मानविक्रम , the zamorin who ruled the old state of कोज़्हिक्कोटु in the beginning of the seventh century (Malayālam Era) was a talented man well-versed in all arts. He kept in his court a company of nineteen wise men whom he called by the well-known name पतिनेट्टरक्कविस् meaning eighteen and a half कविस् . The कविस् of the zamorin were the nine पट्टेरिस् of पय्यूर् , the five नम्बूतिरिस् of तिरुवेगप्पुर , मुल्लप्पिल्ल्य् नम्बूतिरि , उद्दण्डशास्त्रि , काक्कश्शेरि भट्टतिरि , चेन्नास् नम्बूतिरिप्पाडु and पुनम् नम्बूतिरि . Of these eighteen were scholars in Sanskrit and the nineteenth, पुनम् नम्बूतिरि was a vernacular poet and so the then zamorin gave only half a unit value to the vernacular member and thus named the assemby as a company of eighteen and a half members. There is another explanation given to the word ' अरक्कवि '. ' अर ' means 'half; but modern pandits say that ' अर ' was a prefix to show a sign of royalty as is found in the words ' अरमन ' meaning royal mana or palace of the King. शो ' अरक्कवि ' would mean a कवि attached to a King. Then the question comes, which of the nineteen was not included in the original company to reduce the number to eighteen. We can leave the matter for further research.

पय्यूर् Accan भट्टतिरिप्पाडु , the top-most of Kerala pandits, was the president of the council of पतिनेट्टरक्कविस् . The illam (house) of this भट्टतिरिप्पाडु belonged to the कुन्नम्कुलम् taluk near गुरुवायूर् of Cochin state. He was known as महर्षि also उद्दण्डशास्त्रिकल् in his मल्लिकामारुत states that one of the पट्टेरिस् was पय्यूर् महाभट्टतिरिप्पाडु named परमेश्वर . उद्दण्डशास्त्रि belonged to काञ्चीपुर . काक्कश्शेरि भट्टतिरि was born to defeat the invincible उद्दण्डशास्त्रि . चेन्नास् नम्बूतिरि was the author of तन्त्रषमुच्चय . Many poets and pandits were born in the family of these कविस् after their death.