Portal:Bangladesh/Selected article archive/2008
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editNote: This is a duplicate of /Selected article/5
Dhaka (/ˈdɑːkə/ DAH-kə or /ˈdækə/ DAK-ə; Bengali: ঢাকা, romanized: Ḍhākā, pronounced [ˈɖʱaka] ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh. It is the ninth-largest and seventh-most densely populated city in the world with a density of 23,234 people per square kilometer within a total area of approximately 300 square kilometers. Dhaka is a megacity, and has a population of 10.2 million residents as of 2024, and a population of over 23.9 million residents in Dhaka Metropolitan Area. It is widely considered to be the most densely populated built-up urban area in the world. Dhaka is the most important cultural, economic, and scientific hub of Eastern South Asia, as well as a major Muslim-majority city. Dhaka ranks third in South Asia and 39th in the world in terms of GDP. Lying on the Ganges Delta, it is bounded by the Buriganga, Turag, Dhaleshwari and Shitalakshya rivers. Dhaka is also the largest Bengali-speaking city in the world.
The area of Dhaka has been inhabited since the first millennium. An early modern city developed from the 17th century as a provincial capital and commercial centre of the Mughal Empire. Dhaka was the capital of a proto-industrialized Mughal Bengal for 75 years (1608–39 and 1660–1704). It was the hub of the muslin trade in Bengal and one of the most prosperous cities in the world. The Mughal city was named Jahangirnagar (The City of Jahangir) in honour of the erstwhile ruling emperor Jahangir. The city's wealthy Mughal elite included princes and the sons of Mughal emperors. The pre-colonial city's glory peaked in the 17th and 18th centuries, when it was home to merchants from across Eurasia. The Port of Dhaka was a major trading post for both riverine and seaborne trade. The Mughals decorated the city with well-laid gardens, tombs, mosques, palaces, and forts. The city was once called the Venice of the East.
Under British rule, the city saw the introduction of electricity, railways, cinemas, Western-style universities and colleges and a modern water supply. It became an important administrative and educational centre in the British Raj, as the capital of Eastern Bengal and Assam province after 1905. In 1947, after the end of British rule, the city became the administrative capital of East Pakistan. It was declared the legislative capital of Pakistan in 1962. In 1971, following the Liberation War, it became the capital of independent Bangladesh. In 2008, Dhaka celebrated 400 years as a municipal city.
A beta-global city, Dhaka is the centre of political, economic and cultural life in Bangladesh. It is the seat of the Government of Bangladesh, many Bangladeshi companies, and leading Bangladeshi educational, scientific, research, and cultural organizations. Since its establishment as a modern capital city, the population, area and social and economic diversity of Dhaka have grown tremendously. The city is now one of the most densely industrialized regions in the country. The city accounts for 35% of Bangladesh's economy. The Dhaka Stock Exchange has over 750 listed companies. Dhaka hosts over 50 diplomatic missions; as well as the headquarters of BIMSTEC, CIRDAP, and the International Jute Study Group. Dhaka has a renowned culinary heritage. The city's culture is known for its rickshaws, Kachi Biryani, art festivals, street food, and religious diversity. Dhaka's most prominent architectural landmark is the modernist Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban; while it has a heritage of 2000 buildings from the Mughal and British periods. The city is associated with two Nobel laureates. Dhaka's annual Bengali New Year parade, its Jamdani sari, and its rickshaw art have been recognized by UNESCO as the intangible cultural heritage of humanity. The city has produced many writers and poets in several languages, especially in Bengali and English. (Full article...) (more...)
Portal:Bangladesh/Selected article archive/November 2008
Note: Duplicate of /Selected article/4
Shahbagh (also Shahbaugh or Shahbag, Bengali: শাহবাগ, romanized: Shāhbāg, IPA: [ˈɕaɦ.baɡ]) is a major neighbourhood and a police precinct or thana in Dhaka, the capital and largest city of Bangladesh. It is also a major public transport hub. It is a junction between two contrasting sections of the city—Old Dhaka and New Dhaka—which lie, respectively, to its south and north. Developed in the 17th century during Mughal rule in Bengal, when Old Dhaka was the provincial capital and a centre of the flourishing muslin industry, it came to neglect and decay in early 19th century. In the mid-19th century, the Shahbagh area was developed as New Dhaka became a provincial centre of the British Raj, ending a century of decline brought on by the passing of Mughal rule.
