Bangladesh, officially called thePeople's Republic of Bangladesh, is acountry inSouth Asia. It is the eighth most populated country in the world and one of the most tightly packed, with more than 170 million people living in an area of148,460 square kilometres (57,320sqmi). Bangladesh has land borders withIndia on thenorth,west, andeast, andMyanmar on thesoutheast. In the south, it has acoastline along theBay of Bengal.
In the north, theSiliguri Corridor separates it fromBhutan andNepal, and the Indian state ofSikkim separates it fromChina.Dhaka is the capital and the biggest city. It is also the center of politics, money, and culture.Chittagong is the second biggest city and the busiest port.Bengali is the official language.Islam is the official and biggest religion.[source?]
Bangladesh is part of the old region ofBengal, which was split during thePartition of British India in 1947. It became theeastern part ofPakistan. Long ago, Bengal was called Gangaridai and had powerful kingdoms beforeIslam. After 1204, Muslim rulers took control, and Bengal became important under theBengal Sultanate and theMughal Empire. Bengal was rich and important in trade and politics. TheBattle of Plassey in 1757 startedBritish rule, which lasted for 200 years. In 1905, Eastern Bengal andAssam were created, which later led to the making of Bangladesh. TheAll-India Muslim League was formed inDhaka in 1906. In 1940,A. K. Fazlul Huq, the first Prime Minister of Bengal, suggested a separate Bengali Muslim land in theLahore Resolution. The current border was set by theRadcliffe Line.
After the war,Sheikh Mujib became the leader. He was killed in 1975, and thenZiaur Rahman took power. He was also killed in 1981. In the 1980s,Hussain Muhammad Ershad ruled until he was removed in 1990 by mass protests. After 1990, Bangladesh’s politics was mostly controlled by a power struggle betweenKhaleda Zia andSheikh Hasina, known as the "Battle of the Begums." In August 2024, students led protests that removedHasina from power, andMuhammad Yunus became the interim leader.
For much of its history, Bangladesh was simply the eastern part ofBengal and was considered a part of India.[7] The Bengal delta has been ruled by Hindu rulers, Muslim rulers, and the British empire. People have lived in Bangladesh for thousands of years.[8]Farming developed in Bangladesh very early on. By 500BC, people grewrice there.[8] Farming lead to the development ofurban areas like cities. Early houses in Bangladesh were likely built ofwood andmud, andadobe. Because Bangladesh hasmonsoons, there is not a lot ofevidence of ancient people living there.[8] From about 300 BC to the 1700sAD,technology like writing and theBengali language developed. During this time, manyreligions were popular and manystates were founded.[8] By the 1500s, the area was rich and evenpeasants had plenty to eat.[9]
In the 13th century,Turkic armies took over theBengal delta. During this time, the delta was ruled by Hindu leaders. In 1202, the last major Hindu Sen leader was pushed out from his capital inWestern Bengal(Nadiya), but they stayed for a short time in East Bengal.
In 1206, a Muslim kingdom called theDelhi Sultanate was founded. The rulers of the Bengal delta became friendly with the sultanate, and to stay separately ruled the Bengal rulers would paytribute to the sultanate using war elephants. In 1341, Bengal became independent from Delhi, andDhaka became the capital of independent Bengal. In 1576, Bengal was taken over by Akbar the Great, aMughal emperor. Bengal stayed part of the Mughal Empire until the eighteenth century.
When the Mughals ruled the Bengal, they began to make Bengal part of India politically. Bengal, however, was too far away from the Mughal capital in Delhi. Because it was hard to talk to Bengal, local governors found it easy to ignore what the Mughals wanted for Bengal. Although Bengal remained aprovince, religious leaders and scientists from Mughal-ruled Bengal have been famous throughout India.
As Bengal was part of their empire, the Mughals helped it grow. They built a road from Delhi to Dhaka, started apostal service, and helped make their calendar better. This calendar is still used in Bangladesh today. The Mughals also collected taxes in Bengal. Soon, Bengal was the richest province and was called the "Breadbasket of India". The Mughals used Bengali resources to help maintain their army, but they did not help protect the Bengali people from pirates. This made the Bengali people angry, and the Mughals had to appoint powerful generals to help rule Bengal. Despite this, Bengal became a center of thetextile trade inSouth Asia.
In 1704, the capital of Bengal was moved from Dhaka toMurshidabad. In 1707,Aurangzeb, sometimes called the last great Mughal emperor, died. After this, governors in Bengal still paid tribute to the Mughal empire, but were mostly left alone. These governors protected Bengal from HinduMarathas during the eighteenth century. When the Mughal governor Alivardi Khan died in 1756, he left rule of Bengal to his grandson, who would lose Bengal to the British in 1757.
Bengal was underBritish rule from 1757 to 1947.[10] It was part ofBritish India.English was made one of the official languages of the Bengal Presidency.
In 1947, East Bengal and the Dominion of Pakistan were separated from India, becoming Pakistan. Pakistan was cut in half, its east and west parts separated by 930 miles (1,500km) of India. In 1949, theBangladesh Awami League formed, wanting the east and west parts of Pakistan separated.[11] In 1955, East Bengal was renamed East Pakistan, with Dacca becoming the capital. The people living in East Pakistan were mostly ethnically Bengali, spoke Bengali, and had a different culture compared to the people of western Pakistan. These differences eventually led to theBangladesh Liberation War.
After Bangladesh became independent, Bengali replacedUrdu and English as the only national and official language. Bengali is used in government, business, and schools. Private English-language schools for upper-class students existed into the 1980s. English is now taught in higher education and is offered as a university subject.
