● Instrument Reference · Desk-Verified Dossier
Kurumkuzhal
Documented in the archive in connection with Theyyam (Kannur & Kasaragod, North Malabar, India).
Classification
Instrument
Origin / Scope
India
Connected Rooms
1 Tradition
Bibliography
1 Source
Archival note & context
Kurumkuzhal is attested in the primary archival record for Theyyam in Kannur & Kasaragod, North Malabar, India.
More than four hundred distinct Theyyam deities—ancestral heroes, fierce mother goddesses, and forest spirits—are invoked each year between October and May in the sacred groves (kavu) of Kannur and Kasaragod.
Performers from the Vannan, Malayan, and Velan communities undergo hours of intricate mukhathezhuthu facial painting before gazing into a handheld mirror to become the living deity.
Associated traditions
1Sources
1What’s on this page is sourced from the citation below.
| Source | Publisher | Licence |
|---|---|---|
| Theyyam — Folkroom Primary Archive Dossier (India) | National Inventory | CC BY-SA 4.0 |