Shahbagh is the location of the nation's leading educational and public institutions, including the University of Dhaka, the oldest and largest public university in Bangladesh, Dhaka Medical College, the largest medical college in the country, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), and the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, the largest public university for technological studies in the country. Shahbagh hosts many street markets and bazaars. Since Bangladesh achieved independence in 1971, the Shahbagh area has become a venue for celebrating major festivals, such as the Bengali New Year and Basanta Utsab.
Shahbagh's numerous ponds, palaces and gardens have inspired the work of writers, singers, and poets. With Dhaka University at its centre, the thana has been the origin of major political movements in the nation's 20th century history, including the All India Muslim Education Conference in 1905, which led to the All India Muslim League. In 1947, to both the partition of India and the creation of Pakistan; the Bengali Language Movement in 1952, which led to the recognition of Bengali as an official language of Pakistan; and the Six point movement in 1966, which led to the nation's independence. It was here, on 7 March 1971, that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman delivered a historic speech calling for the independence of Bangladesh from Pakistan, and here too, later that year, that the Pakistani Army surrendered in the Liberation War of Bangladesh. The area has since become a staging ground for protests by students and other groups. It was the site of public protests by around 30,000 civilians on 8 February 2013, against a lenient ruling against war criminals. (Full article...) (more...)
Note: Duplicate of /Selected article/3
Grameen Bank (Bengali: গ্রামীণ ব্যাংক) is a microfinance specialized community development bank founded in Bangladesh. It provides small loans (known as microcredit or "grameencredit") to the impoverished without requiring collateral.
Grameen Bank is a statutory public authority. It is originated in 1976, in the work of Muhammad Yunus, a professor at the University of Chittagong, who launched a research project to study how to design a credit delivery system to provide banking services to the rural poor. In October 1983 the Grameen Bank was authorized by national legislation to operate as an independent bank.
The bank grew significantly between 2003 and 2007. As of January 2022, the total borrowers of the bank number nearly 9.5 million, and 96.81% of those are women. In 1998 the Bank's "Low-cost Housing Program" won a World Habitat Award. In 2006, the bank and its founder, Muhammad Yunus, were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
The bank's success has inspired similar projects in more than 64 countries around the world, including a World Bank initiative to finance Grameen-type lending systems. (Full article...) (more...)
Note: Duplicate of /Selected article/10
Universities in Bangladesh are mainly categorized into three different types — Public (government owned and subsidized), Private (private sector owned universities), and International (operated and funded by international organizations such as the Organisation of the Islamic Conference).
University of Dhaka, established in 1921, is the oldest university of the country. Bangladeshi universities are affiliated with the University Grants Commission (UGC), a commission created according to the Presidential Order (P.O. No 10 of 1973) of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh.
The list of universities in Bangladesh is classified by the three types universities further segmented according to their locations. The locations are given according to divisions, the topmost administrative unit in Bangladesh. It is notable that, out of the 6 divisions Dhaka Division houses 57 out of a total of 83, of them 51 in Dhaka, the capital city. Most universities focus on general studies, meaning a diverse mix of curriculum, business studies, engineering or technology. Seven universities have specialized curricula focused on Islamic studies (2), agricultural sciences (2), medical sciences (1), Veterinary (1)and women's studies (1). Along with the universities their short names, mostly acronyms, are provided as nicks. (more)
Note: This is a duplicate of /Selected article/9
The 1970 Bhola cyclone was a devastating tropical cyclone that struck East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and India's West Bengal on November 12, 1970. It was the deadliest tropical cyclone ever recorded, and one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern times. Up to 500,000 people lost their lives in the storm, primarily as a result of the storm surge that flooded much of the low-lying islands of the Ganges Delta. This cyclone was the sixth cyclonic storm of the 1970 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, and was also the most powerful, reaching a strength equivalent to a Category 3 hurricane.
The cyclone formed over the central Bay of Bengal on November 8 and travelled north, intensifying as it did so. It reached its peak with winds of 185 km/h (115 mph) on November 12, and made landfall on the coast of East Pakistan that night. The storm surge devastated many of the offshore islands, wiping out villages and destroying crops throughout the region. The city of Thana, Tazumuddin, was the most severely affected, with over 45% of the population of 167,000 killed by the storm.
