The name of Kerala has officially been changed to Keralam, with the Union Home Ministry notifying that the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Act, 2026, will come into force from August 25.

In a gazette notification issued on Tuesday, the Home Ministry said: “In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of Section 1 of the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Act, 2026, the Central government hereby appoints the 25th day of August, 2026, as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force.”

President Droupadi Murmu had earlier given her assent to the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, turning it into law. The Lok Sabha passed the Bill on August 11, followed by the Rajya Sabha on August 12.

The move follows a resolution passed by the Kerala Legislative Assembly on June 24, 2024, seeking to change the state's name from Kerala to Keralam. The state government forwarded the resolution to the Centre the same month.

In the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said the Assembly had passed the resolution in 2024, urging the Centre to enact legislation to change the state's name to Keralam.

The Assembly resolution noted that the state's name is Keralam in Malayalam and linked the demand to the linguistic reorganisation of states in 1956 and the long-standing movement for a united Kerala for Malayalam-speaking people.

It stated: “The name of our State is 'Keralam' in the Malayalam Language. States were formed on the basis of language on the 1st day of November, 1956. The Kerala Piravi Day is also on the 1st day of November.”

The resolution further said that while the name of the state is recorded as Kerala in the First Schedule of the Constitution, the Assembly unanimously appealed to the Centre “to take urgent steps as per Article 3 of the Constitution for modifying the name as 'Keralam'.”

Under Article 3 of the Constitution, Parliament has the power to alter the name, area or boundaries of existing states. A Bill seeking such a change can be introduced only on the President's recommendation and, where the proposal affects a state's name, after the Bill has been referred to the concerned state legislature for its views.

Following the President's reference, the Kerala Assembly adopted a unanimous resolution supporting the name change. The Kerala (Alteration of Name) Act, 2026, provides for the necessary amendments to the Constitution and other consequential changes arising from the renaming of the state.
(With agency inputs)