The word Ponoth has been derived from the saying “ponam othu-inu”, which simply means, need to go for studying Vedas. Here, the word “othu” means the study of the Vedas.
Now, to understand the word “othu” it is important to step back a bit and understand some very fundamental information.
Note: “On 7 November 2003, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared the Tradition of Vedic Chanting (India) a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.”1
We need to understand that, unlike what is generally understood, the Brahmin(community known as Nambuthiris) of Kerala are not very similar in their practices as compared to the Brahmins in the rest of India. In Kerala, we know these Brahmins as Nambuthiri. Although not much information is available regarding where these Nambuthiris originated, it is considered that almost all of them reached Kerala by around the 8th century AD. The earliest settlements were in the northernmost part of Kerala, from where they moved southwards. It is also said that the immigrant brahmins settled in 32 villages and were a vital force in the social setup of Kerala. The 8th century is also significant for the birth of Adi Shankara. At that time, several learning centres of Vedic, Philosophical, and Upanisadic thoughts were established here. This initiated serious discussions in these and allied subjects and subsequently institutionalized as annual functions in these Vedic centres, which included Temples. In this way Vedic tradition of Kerala was very rich and powerful from very early days.
As you may be aware, there are 4 Vedas- Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda, and Atharvaveda. However, the Nambuthiris of Kerala only belonged to three groups Rigveda, Yajurveda, and Samaveda, meaning they only learned and practiced these 3 Vedas. Every Veda is divided into 4 distinct parts, namely - Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka, and Upanishad. The Samaveda is again different in its form as it is musical in nature. The science of music is said to have evolved from this Veda through Brahma. Gaandharva Veda is a subsidiary of Samaveda. Coming back to the distinct parts, the Samhita portion is also termed as Mantra portion. It contains hymns of different types, such as sacrificial, religious, philosophical, and social. The study of this Samhita portion of the Rigveda is generally known as Addhyaya(study), which in Malayalam is called “othu”. There are supposed to be 64 Adhyayas, or we can say 64 topics or chapters. The knowledge transfer happens through the mode of chanting (there is a specific way by which it is taught2) and is known as othu. Interestingly, an Othu is done by an "Othikkan"3 a position or role assigned to certain families among the Namboothiri community, authorised to perform or supervise the performance of certain rituals and to teach Vedam or "Othu". Every Namboothiri family will have a designated Othikkan family who will function in that capacity for a group of families. Such Othikkans will also have designated Othikkans. Othikkans come from "Picha" or the higher class of Namboothiris.
So, returning to “Ponoth”. The saying “ponam othu-inu” subsequently got shortened to “Ponothu”. I got this information from my Father’s cousin from my grandmother’s side sometime in 1992. At that time, I did not bother much about gathering more details in this regard. The rest of the details, like what Othu is and all, is my own research and understanding. On a side note, I also came to know during a Ponoth family event (in 1992-93), that the Ponoth family has its roots in the North-West region of Kerala, or that the Ancestors are from there. The family had come to Ernakulam from there, and this land (from Kaloor market till the JLN Stadium) was supposedly provided by Kurumur Mana. This Mana still exists on the southern side of our house. Kurumur Mana incidentally used to be in charge of the famous Pavakkulam Sreemahadeva Temple. This again is a historic temple, and it is also recorded that King Sakthan Thampuran of the earlier Kochi State stayed in this Temple to worship Lord Shiva.
My thoughts at this time are that the Ponoth Family must have had a definite family name other than Ponoth. There are many unanswered questions, too; I have still not been able to figure out when, how, or why the othu tradition/lineage stopped. Ponoth is my Grandmother’s family. My Grandfather’s family name is Puliyanezath, which is ideally what our family name should have been. However, my Grandfather moved to Ponoth, and the next generation(grandchildren) adopted the Ponoth name instead of Puliyanezath without much challenge, as both names start with a P.
Nevertheless, there is a lineage and history that is waiting to be revealed, not sure when though!
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