| Anchal | |
| Pushpin Map: | India Kerala#India |
| Pushpin Label Position: | right |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Kerala, India |
| Coordinates: | 8.9292°N 76.9181°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  India |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Kerala |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Kollam |
| Established Title: | |
| Governing Body: | Block panchayat |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Total Km2: | 24.45 |
| Elevation M: | 45 |
| Population Total: | 33088 |
| Demographics Type1: | Languages |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Official |
| Demographics1 Info1: | Malayalam |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Minority |
| Demographics1 Info2: | Tamil |
| Timezone1: | IST |
| Utc Offset1: | +5:30 |
| Postal Code Type: | PIN |
| Postal Code: | 691306 |
| Area Code Type: | Telephone code |
| Area Code: | 0475 |
| Registration Plate: | KL-25 |
| Blank1 Name Sec1: | District |
| Blank1 Info Sec1: | Kollam |
| Blank2 Name Sec1: | Civic agency |
| Blank2 Info Sec1: | Panchayat |
| Blank3 Name Sec1: | Climate |
| Blank3 Info Sec1: | Monsoon (Köppen) |
| Blank4 Name Sec1: | Literacy Rate |
| Blank4 Info Sec1: | 95% |
Anchal[1] is an urban town located in the centre of Kollam district in Kerala, India.
There are a number of different legends about the origin of the name Anchal. One legend is that there used to be an "Anchalappis" at the site of the present range office junction, from which the name "Anchal" originates. Another legend is, how five disputes evolved in the region, leading to the name of the land of five disputes, proverbs or puzzles.[2] Another myth is that, the five Banyan trees or "Aal" in the region, are the origin the name Anchal, a portmanteau of Anch meaning five and Aal meaning Banyan tree.
The nearest railway stations are the Punalur Railway Station and the Kollam Junction Railway Station, located respectively 14 km and 38 km away. Kollam Junction is the second largest railway station in Kerala by area and is also one of the oldest.[3] Punalur Railway Station is about 11 km from Anchal and currently connects to Kollam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Nagarcoil, Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli and Madurai. The nearest International Airport is Trivandrum International Airport, located 55 km from Anchal in the city of Thiruvananthapuram. It is the main international airport in the state of Kerala and offers both national and international flights.[4] Anchal is located between the National Highway 744 and the Main Central Road and Hilly highway is also passing through Anchal.The new bypass,a long standing demand of the local people was thrown open for traffic from May 17,2024. Multiple bus services also run between Anchal and other places in Kerala.
In the 2011 Census of India, Anchal had a population of 33,098 of which 15,732 are male and 17,356 are female. The literacy rate is 95%, with 96.7% of males literate and 93.49% of females literate.[5] The total employed population is 11,960. 71% of the population that are employed are male and 29% are female. Scheduled Caste members make up 9.04% of the population, while Scheduled Tribe members make up 0.25%.[6]