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:This article is on Calcutta/Kolkata, the city. For the gambling term, see Calcutta
Calcutta is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Its original name was Kalikata and is, in higher literature, still referred to as such. Speakers of the region's native language of Bengali have always known it as Kolkata (কলকাতা) and there is consequently no standardized phonetic spelling of 'Calcutta' in written Bengali. It was officially changed to Kolkata as of 2001, though the British appelation is still often used in the rest of the world. It has two well-known nicknames: City of Joy and City of Palaces. Sometimes, it is also referred to as the "Michhil Nagari" (িমিছল নগরী), or the City of Processions and "City of Bandhs" or City of Strikes.
1 History
1.1 Name and origins
On January 1, 2001, the name was officially changed to Kolkata. While Calcutta was the previous English and official name, it has always been known as Kolkata in Bengali. The rent-roll of King Akbar, a sixteenth-century Mughal king, and the work of a Bengali poet, Bipradaas, of the late fifteenth century, both make mention of the city's early name being Kalikata, from which Kolkata/Calcutta are said to derive (1).
There is lot of discussion on how the city got its name. There are different views on the issue. The more popular one is that the city got its name from the Hindu goddess Kali. See also: Calicut
The city High Court recently gave a ruling that Job Charnock, a Briton earlier believed to be the founder of the city is not the founder of the city and Calcutta has no birthday. According to the Court, the city owes its genesis in the Maurya and Gupta period and it was an established trading post long before the Slave Dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughals, the Portuguese, the French or the British established a modern township there. References to the existence of an ancient riverine port (named Kalikata) exist in the travel journals of Chinese scholars and Persian merchants dating from centuries BCE. The Hindu epic Mahabharata, lists the King of “Vanga”, as having fought alongside the Kauravas in the great war.
In spite of the High Court ruling, it is a fact that one of the earliest modern settlement in the city took place when in 1690, Job Charnock, an agent of the East India CompanyEast India Company was the name of several historic European companies chartered with the monopoly of trading with Asia for their respective countries. The British East India Company, founded in 1600 The Danish East India Company, founded in 1670 The Dutc chose the place for a trade settlement. In 1698Events January 4 Palace of Whitehall in London is destroyed by fire. June 19 Volcano of Carguarazon erupts in the Andes and causes a rain of fish August 25 Peter the Great arrives back to Moscow general Gordon has already crushed the streltsy rebellion 34, the East India Company bought three villages (Sutanuti, Kolikata and Gobindapur) from a local landlord. The next year, the company began developing the city as a Presidency CityCalcutta , Bombay and Madras were the three Presidency cities in British India. The jurisdiction areas were known as Bengal Presidency, Bombay Presidency and Madras Presidency respectively. These were under direct control of the East India Company from th. In 1727Events June 11 George, Prince of Wales becomes King George II of Great Britain. November 18 Earthquake in Tazriz, Persia about 77. 000 dead Last execution for witchcraft in Scotland First Amish move to America The Royal Bank of Scotland is founded by roya, as per the order of King George I, a civil court was setup in the city. The Calcutta municipal corporation (recently renamed as 'Kolkata Municipal Corporation') was formed and the city had its first mayorA mayor ( Latin major "better") is the chief executive official of a city, town, or village. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs as to the powers and responsibilities of a mayor, as well as the means of becoming mayor. The French. In 1756Events March 17 St. Patrick's Day is celebrated in New York City for the first time (at the Crown and Thistle Tavern). May 15 Seven Years' War: The war begins when England declares war on France. August 29 Frederick the Great attacks Saxony October 1 Seve, the Nawab of Bengal , Siraj Ud DaulahSiraj-ud-daulah acquired much notoriety both among the British and the Indians. He succeeded as the Nawab of Bengal in April 1756 at the age of 27. He resented British presence in Bengal, and managed to capture Calcutta from the British in June 1756. attacked Calcutta and conquered it. He renamed the city "Alinagar". He lost control of the city within a year and Calcutta went back to the British. In 1772, Calcutta became the capital of British India, a decision made by Governor General Warren Hastings. In 1779, Hickey's Bengal Gazette or the Calcutta General Advertiser became the first newspaper in India to be printed from Calcutta.
