Sooranad Kunjan Pillai

Sooranad P. N. Kunjan Pillai
Born(1911-06-24)24 June 1911
Sooranad, Kingdom of Travancore, British India (present day Kollam, Kerala, India)
Died8 March 1995(1995-03-08) (aged 83)
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
NationalityIndian
EducationMA(Eng), MA(Mal), MA(San), D.Litt.
SpouseC. Bhagavati Amma
Children4
Parents
  • Neelakanta Pillai
  • Karthiyani Pillai Amma
Awards
In this Indian name, the toponymic surname is Sooranad. It is not a family name, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Kunjan Pillai.
In this Indian name, the name Payikkattu Neelakanta is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Kunjan Pillai.

Sooranad Payikkattu Neelakanta Kunjan Pillai (24 June 1911 – 8 March 1995) was an Indian researcher, lexicographer, poet, essayist, literary critic, orator, grammarian, educationist, and scholar of the Malayalam language, best remembered for his contributions in compiling Malayala Maha Nighantu, a lexicon. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padmashri in 1984 for his contribution to Malayalam literature and education. He was also a recipient of the Vallathol Award in 1992 and when the Government of Kerala instituted the Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, their highest literary honour in 1993, he received the inaugural award.