The Diocese of Kottayam was erected exclusively for the Southist (Knanaya) Catholics in 1911. The Knanaya Community traces its origin from a group of Jewish-Christian emigrants from Southern Mesopotamia to the South Indian port of Cranganore in A D 345, who formed themselves into an endogamous community. They co-existed peacefully in the Indian nation and fulfilled their missionary purpose of re-invigorating the Church of St Thomas Christians. The original community consisted of about 400 persons belonging to 72 families of seven septs headed by Thomas of Kynai. A bishop by name Uraha Mar Yousef, four priests and several deacons were among them.
As the Catholicos of the East had promised the emigrants that he would send from time to time bishops to India, Uraha Mar Yousef had successors till the end of the 16th century. Under the East Syrian Bishops, the Knanaya Community had their own churches and priests distinct from those of the non-Knanaya St Thomas Christians. This system continued also under the Latin Rite European bishops, who governed the St Thomas Christians.
When a ritual separation was effected for the Catholics in Kerala between the Orientals and Latins in 1887, all the Knanaya Catholics de facto were in the Apostolic Vicariate of Kottayam, and the Holy See ordered Bishop Charles Lavigne to appoint a separate Vicar General for the Knanaya Community. When the Vicariates Apostolic were re-organized into Trichur, Ernakulam and Changanassery and three indigenous bishops were appointed for the Syro-Malabarians in 1896 the bishop appointed for the Vicariate of Changanassery was Mar Mathew Makil, the former Vicar General for the Knanaya Community.
On August 29, 1911 the Vicariate Apostolic of Kottayam was re-constituted exclusively for the Knanaya Community by the Apostolic letter “In Universi Christiani” of His Holiness Pope St Pius X.
On December 21, 1923 the Vicariate Apostolic of Kottayam was raised to an Eparchy by Pope Pius XI. When the territorial limits of the Syro-Malabar Church was extended in 1955, the jurisdiction of the Eparchy of Kottayam also was made co-extensive with the then extended territory of the Syro-Malabar Church.
By the Apostolic Brief “In Universi Christiani” of August 29, 1911, Pope St Pius X erected the Vicariate Apostolic of Kottayam exclusively for the Southists Catholics. The Eparchy of Kottayam in the state of Kerala was instituted for the Southists Community among the St Thomas Christians of India. The Southists later known also as Knanaya are descendants of a group of Jewish Christians who immigrated into Kerala from the Middle East in AD.. 345. Those immigrants were led by an enterprising merchant called Thomas of Kynai. A Bishop named URAHA Mar Yausef, four priests and several deacons were with them to look after their spiritual needs. They settled in Kodungalloor (Cranganore) enjoying many esteemed privileges granted by Cheraman Perumal, the then ruling emperor of Kerala.
The gist of the Southists tradition is the following: The Church established by St Thomas the Apostle in India was at that time languishing without ecclesial ministers. The Catholicos of the East in Seleucia-Ctesiphon came to know about the sad plight of the Indian Church. Then, as directed by the Catholicos, Thomas Kinayi (knayi, knay, kinan) organized seventy-two Christian families to immigrate into India together with the above said bishop, priests and deacons.
On reaching the Malabar coast with the immigrants, Thomas visited the then ruling Perumal and obtained from him land at Cranganore and highly esteemed privileges. The influx of these immigrants with a bishop and clergy reinvigorated the Indian Church, enabling it to prosper as a privileged community in India. The immigrants following their Judeo-Christian traditions remained as an endogamous community. Hence, among the Christians of St Thomas there is now the ethnic community of the Southists distinct from the majority community of the Northists.
In the caste-ridden social system of India, those Jewish Christian immigrants from Southern Mesopotamia and their descendants comfortably remained an endogamous community. Residing on the southern portion of Cranganore they came to be known as the Southists in distinction from Northists, who were descendants of the native Indians converted by Apostle St Thomas and were living in the northern portion of the town. The Southists remained an autonomous unit also ecclesiastically with their own churches and priests distinct from those of the Northists. In the course of the time the Southists spread out to other parts of Kerala, especially to the capital towns of several kingdoms, such as Diamper, Thodupuzha (Chunkom), Kaduthuruthy, Kottayam and Kallissery.
