Perhaps you know this already, but at dinner tonight, I found out the reason why St.Thomas Mount is called Parangi Malai.
Apparently, the word Parangi in Tamizh stands for Foreigner. And since St.Thomas was not from India and was of Caucasian origin, he was a foreigner.
The meaning didn't make sense at first and then I realised that it is a transformation of the word Firangi in Hindi.
Which then got me thinking as to why the yellow pumpkin is called Parangi Kai? (Pun unintended!!!)
7 comments:
J,
Firangi/Parangi means foreigner
Parangi Kai- Since it is yellow in color and foreigner (read french /british) skin color is yellow, hence the name
And it is available in UK too.
I think this article by the son of Chennai S.Muthiah will make interesting reading in this context.
Ram,
does that mean the source of the "kai" is some foreign land?
advoate vaalll... shittha andha article-oda link-a post pannaraellaa?
It's not just about colour... the humble pumpkin was originally an export of the highly developed ancient civilisations of the continents of North and South America.
The pumpkin is rightly called a Parangi Kai as it, i.e. the pumpkin, is native to the North American continent.
Also, in the old days, foreigners of pale skin that turned red in the sun were known as Parangis - the origin of the concept of a 'redneck' LOL.
All squashes i.e. pumpkins, zucchini, butternut pumpkins, summer squashes are native to the North American continent.
Surprised? That's a shame - you should know your history better...
'Kai' essentially means the fruit of a plant in Thamizh (anglicised even by locals to 'Tamil' today)
The term spread across the world with the rule of the Thamizh kings (who gave Singapore its name, and Suvarnabhumi i.e. Thailand it's ancient name) This inclues its usage across Pars, i.e. what is now modern Iran, anglicised to Persia) with many Iranians even today carrying a surname of Parangi.
Mr Thomas (sorry, I can't refer to him as a 'saint' of any sort - he was a trade ambassador sent by a politician who was 'declared' the 'son of god' by a murderous economic group now known as The Vatican) was one of the original traders whose objective was to get a share of the Arab/Jewish trade routes/markets.
It may be known that the West-Asian politician who named himself Eshau (from Smskrth, Eashwara) was used as a mascot by the Vatican and declared the 'son of god' only a few hundred years ago.
It is probably more interesting that the Vatican declared it 'illegal' for anyone to oppose its propaganda about a West Asian being the 'son of god'.
Mr Thomas was West Asian, not European.
Please note this is a historic fact.
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