Also known as Calicut in the earlier times, Kozhikode is an important tourist destination in the Northern part of Kerala. The name Kozhikode is derived from the Malayalam word for the crowing of a cock. Local rulers called Zamorins who traded with merchants from Arabia ruled the area around Kozhikode till about 1498 when the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama landed at Kappad Beach, near Kozhikode. The region became an important British trading outpost after this. A locally made variety of checked cloth called Calico (from Calicut) was a popular item of export during those times.
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