Editing Malayalam calendar (section)

== Significant dates ==
*[[Vishu]] (1st day of ''Medam'' month): Malayali New Year (traditional)
*[[Vishu|Pathamudayam]] (10th day of ''Medam'' month)
*Ramayana Masam (whole month of ''Karkidakam'')
*[[Karkidaka vavu|Karkidaka Vavu]] (month of ''Karkidakam''): Rituals performed to honour ancestors
*[[Kerala New Year (Kollam era)|''Chingam'' Onnu]]: Malayali New Year (as per the Kollam Era calendar)
*[[Onam]] (month of ''Chingam''): Annual Harvest and Cultural Festival
*[[Ganesh Chaturthi|Vinayaka Chaturthi]] (month of ''Chingam''): Birth of Lord Ganesha
*[[Krishna Janmashtami|Sri Krishna Janmashtami]] (month of ''Chingam''): Birth of Lord Krishna
*[[Navaratri]] (month of ''Kanya''): Saraswati Puja and Vidyarambham 
*[[Deepavali]] (month of ''Thulam''): Festival of Lights
*[[Guruvayur Ekadasi|Guruvayur Ekadashi]] (month of ''Vrishchikam''): Festival related to Guruvayur Temple
*[[Karthika Deepam|Thrikarthika]] (month of ''Vrishchikam''): Festival of Lights
*[[Thiruvathira]] (month of ''Dhanu''): Nakshatra (Star) of Lord Shiva
*[[Makaravilakku]] (1st day of ''Makaram'' month): Festival related to Sabarimala Temple
*Makara Bharani (month of ''Makaram''): Festival related to Devi
*[[Thaipusam|Thaipooyam]] (month of ''Makaram''): Festival related to Lord Murugan
*[[Maha Shivaratri]] (month of Kumbham): Festival related to Lord Shiva

[[Vishu]] ({{lang|ml|വിഷു}}), celebrated on the first day of ''Medam'', ''[[Onam]]'' ({{lang|ml|ഓണം}}), celebrated on the star Thiruvonam {{IPA|ml|t̪iruʋoːɳəm|}} on the first day of ''Chingam'', and [[Deepavali]] ({{lang|ml|ദീപാവലി}}), celebrated on the first day of ''Thulam'', are three of the major festivals.  The first day of ''Chingam'' is celebrated as the [[Kerala New Year (Kollam era)|Kerala New Year]], replacing Vishu ({{lang|ml|വിഷു}}), which was considered the beginning of a year until 825&nbsp;CE. Vishu is still celebrated as the traditional Malayali New Year, as it is astronomically significant, 'Medam' being the first among the 12 rashis (the [[zodiac]] signs corresponding to the 12 months of a solar year).{{fact|date=July 2022}}. Deepavali is traditionally celebrated during Thulam which is the months of October and November.

The [[Makaravilakku]] festival is celebrated in the [[Ayyappan|Ayyappa]] Temple at [[Sabarimala]] on the first day of ''Makaram'' month. This marks the grand finale of the two-month period to the Sabarimala pilgrimage. The 1st of ''Makaram'' marks the winter Solstice (Uttarayanam) and the 1st of ''Karkaṭakam'' marks the summer solstice (Dakshinayanam) according to the Malayalam calendar (according to the astronomical calendar, the summer solstice is on 21 June, and the winter solstice on 21 December).{{fact|date=July 2022}}

Chaitram 1 (usually coinciding with 20 March) or Medam 1 (mostly coinciding with 14 April, for 2019 it was on 15 April), both in the proximity of the date of the vernal equinox (21 March), mark the beginning of the new year in many traditional Indian calendars such as the [[Indian national calendar]] and the [[Tamil calendar]]. When the [[Government of Kerala]] adopted Kolla Varsham as the regional calendar, the first of ''Chingam'', the month of the festival of Onam, was accepted as the Malayalam New Year instead.{{citation needed|date=January 2019}}