Arabic Influence
The Mappila dialect of Malayalam has borrowed loan words from Arabic language. In fact this dialect can just be considered as Arabic-Malayalam blend just like Sanskrit-Malayalam blend in Manipravalam. Kerala has a unique tradition of literature written in Arabic-Malayalam blend.The great bulk of these are verses with predominantly religious themes. As with Sanskrit-Malayalam blend in Manipravalam which was written in Malayalam script,the Arabic-Malayalam blend was written in Arabic script modified to absorb the peculiar sounds of Malayalam. As large numbers of Arabic words did not pass into the general and the literary usage, this tradition rather came to an abrupt stop.
Mappila Malayalam has deviated significantly from general Malayalam by incorporating many Arabic loanwords. This may be explained by the historical fact that Arabic was the language of commerce on the Kerala coast. Even the Portuguese made use of Arabic-speaking interpreters for their trade in Kerala Today Arabic borrowings endure in various spheres of Kerala life, including literature. Mappila Malayalam has the status of a literary dialect.
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