So far this is the first change in India’s administrative map with Kerala being named Keralam. The Union Home Ministry has issued a Gazette notification by which the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Act, 2026 comes into force from August 25, 2026. In 2024, the Kerala Legislative Assembly passed a resolution seeking to change the name.
The name change means the southern state will be known as Keralam in constitutional and government documents. The decision is significant because “Keralam” is the name of the state in Malayalam, spoken across the region. This change is to bring the state’s official English name closer to its Malayalam identity and pronunciation.
According to the Gazette notification published by the Union Home Ministry, August 25 was appointed as the date on which the provisions of the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Act, 2026 would come into force. This notification was the last step taken to make the name change a reality.
Kerala’s journey to the renaming began in the Kerala Legislative Assembly. In June 2024, the Assembly resolved to request the Centre to change the name of the state from Kerala to Keralam. The state government passed this resolution on to the Union Government, and the proposal was linked to Kerala’s linguistic and cultural identity and the Malayalam-speaking background of the state.
The proposal later made it through the legislative process at the national level. The Lok Sabha passed the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 on August 11, while the Rajya Sabha approved it on August 12. President Droupadi Murmu then gave her assent, and the Bill became law earlier in August.
The renaming process is far more than changing how the state is referred to in everyday conversation. All government documents and records will need to reflect the new name. This includes constitutional references to the state's name in the Constitution and government documents. The legislation provides for the necessary changes that will need to be made following the alteration of the state's name.
A similar transition will be needed by government departments and institutions to update their official references. In previous news, we had already seen that office signage, seals, letterheads, and other government documents would eventually need to be updated with the new terminology. Digital systems and databases might also need to be updated as departments implement the change.
The timing of the notification also attracted attention because it came just ahead of Onam, one of the major festivals in Kerala. The notification on August 25 was on Thiruvonam day, so it was a cultural event for many of the people in Kerala.
The change does not create a new state or change Kerala’s borders. It simply changes the official name by which the existing state is known. Under Article 3 of the Constitution, the name of a state can be changed in Parliament if the territories or districts of the states are changed.
The decision also aligns with a much wider trend in India in which states and cities have searched for names that embody the local languages, heritage, and cultural traditions. In Kerala, it focuses primarily on the Malayalam form Keralam used in the state so far.
The transition will be gradual for residents, businesses, tourists, and institutions. Old documents and references will continue to contain the earlier name until they are updated through regular administrative processes. Government departments will gradually incorporate the new official terminology into their systems.
The shift has attracted great public interest with Kerala’s cultural identity both within India and internationally. Kerala is a cultural entity that has a unique Malayalam language, a number of proud traditions, a rich literature, cuisine, festivals, and development indicators. Its name of Keralam as the official name is a sign of the native linguistic identity of the state.
The notification is also the culmination of a two-year process involving the state legislature, the Union government, Parliament, and the President. What was in 2024 a resolution in the Kerala Assembly has now become law that will take effect from August 25, 2026.
From now on, Keralam will be the state’s official name, marking an administrative and linguistic change while retaining the identity, territory, and institutions associated with the state formerly known officially as Kerala.
