K S Manilal

On 1st January, 2025,K S Manilal, the renowned taxonomist and Padma Shri awardee, passed away in Thrissur, Kerala, after a prolonged illness, leaving behind a legacy in botanical research.

K S Manilal was widely recognized for his extensive research and translation work on Hortus Malabaricus, a key botanical treatise that explored the flora of the Western coast of India, particularly Kerala, Karnataka, and Goa.
The Hortus Malabaricus was originally authored by Hendrik Adriaan van Rheede in the 17th century, and Manilal's translation and annotation of the Latin work made it accessible to the academic world for the first time.
As a professor of botany at the University of Calicut from 1976 to 1999, Manilal dedicated 35 years to the translation and annotation of this monumental 12-volume work, making significant contributions to botanical studies.
Manilal's scholarly works include 198 research papers and 15 books on taxonomy, with a particular focus on the medicinal and historical significance of Hortus Malabaricus.
He also played a vital role in the conservation of Kerala's Silent Valley rainforest in the 1980s through his extensive research on its flora and fauna.