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A.P.J Abdul Kalam was born into a middle-class Tamil family and his place of birth -
Rameswaram is an Island town in the state of Tamil Nadu, in the Bay of Bengal. Today, we know
this state as Tamil Nadu but when he was born, at that time the state was known as Madras
state.
My father, Jainulabdeen, had neither much

formal education nor much wealth;
despite these disadvantages, he possessed

great innate wisdom and a true generosity of spirit.

innate: inborn; (a quality or feeling) in one’s nature
generosity of spirit: his soul sought to help others who were needy

APJ Abdul Kalam’s father’s name was Jainulabdeen. APJ says that his father was not very rich,
he did not have wealth, he was not highly educated but despite these disadvantages, he had
some other qualities- he was naturally very wise and was generous too. He had an ideal

helpmate in my mother, Ashiamma.
APJ’s mother’s name was Ashiamma. She used to help his father. She was a great support and
help to him.
I do not recall the exact number of people she fed every day, but I am quite certain that far
more outsiders ate with us than all the members of our own family put together.