At first, people began to stop speaking Arabic in Bangladesh. In 1983, after Bangladesh strengthened its ties with Saudi Arabia and other oil-rich countries, people tried to make Arabic a required language to learn in school. Arabic is widely studied today in Madrassas and Islamic schools so people can understand Islamic texts better.
Despite gaining independence in 1971, Bangladesh is a poor country and has problems with political corruption. Presently, more than 75% the population can read and write.[12]
In June-July, a court ruling was announced, illegalized the 2018 ruling which had banned the previous 2018 quota system for jobs. Respectively, the 2018 quota system was back on, and the students of Bangladesh felt they had less opportunities to earn jobs based on merit, as the quota system took up 56% of the total job seats. The main issue began when the total reserved seats for freedom fighters were increased to 30%. Following that, the students (primarily University students) had spoken up against the controversial Quota system and demanded to reduce the total quota percentage to 5-10%. However the government responded violently, which ultimately led students demanding the resignation of Sheikh Hasina and her cabinet.
After this, the movement evolved to what many know as "The Mass Uprising" which led Sheikh Hasina in August 5 to resign and flee to India. After the fall of Hasina, an interim government was formed in August 8 withDr. Muhammad Yunus, acting as the Chief Advisor of theinterim government.
ThePresident of Bangladesh acts asHead of state, but thePrime Minister of Bangladesh acts asHead of government. The president is elected by lawmakers every 5 years, and has limited powers. The presidency is largely ceremonial, but sometimes the president has do more than usual. This is called aCaretaker government.
The prime minister is chosen by the president and must be a member of parliament (MP). TheCabinet is made up of people chosen by the prime minister, and is appointed by the president.
Bangladesh'sparliament is called the House of the Nation, or theJatiya Sangsad, andhas only one chamber. TheJatiya Sangsad has 300 members who are elected by popular vote, and they have 5-year terms of office. The highestjudiciary body in Bangladesh is the Supreme Court, whose members are chosen by the president.
After famines in 1973 and 1974, the prime minister of Bangladesh instituted a one-party socialist state. After this, amilitary junta ruled Bangladesh until 1990. Since then, Bangladesh has become a parliamentary democracy. In 2007, a caretaker government was appointed to help end corruption in Bangladeshi politics. Many politicians were arrested on corruption charges. Again in 2008, Bangladesh came under a parliamentary rule.
Bangladesh is in the Ganges Delta. This is where the riversGanges,Brahmaputra, andMeghna come together. Most parts of Bangladesh are less than12m (39.4ft) above the sea level. The highest point in Bangladesh is in Mowdok range at1,052m (3,451ft) in theChittagong Hill Tracts to the southeast of the country.[13]Cox's Bazar, south of the city of Chittagong, has a beach that is uninterrupted over120km (75mi).
Bangladesh has heavycyclones and natural disasters, due to this many lives are often lost. The country is one of the most densely populated in the world. Cyclones are very common in theBay of Bengal during the middle of the year, particularly in the south of country in areas like Sundarban,Chittagong,Cox's Bazaar, or in neighboringMyanmar andRepublic of India. Despite the many storms, Bangladesh does not have a very effective storm prevention system, and cyclones usually inflict heavy damage.
The main religion in Bangladesh isIslam at (91.57%), while the second largest religion isHinduism at (7.26%).[18][19] Most Muslims in Bangladesh areSunni. Islam was made the state religion in the 1980s.Buddhists andChristians together make up 1% of the population.[19]
Religious Diversity in Bangladesh -2021 Projections[18][19]
The musical tradition of Bangladesh is lyrics-based with few instruments. Folk music is often accompanied by theektara, an instrument with only one string. Bangladeshi dance forms are from folk traditions.
Bangladesh makes about 80 films a year.[20] MainstreamHindi films are also quite popular.[21] Around 200 daily newspapers are published in Bangladesh, along with more than 500 magazines.
Rice and fish are traditional favorite foods.Biryani is a favorite dish of Bangladeshis.[source?]
Thesari is popularly worn by Bangladeshi women. The salwar kameez (shaloar kamiz) is also commonly worn. In urban areas, many people wear western clothing.
Eid ul-Fitr andEid ul-Adha are major religious festivals in Bangladesh.Buddha Purnima, which marks the birth ofGautama Buddha, and Christmas, calledBôŗodin (Great day), are both national holidays. The most important non-religious festival isPohela Boishakh or Bengali New Year, the beginning of the Bengali calendar year.
TheNational symbols of the Bangladesh are made of symbols to represent Bengali traditions and ideals that show the different aspects of the cultural life and history of the country.
12Central Intelligence Agency (2011)."Bangladesh".The World Factbook. Langley, Virginia: Central Intelligence Agency. Archived fromthe original on 1 January 2021. Retrieved5 October 2011.
↑Stuart Butler,Bangladesh (Footscray, VIC; London: Lonely Planet, 2008), p. 19
1234Meghna Guhathakurta; Willem van Schendel,The Bangladesh Reader: History, Culture, Politics (Durham, NC; London: Duke University Press, 2013), p. 31
↑Salahuddin Ahmed,Bangladesh: Past and Present (New Delhi: A.P.H. Publishing Corporation, 2003), p. 1
↑Junie T Tong,Finance and Society in 21st Century China: Chinese Culture versus Western Markets (Farnham, Surrey; Burlington, VT: Gower, 2011), p. 151
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