A remarkable discovery has been made in a coconut farm in Ramanathapuram: a tombstone with Hebrew inscriptions dating back to the 13th century. This find is expected to shed new light on the region's historical connection to the Jewish community.
Thoufeek Zakriya, a Jewish history researcher and Hebrew calligrapher, the first to decipher the inscription, says that the tombstone dates to 1224 or 1225 AD. "This means that it is older than the Sarah Bat Israel Tombstone in Kerala’s Chennamangalam, which is considered the oldest Hebrew tombstone ever identified in India," Zakriya told THE WEEK.
In 2022, a stone pillar with inscriptions suggesting the presence of a Jewish synagogue was found in Valantharai, near Ramanathapuram. The pillar, which locals had been using for washing clothes, featured around 50 lines of inscription. Zakriya explained that this earlier discovery detailed a land donation for a "Sudapalli", now assumed to mean "Jootha Palli" or Jewish Synagogue. Interestingly, the 2022 inscriptions were in Tamil, whereas the new tombstone inscriptions are in Hebrew.
Hathim Ali, 32, a young chemical engineer and history enthusiast from Ramanathapuram, brought the tombstone to public attention. "One of my friends informed me about this tombstone found in the coconut farm owned by Mr. Balu," Ali told THE WEEK. "When I went to inspect it, I understood that it was neither Tamil nor Arabic. Later, I thought maybe it could be Hebrew." Despite informing government authorities, no one came to inspect it. "That is when I decided to tell the Dinamalar [a Tamil newspaper]," he added. Notably, Balu found the tombstone in an ancient and unused well on his property.
Zakriya, who is working in the UAE, learned about the discovery through a news piece in the Dinamalar, forwarded by Rajaguru, the president of the Ramanathapuram Archaeological Research Foundation. Zakriya then contacted Hatim, who sent him pictures of the inscriptions for deciphering. "The Hebrew inscription bears the date as the 1st of Shvat (Hebrew Month) 1536 or 1537 of the Seleucid era," Zakriya explained. The Seleucid era is the first system of continuous year numbering, introduced in West Asia by the Seleucids. The Jewish adoption of the Seleucid era, known as the Minyan Shetarot, resulted from Hellenistic influence following the conquests of Alexander the Great and the subsequent Seleucid rule over the Jews.
"When converting the dates from the Seleucid era to the common era, it was found that the date on the tombstone inscriptions is approximately equivalent to January 1, 1224 AD, or January 18, 1225 AD," Zakriya noted, adding that not every line in the inscription could be deciphered due to damage. "So, I could not find the name of the deceased or his father... But I could see a name partially which could be read as Nehemiah in Hebrew. The initial analysis shows a strong Yemeni Jewish influence in the tombstone's pattern."
Zakriya emphasized that more studies must be carried out in the area as this is the second Hebrew stone found in Ramanathapuram. Another Jewish tombstone found in the area had inscriptions suggesting it was the tombstone of a Mariam, daughter of David. It is believed that this tombstone is now in the office of the Samsthanam Revenue Officer in Ramnad. "The kind of tragedy is that nobody has actually deciphered its date so far," Zakriya lamented.