The Knanaya Christians

The Knanaya Christians are descendants of 72 Jeudo-Christian families who migrated from Edessa, the first city state that embraced Christianity, to the Malabar coast in AD 345, under the leadership of a prominent merchant prince Knai Thomman. They consisted of 400 people men, women and children, from various Syriac-Jewish clans. They sailed in three ships headed by a leading ship with the flag of King David. The Syriac-Jews were granted permission to engage in trade and settle down in Kodungallu