi urban agglomeration itself is not a geographically contiguous entity.
As per Census 2011, it has a population of 2.2 million making it the largest urban agglomeration in Kerala.[1] In census 1991, Kochi UA was found to have a population of 1.14 million.
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Theories regarding the etymology of the name "Kochi" are disputed.[5] One of the theories suggests that the modern name of the city is derived from the Malayalam word koch azhi, meaning 'small lagoon'. Another version mentions that the city derives its name from the Sanskrit word Go shree which means 'prosperous with cows'. Certain ancient texts refer to the city as Balapuri (Sanskrit for 'small town'), which became Cochin in course of time.[6]
According to some accounts, traders from the court of the Mongolian ruler Kublai Khan gave Cochin the name of their homeland. Yet another theory is that Kochi is derived from the word Kaci meaning 'harbour'. Certain scholars claim that Cochin is derived from the term Cocha, which is a transfiguration of the Biblical term Cohen. Accounts by Italian explorers Nicolo Conti (15th century), and Fra Paoline in the 17th century say that it was called Kochchi, named after the river connecting the backwaters to the sea.
After the arrival of the Portuguese, and later the British, the name Cochin stuck as the official appellation. The city reverted to a closer anglicisation of its original Malayalam name, Kochi, in 1996. However, it is still widely referred to as Cochin.
Kochi was the princely state under the Kingdom of Kochi which came into existence in 1102, after the fall of the Kulasekhara empire.[7] The princely state was having the Kochi mainland as the capital. The state was ruled by Cochin Royal Family. However, the kingdom was under foreign rule since the 18th century, and the King often only had titular privileges.
On the earlier days, the kingdom of Kochi was always under the shadow of the attacks from Samoothirippadu (often anglicised as Zamorin), the ruler of Malabar the northern neighbour. From 1503 to 1663, Kochi was ruled by Portugal. Kochi hosted the grave of Vasco da Gama, the first European explorer to set sail for India, who was buried at St. Francis Church until his remains were returned to Portugal in 1539.[8] The Portuguese rule was followed by that of the Dutch, who had allied with the Zamorins in order to conquer Kochi.
In the battle of Ambalapuzha (3 January 1754), the Dutch allied Kochi was defeated by Marthanda Varma of Travancore after he ousted the Dutch in the Battle of Colachel-1741. In 1757 AD, a treaty was concluded between Travancore and Cochin, ensuring peace and stability on the Southern border. By 1773, the Mysore King Hyder Ali extended his conquest in the Malabar region to Kochi, forcing it to become a tributary of Mysore. The hereditary Prime Ministership of Kochi held by the Paliath Achans came to an end during this period. Soon, Kochi was ceded to the United Kingdom by the Dutch, who feared an outbreak of war on the United Provinces signed a treaty with the United Kingdom. This was in exchange for the island of Bangka as per the treaty. Kochi was thus under the British rule, till India gained independence in 1947.
In 1949, Travancore-Cochin state came into being with the merger of Cochin and Travancore. The King of Travancore was the Rajpramukh of the Travancore-Cochin Union from 1949 to 1956. Travancore-Cochin, was in turn merged with the Malabar district of the Madras State. Finally, the Government of India's States Reorganisation Act (1956) inaugurated a new state Kerala; incorporating Travancore-Cochin (excluding the four southern Taluks which were merged with Tamil Nadu), Malabar District, and the taluk of Kasargod, South Kanara.
Kochi Urban Agglomeration was defined in 1998, with the corporation of Cochin, municipalities of North Paravur Aluva, Angamaly, Kalamassery and 11 adjoining villages.
| Kochi metropolitan population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1981 | 824,900 |
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| 1991 | 1,140,600 | 38.3% | |
| 2001 | 1,536,400 | 34.7% | |
| 2011 | 2,117,990 | 37.9% | |
| Source: Census of India[9] | |||
Kochi UA is referred to as the economic capital of Kerala. Due to the proximity of the sea port at Kochi city, the economy of the area is booming.
Kochi witnessed economic stagnation in the years following India's independence at 1947. The economic recovery gathered momentum after economic reforms in India introduced by the central government in the mid-1990s. Since 2000, the service sector has revitalised the stagnant economy. Over the years, the city has witnessed rapid commercialisation, and has today grown into the commercial capital of Kerala.[10]
| Place | Classification | 2001 population | Area (km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angamaly | Municipality | 33,424 | 24.0 |
| Chengamanad | Census town | 29,775 | 15.6 |
| Chowwara | Census town | 13,603 | |
| Aluva | Municipality | 24,108 | 7.2 |
| Choornikkara | Census town | 36,998 | 11.0 |
| Edathala | Census town | 67,137 | 16.0 |
| Paravur | Municipality | 30,056 | 9.0 |
| Kottuvally | Census town | 37,884 | 20.8 |
| Varappuzha | Census town | 24,516 | 7.7 |
| Eloor | Municipality | 30,092 | 14.2 |
| Kadungalloor | Municipality | 35,451 | 18.1 |
| Mulavukad | Census town | 22,845 | 19.3 |
| Kadamakkudy | Census town | 15,823 | 12.9 |
| Cheranallur | Census town | 26,330 | 10.6 |
| Kalamassery | Municipality | 63,176 | 27.0 |
| Vazhakkala | Census town | 42,272 | 19.6 |
| Vypin | Census town | 200,238 | 87.85 |
| Kochi | Municipal corporation | 596,473 | 94.9 |
| Kedamangalam | Outgrowth | 21,729 | |
| Alangad | Outgrowth | 40,585 | 18.4 |
| Cheriyakadavu | Outgrowth | 8,326 | |
| Kakkanad | Municipality | 22,486 | |
| Maradu | Municipality | 40,993 | 12.4 |
| Thrippunithura | Municipality | 81,594 | 29.2 |
| Chennamangalam | Outgrowth | 21,881 | 14.7 |
| Chottanikkara | Census town | 19,168 | 17.3 |
| Kureekkad | Census town | 9,730 | |
| TOTAL | 1,546,470 | ≈500 | |
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