Pyarimohan Acharya was a 19th-century historian, educationist, and public intellectual from Cuttack in the modern-day state of Odisha, India. He is known for his Odisara Itihasa (History of Odisha) which was published in 1879. Pyarimohan wrote his history in response to an advertisement by the colonial government of the time looking for a textbook for use in schools. While the book was accepted by the government, its publication caused a controversy and was consequently not inducted into the school syllabus. Odisara Itihasa nevertheless acquired prominence as it was the first history textbook to be written by a native author. Apart from writing he also established P.M Academy School in 1875 in cuttack. It was one of the oldest school in odisha. [1]
Odisha, formerly Orissa, is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the eighth-largest state by area, and the eleventh-largest by population, with over 41 million inhabitants. The state also has the third-largest population of Scheduled Tribes in India. It neighbours the states of Jharkhand and West Bengal to the north, Chhattisgarh to the west, and Andhra Pradesh to the south. Odisha has a coastline of 485 kilometres (301 mi) along the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean. The region is also known as Utkaḷa and is mentioned by this name in India's national anthem, Jana Gana Mana. The language of Odisha is Odia, which is one of the Classical languages of India.
Bhubaneswar is the capital and second largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. It is located in the Khordha district. The region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as Chakra Khetra and Ekamra Khetra. Bhubaneswar is dubbed the "Temple City", a nickname earned because of many temples which are standing there.
Cuttack, is the former capital and the largest city in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the headquarters of the Cuttack district. The name of the city is an anglicised form of the Odia and Sanskrit name Kataka which literally means The Fort, a reference to the ancient Barabati Fort around which the city initially developed. Cuttack is known as the Millennium City as well as the Silver City due to its history of 1000 years and famous silver filigree works. The Orissa High Court is located there and the city is judiciary capital of Odisha. It is the commercial capital of Odisha which hosts many trading and business houses in and around the city. Cuttack is famous for its Durga Puja which is one of the most important festivals of Odisha. Being the favourite destination of poets and artists, it is also the cultural capital of Odisha. Due to its beauty, the term Kataka Nagara Dhabala Tagara is coined for it. The city is categorised as a Tier-II city as per the ranking system used by Government of India.
Cuttack district is one of the 30 districts of Odisha state in India. It is located in the coastal part of the state and its administrative headquarters are located in the city of Cuttack. As of 2011 Census, after Ganjam, it is the second most populous district of Odisha, with a population of 2,624,470. The name is an anglicized form of Kataka or Katak meaning Fort – referring to the Barabati Fort. The district is bisected by the river Mahanadi and its numerous distributaries and occupies a large portion of the river's delta. It is bounded by the Angul, Dhenkanal, Nayagarh and Khurda districts to the west while its southern and eastern boundaries touch Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara and Jajpur districts.
Sri Kurmam also known as Srikurmu or Srikurmais a village near Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, India. Srikurmam village is situated at a distance of 14.5 km to the South-east of Srikakulam town. It is in the Gara mandal of Srikakulam district. The village was named after the Srikurmam temple dedicated to Kurma avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu, which was re-established by Eastern Ganga Dynasty King Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva.
John William Beames was a civil servant and author in British India. He served in the Punjab from March 1859 to late 1861, and in Bengal from December 1861 until the conclusion of his service in 1893. He was also a scholar of Indian history, literature and linguistics. His great work was a comparative grammar of Indo-Aryan languages, published in three volumes in 1872–1879. When he retired from the Indian Civil Service in March 1893, he had gained extensive knowledge of Indian life, and in 1896 wrote an account of his career, first published in 1961 as Memoirs of a Bengal Civilian.
Kalindi Charan Panigrahi was a noted Odia poet, novelist, story writer, dramatist, and essayist. He is famous for his magnum opus Matira Manisha. He has been awarded Padma Bhushan and Sahitya Akademi award for contribution to Odia literature.
Pyarimohan Mohapatra was a politician from the Odisha Jana Morcha as a member of the Parliament of India representing Odisha in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament. He was the political advisor of Naveen Patnaik. He started his career as an IAS officer and was principal secretary to Biju Patnaik. He was considered as the mastermind and the proxy leader of the Biju Janata Dal.
