# The Malayalam Language Malayalam, a vibrant Dravidian language, thrives in the lush, South-West region of India, nestled between the towering Western Ghats to the East and the Arabian Sea to the West. As the principal language of Kerala's picturesque hill country, Malayalam has uniquely preserved its ancient characteristics, thanks to the natural barriers surrounding it. Yet, through extensive trade networks and the spread of diverse religions, it has also embraced influences from a plethora of external languages, including Sanskrit, Prakrits, Syriac, Hebrew, Arabic, Persian, Portuguese, and Dutch. Malayalam, one of India's classical languages, boasts around 37 million native speakers and 0.7 million second-language speakers. The Malayali diaspora has also brought the language to the Middle East, and it has significant minority communities in the Indian states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. As the official language of Kerala and Lakshadweep, Malayalam is also the primary language of Mahe (Mayyazhi), part of the Union territory of Puducherry. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://malayalamozhi.gitbook.io/malayalamozhi/the-malayalam-language.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.