Bengal is a historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Bengal proper is divided between the modern-day sovereign nation of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal.
Buddhism is the third-largest religious affiliation and formed about 0.63% of the population of Bangladesh. It is said that Buddha once in his life came to this region of East Bengal to spread his teachings and he was successful in converting the local people to Buddhism, specially in the Chittagong division and later on Pala empire propagate and patronized Buddhist religion throughout the Bengal territory. About 1 million people in Bangladesh adhere to the Theravada school of Buddhism. Over 65% of the Buddhist population is concentrated in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region, where it is the predominant faith of the Rakhine, Chakma, Marma, Tanchangya, other Jumma people and the Barua. The remaining 35% are Bengali Buddhists. Buddhist communities are present in the urban centers of Bangladesh, particularly Chittagong and Dhaka.
The Sena dynasty was a Hindu dynasty during the early medieval period on the Indian subcontinent, that ruled from Bengal through the 11th and 12th centuries. The empire at its peak covered much of the north-eastern region of the Indian subcontinent. The rulers of the Sena Dynasty traced their origin to the south Indian region of Karnataka.
Bikrampur was a historic region and a sub-division of Dhaka within the Bengal Presidency during the period of British India. Located along the banks of the Padma River, it was a significant cultural and political centre in Bengal. Today, the region is part of the Munshiganj District in Bangladesh.
Dhaka (Dacca) is a modern megacity with origins dating from 500 BC to 200 BC. The history of Dhaka region begins with the existence of urbanised settlements that were ruled by Gangaridai, Gupta Empire, Gauda Kingdom and Buddhist or Shaivite Pala Empire before passing to the control of the Hindu Sena dynasty in the 10th century CE. After the reign of Sena dynasty, the region was ruled by the Hindu Deva dynasty.
Waithali located in today's northern Rakhine State, Myanmar, was the capital of the Waithali Kingdom from 370 to 818. The former capital site is approximately 70 kilometres (43 mi) north-east of Sittwe, and east of Ram Chaung, a tributary of the Kaladan river. Like much of northern Rakhine State, Waithali is in a hilly locale. Like its predecessor, Dhanyawadi, the former capital site has fallen into ruin and much of it is now deserted. Only a few temples and traces of the old city wall remain. The site is about an hour's bus ride from Mrauk U.
Varendra, also known as Barind, was an ancient and historical territory of Northern Bengal, now mostly in Bangladesh and a little portion in the Indian state of West Bengal and Eastern Bihar.
Rakhine State occupies the northern coastline of Myanmar up to the border with Bangladesh and corresponds to the historical Kingdom of Arakan. The history of Rakhine is divided into 7 parts - the independent kingdoms of Dhanyawadi, Waithali, Lemro, Mrauk U, Burmese occupation from 1785 to 1826, British rule from 1826 to 1948 and as a part of independent Burma from 1948.
Samataṭa was an ancient geopolitical division of Bengal in the eastern Indian subcontinent. The Greco-Roman account of Sounagoura is linked to the kingdom of Samatata. Its territory corresponded to much of present-day eastern Bangladesh and parts of the Rakhine State of Myanmar. The area covers the trans-Meghna part of the Bengal delta. It was a center of Buddhist civilisation before the resurgence of Hinduism, and Muslim conquest in the region.
Muhammad Khan Sur, also known by his regnal title Shamsuddin Muhammad Shah Ghazi, was the Sultan of Bengal from 1553 to 1555. He was initially appointed as a governor of Bengal by Emperor Islam Shah Suri of the Sur Empire in 1545, but after his death, he declared independence and re-established the Bengal Sultanate. He conquered Arakan of Burma, and ordered of striking silver 'tanka' coins for Bengal.
The Bengal Sultanate was a late medieval sultanate based in the Bengal region in the eastern South Asia between the 14th and 16th century. It was the dominant power of the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, with a network of mint towns spread across the region. The Bengal Sultanate had a circle of vassal states in the Indian subcontinent, including parts of Odisha in the southwest, Arakan in the southeast, and Tripura in the east.
Harikela was an ancient kingdom located in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. Originally, it was an independent township of ancient eastern Bengal, which had a continuous existence of about 500 years. The state of Harikal consisted of present-day Sylhet and Chittagong divisions of Bangladesh, as well as parts of the Tripura state of India.
Srichandra was the second and most influential ruler of the Chandra Dynasty in eastern Bengal.
Malik Andil Habshi, better known by his regnal title Saifuddin Firoze Shah was the second "Habshi" ruler of the Bengal Sultanate's Habshi dynasty. He was a former army commander of the Sultanate's Ilyas Shahi dynasty.
The Varendra rebellion was the revolt against King Mahipala II led by Kaivarta chieftain Divya (Dibyak), a feudal lord of Northern Bengal. The Kaivartas were able to capture Varendra by this rebellion. The revolt might have been the first peasant revolt in Indian history. However, the first phase of the revolt would more appropriately be described as a rebellion of feudal lords (samantas), who would have mobilized the peasants, and the last phase of the revolt was a spontaneous mass uprising.
Arakan is the historical geographical name of Rakhine State, Myanmar. The region was called Arakan for centuries until the Burmese military junta changed its name in 1989. The people of the region were known as Arakanese.
The Khalji dynasty was the first Muslim dynasty to rule the Bengal region in the Indian subcontinent. The dynasty, which hailed from the Garmsir region of present-day Afghanistan, was founded in 1204 by Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji, a Muslim Turko-Afghan general of the Ghurid Empire. The Khaljis initially pledged allegiance to Sultan Muhammad of Ghor until his death in 1206, though their rule in Bengal was mostly independent. Under the rule of Iwaz Khalji, Bengal experienced major developments such as its first naval force, flood defence systems and linkage with the Grand Trunk Road. The dynasty was based in the city of Lakhnauti in northern Bengal, later expanding eastwards and southwards. Nasiruddin Mahmud, the son of Mamluk sultan Iltutmish of Delhi managed to conquer Bengal in 1227; although the Khaljis briefly reasserted their independence, they surrendered to the Mamluks in 1231, who replaced them with a series of regional governors.
Chandrapur University or Srichandrapur University is a 10th century educational institution and monastery. Srichandra, a ruler of the Chandra dynasty, established it in 935 CE on 20,000 acres (8,100 ha). Efforts by the Archaeological Department of Bangladesh to locate the original ruins are ongoing.
The Pahcimbhag copperplate inscription, Srichandra Paschimbhag copperplate inscription or simply Chandrapur inscription is a copperplate inscription issued in 935 by Srichandra, the second king of the Chandra Dynasty of south-east Bengal. The inscription was discovered in the village of Paschimbhag, Moulvibazar district. It is one of 12 known copperplate inscriptions by Chandra Dynasty kings. The inscription is mainly a deed of donation, in which Srichandra grants lands for many Brahmins and for nine monasteries in the Sylhet region, which formed Chandrapur University, named after Srichandra. It includes a detailed description of the Chandra kingdom and the Palas and Kamboja Pala rulers of Bengal and refers to the society of pre-medieval Bengal.
The Varman Dynasty was a Hindu Yadava dynasty of Indian subcontinent which ruled Bengal, and later East Bihar (Anga). The Varmans established their supremacy after replacing the Chandra Dynasty. Their capital was at Bikrampur in present-day Munshiganj District of Bangladesh.