Ravenshaw University, formerly known as Ravenshaw College, is a co-educational state university situated in Cuttack, Odisha on the eastern coast of India. Founded as Ravenshaw College in 1868, the institution became a university in 2006. The university has nine schools, thirty three academic departments and a student enrolment of nearly 8,000. It is one of the oldest educational institutes in the country and its history is synonymous with the history of modern Odisha.
Krishna Chandra Panigrahi, often referred to as K.C. Panigrahi, was a notable Indian historian, archaeologist and literary expert from Odisha.
The Maritime history of Odisha, known as Kalinga in ancient times, started much before 800 BC according to early sources. The people of this region of eastern India along the coast of the Bay of Bengal sailed up and down the Indian coast, and travelled to Indo China and throughout Maritime Southeast Asia, introducing elements of their culture to the people with whom they traded. The 6th century Manjusrimulakalpa mentions the Bay of Bengal as Kalingodra and in ancient Classical India, the Bay of Bengal was known as Kalinga Sagar, indicating the importance of Kalinga in the maritime trade. The old traditions are still celebrated in the annual Boita Bandana festival including its major celebration at Cuttack on the banks of Mahanadi river called Bali Jatra, and are held for seven days in October-November at various coastal districts, most famous at Cuttack though.
Madhusudan Das was an Indian lawyer and social reformer, who founded Utkal Sammilani in 1903 to campaign for the unification of Odisha along with its social and industrial development. He was one of the prominent figure, helping in the creation of Orissa Province, which was established on 1 April 1936. He was also the first graduate and advocate of Orissa. He is also known as Kulabruddha, Madhu Babu, and Utkal Gouraba. In Odisha, his birthday is celebrated as the Lawyers' Day on 28 April.
Amos Sutton was an English General Baptist missionary to Odisha, India, and hymn writer. He published the first English grammar of the Odia language (1831), a History (1839), and Geography (1840), then the first dictionary of Odia (1841–43), as well as a translation of the Bible (1842–45). He also composed a hymn to the tune of "Auld Lang Syne": "Hail, sweetest, dearest tie, that binds" and wrote a History of the mission to Orissa: the site of the temple of Juggernaut (1835).
Mayadhar Mansingh was an Indian poet and writer who wrote in Odia. He received the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award in India, in 1967.
The Paika Rebellion, also called the Paika Bidroha. It was an early armed rebellion against Company rule in India in 1817. The Paikas rose in rebellion under their leader Bakshi Jagabandhu and projecting Lord Jagannath as the symbol of Odia unity, the rebellion quickly spread across most of Odisha before being put down by the Company's forces.
Binod Kanungo (1912–1990) was an Odia author, freedom fighter, Gandhian, educator, social reformer and compiler of the Gyana Mandala, which is the greatest encyclopaedia in the Odia language. He also won the Odisha Sahitya Akademi Award for his travelogue Runa Parishodha (1983). He was also a veteran freedom fighter and notable educationist. He was awarded with India's fourth highest civilian honour "Padmashree". He died on 22 June 1990.
Nikhilanand Panigrahy is a popular Indian Science writer and columnist from Odisha. He has been contributing regularly to a variety of prominent Oriya news papers and magazines since 1973.
Pramananda Acharya (1893–1971) was an Indian archaeologist known for his notable archaeological research on the history of Odisha. He was honoured by the Government of India in 1964, with the award of Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award for his services to the nation.
Natabara Samantaray was an Odia writer and literary critic. Some of his known literary historical works are Odia Sahityara Itihasa (1803-1920), Adhunika Odia Sahityara Bhittibhumi and Vyasakabi Fakirmohan. His critical review included works of many noted Odia authors like Fakir Mohan Senapati and Radhanath Ray. His historical research includes all of the major Odia writings published during 1803 until 1920 which accentuate the British Raj and its impact in coastal Odisha, and a critical analysis of the modern Odia literature.
Acharya Harihar was a freedom fighter, teacher and social worker born to a Brahmin family in Sakhigopal in Puri District of Odisha. As a teacher of Satyabadi Bana Bidyalaya, he actively and successfully participated in the literary work of Satyabadi. He composed a translation of the Bhagavad Gita in Odia and children's grammar book in Odia language.