Palakkad, also known as Palghat (anglicized), is a town and a municipality in the state of Kerala in southern India. It is the administrative headquarters of Palakkad District. Palakkad lies near the Palghat Gap, a pass or natural depression through the Western Ghats ranges that run parallel to the west coast of India, and connects Kerala to the plains of the state of Tamil Nadu to the east. The people of Palakkad generally speak Malayalam, though Tamil is also widely understood as it is close to the Tamil Nadu border.