Narayanan, who left a deep imprint on the field of Indian historiography, was also famous for his PhD thesis, ‘Perumals of Kerala’, which examined Kerala’s socio-political history from the 9th to the 12th centuries. Screengrab | X (@mkraghavaninc)
Eminent historian MGS Narayanan passes away
One of India’s most reputed historians, Narayanan headed the department of history at the University of Calicut and served as ICHR chairman from 2001-2003
Kozhikode (Kerala), Apr 26 (PTI) M G S Narayanan, eminent historian, academic and former chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), died at his residence in Malaparamba near here on Saturday due to age-related ailments, family sources said.
He was 93. He is survived by wife, son and daughter.
One of India’s most reputed historians, he headed the department of history at the University of Calicut from 1976 to 1990 and served as ICHR chairman from 2001-2003.
Narayanan, who left a deep imprint on the field of Indian historiography, was famous through his PhD thesis, ‘Perumals of Kerala’ which examined Kerala’s socio-political history from the 9th to the 12th centuries.
From 1976, he was active in the Indian History Congress and led multiple historical research projects in collaboration with the ICHR. He also worked as a visiting professor at several universities in India and abroad.
Narayanan focused on Kerala history, the history of Tamilakam, ancient Indian history and the methodology of historiography.
He had mentored over a thousand students and supervised many postgraduate research projects. With more than 200 published articles in Malayalam and English, he made historical scholarship more accessible to readers through his literary flair.
He had also served as a Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London and as visiting fellow at the University of Moscow and the Institute of Oriental Studies in Leningrad. PTI
