kodinhi: The Twin Town

Kodinhi  (The twin town) a village in  the Malappuram district in Kerala South West India, close to the town of  Tirurangadi, as of 2008,  has an unusual phenomenon, is home to around 2,000 families. Administered by the Nannambra panchayat, the village came to international spotlight for the unusually large number of multiple births in the region. The village is noted for having a high twinning rate although India has one of the lowest twinning rates in the world.

After a local routine survey found an unusually large number of twin births in the region, found the figure to be closer to 224 pairs (448 individuals) of twins, and two sets of triplets. Women from Kodinhi married off to far away places are also known to give birth to twins. According to doctors, they said, this phenomenon is due to chemicals present in water in the Kodinhi area. According to locals, the oldest known twin pair in the village was born in 1949. The number of twin births in Kodinhi has been increasing over the years, with surveys showing over 79 pairs of twins within the age group of 0–10 years.

This twin phenomenon in Kodinhi is not unique as it has also been reported in Igbo-Ora in Nigeria, which has the highest rate of twin births in the whole world. English gynaecologist, Patrick Nylander said, an average of 45 to 50 pairs of twins per 1000 live births were recorded during 1972 and 1982 in Igbo-Ora. In Candidi Godoi, Brazil large number of twin births has been reported.