The district is bordered to the south by Kerala's Kannur district, and to the southeast and north by Karnataka's districts of Kodagu and Dakshina Kannada respectively. To the east, the district is bordered by the Western Ghats, while along the west, it is bordered by the Laccadive Sea. The district, covering an area of around 1992 km2, has a population of 1,307,375. It has four taluks, namely, Kasaragod, Hosdurg, Vellarikundu and Manjeshwaram Taluk. It has three municipalities: Kasaragod, Kanhangad, Nileshwaram and 38 Gram panchayats.
History
Kasaragod was known to the Arabs by the name Harkwillia. Many Arab travelers visiting Kerala between the 9th and the 14th centuries visited Kasaragod, being an important trade centre then. Duarte Borbosa, a Portuguese traveler who visited Kumbla, near Kasaragod in 1514 recorded that rice being exported for coir to Maldives. Kasaragod was part of the Kumbala Kingdom with 64 Malayalam and Tulu villages. The Vijayanagara empire attacked and annexed Kasaragod from the KolathiriRaja with Nileshwaram as one of the capital. During the decline of the Vijayanagara empire, the administration of this area was vested with Ikkeri Nayakas. At the onset of collapse of the Vijayanagara empire, Venkappa Nayaka declared independence to Ikkery. Kumbla, Chandragiri and Bekal are considered to be the chain of forts constructed or renovated by Shivappa Nayaka. Francis Buccanan, the family doctor of Arthur Wellesley, visited Kasargod in 1800. In his travelogue, he recorded information on places like Athiraparambu, Kavvai, Nileshwaram, Bekal, Chandragiri and Manjeshwar. Hosdurg and Vellarikundu is part of Kolathunadu and Kasaragod and Manjeshwaram is in the Tulunadu region. In 1763, Hyder Ali conquered Bedanoor, the capital of the Ikkery Naiks. His son Tippu Sultan conquered much of Malabar. As per the Sreerangapattanam Treaty of 1792, Tippu surrendered Malabar, except Kanara to the British. The British occupied Kanara only after the death of Tippu Sultan. it is said that Kinavoor Molom is belonging to Karinthalam. Before the formation of Kerala, Kasaragod was a part of South Canara district of erstwhile Madras Presidency. Kasaragod became part of Kannur district following the reorganisation of states and formation of Kerala in 1 November 1956. Kasaragod was declared a district in the year 1984. Inclusion of Kasargod with Kerala has been a contentious issue as there is a sizeable population which speaks Kannada and Tulu. But it is noted that as per 2011 census report only 4.2% people in the district speak Kannada as their mother tongue.
Geography
The district is the northernmost district of the State of Kerala. Kasaragod is located at. It has an average elevation of 19 metres. Ranipuram or Madathumala peak is the highest peak in the Kasargod district of Kerala, located in the Ranipuram Wildlife Sanctuary.
