"Nasrani" is a term meaning
"Christian"; it appears to be derived
from Nazareth , the home town of je su s
.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Thomas_Christians James Strange, an American
archaeologist, notes: “Nazareth is not
mentioned in ancient Jewish sources
earlier than the third century AD. This
likely reflects its lack of prominence
both in Galilee and in Judaea Matthew 2:19-23 reads: After Herod died, an angel of
the Lord appeared in a dream
to Joseph in Egypt and said,
"Get up, take the child and his
mother and go to the land of
Israel, for those who were
trying to take the child's life
are dead." So he got up, took
the child and his mother and
went to the land of Israel. But
when he heard that Archelaus
was reigning in Judea in place
of his father Herod, he was
afraid to go there. Having
been warned in a dream, he
withdrew to the district of
Galilee, and he went and lived
in a town called Nazareth. So
was fulfilled what was said
through the prophets: "He
will be called a
Nazarene."
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazareth