Gundert Museum, Thalassery

Gundert Museum occupies Gundert Bungalow in Thalassery, Kerala, the home of the German missionary, scholar and linguist Hermann Gundert, remembered for his work on the Malayalam language. Gundert arrived in Thalassery in 1839 and spent the next two decades there with his wife Julie, until ill health sent him back to Germany in 1859. From this house he brought out the first Malayalam dictionary and the first Malayalam daily, Rajyasamacharam, as well as Paschimodayam.

Built in the 1800s in traditional Kerala style, the bungalow has a tiled roof, verandahs on all four sides, wooden doors and windows, and walls of laterite, with the Kuyyali River flowing close by. The Kerala government restored it under the Thalassery Heritage Tourism Project for Rs 2.21 crore and opened it as a museum on 7 May 2022. Displays tell Gundert's life story, and the museum has the Hermann Hesse Library, rare books, the Julie Gundert Hall, a statue of Gundert and a digital book archive.