Kerala gets a new official name—‘Keralam’

• The official name of Kerala has now been changed to ‘Keralam’. This change has been effected under the ‘Kerala Name Change Act, 2026’.
• Following this, the name of the state has been recorded as ‘Keralam’ instead of ‘Kerala’ in the First Schedule of the Constitution of India.
• The process of changing the state's name was carried out under Article 3 of the Constitution.
• The Central Government approved the proposal to change the name on February 24, 2026.
• Subsequently, in July 2026, the Kerala Legislative Assembly adopted a draft resolution regarding this matter.
• Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai introduced the ‘Kerala Name Change Bill, 2026’ in the Lok Sabha on August 10, 2026.
• The Lok Sabha passed the Bill on August 11, and the Rajya Sabha passed it on August 12. President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent on August 14, after which it became law.
• With this change, Kerala’s official constitutional identity will now be ‘Keralam’.
• This is being viewed as a significant step towards granting official recognition to the state's traditional Malayalam name.