The Pakistani government was severely criticized for its handling of the relief operations following the storm, both by local political leaders in East Pakistan and in the international media. The opposition Awami League gained a landslide victory in the province, and continuing unrest between East Pakistan and the central government triggered the Bangladesh Liberation War, which concluded with the creation of the state of Bangladesh. (more)
Note: Duplicate of /Selected article/2
The Bengali language movement was a political movement in former East Bengal in 1952, advocating the recognition of the Bengali language as a co-lingua franca of the then-Dominion of Pakistan to allow its use in government affairs, the continuation of its use as a medium of education, its use in media, currency and stamps, and to maintain its writing in the Bengali script.
When the Dominion of Pakistan was formed after the separation of the Indian subcontinent in 1947, when the British left, it was composed of various ethnic and linguistic groups, with the geographically non-contiguous East Bengal province having a mainly ethnic Bengali population. In 1948, the Government of the Dominion of Pakistan ordained as part of Islamization of East Pakistan or East Bengal that Urdu will be the sole federal language, alternately Bengali writing in the Perso-Arabic script or Roman script (Romanisation of Bengali) or Arabic as the state language of the whole of Pakistan was also proposed, sparking extensive protests among the Bengali-speaking majority of East Bengal. Facing rising sectarian tensions and mass discontent with the new law, the government outlawed public meetings and rallies. The students of the University of Dhaka and other political activists defied the law and organised a protest on 21 February 1952. The movement reached its climax when police killed student demonstrators on that day. The deaths provoked widespread civil unrest. After years of conflict, the central government relented and granted official status to the Bengali language in 1956.
The Language Movement catalysed the assertion of Bengali national identity in East Bengal and later East Pakistan, and became a forerunner to Bengali nationalist movements, including the 6-Point Movement and subsequently the Bangladesh Liberation War and the Bengali Language Implementation Act, 1987. In Bangladesh, 21 February (Ekushey February) is observed as Language Movement Day, a national holiday. The Shaheed Minar monument was constructed near Dhaka Medical College in memory of the movement and its victims. On 17 September 1999, UNESCO declared 21 February as International Mother Language Day, in tribute to the Language Movement and the ethnolinguistic rights of people around the world. (Full article...) (more...)
The University of Rajshahi, also known as Rajshahi University or RU (Bengali: রাজশাহী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়), is a public research university located in Motihar, Rajshahi, Bangladesh. It is the second oldest and third largest university in Bangladesh. The university's 59 departments are organized into 12 faculties. It is one of the four autonomous university by the act (1973) of Bangladesh. (Full article...) (more...)
Sitakunda (Bengali: সীতাকুণ্ড Shitakunḍo IPA: /ʃit̪akunɖo/) is an upazila, or administrative unit, in the Chittagong District of Bangladesh. Sitakunda is one of the oldest sites of human habitation in Bangladesh. It is also the home of the country's first eco-park, as well as alternative energy projects, specifically wind energy and geothermal power.
Ecocomic development in Sitakunda is largely driven by the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway and the railway. Though Sitakunda is predominantly an agricultural area, it also has the largest ship breaking industry in the world. The industry has been accused of neglecting workers' rights, especially concerning work safety practices and child labor. It has also been accused of harming the environment, particularly by causing soil contamination. Sitakunda's ecosystems are further threatened by deforestation, over-fishing, and groundwater contamination. The upazila is also susceptible to natural hazards such as earthquakes, cyclones, and storm surges. It lies on one of the most active seismic faults in Bangladesh, the Sitakunda–Teknaf fault.
Sitakunda is renowned for its numerous Islamic, Hindu and Buddhist shrines. It has 280 mosques, 8 mazars, 49 Hindu temples, 3 ashrams, and 3 Buddhist temples. Among its notable temples are the Chandranath Temple (a Shakti Peetha or holy pilgrimage site), Vidarshanaram Vihara (founded by the scholar Prajnalok Mahasthavir), and the Hammadyar Mosque (founded by Sultan Ghiyasuddin Mahmud Shah). These pilgrimage sites along with the hill range and the eco-park are the attractions of Sitakunda as a tourist destination. Despite its diverse population, the area has seen communal strife, including attacks on places of worship. There have been reports of activity by the Islamic militant group Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh since the early 2000s. (more)
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Bangladeshi cricket team for at least one One Day International. Bangladesh's greatest ODI victory was beating Australia on 18 June 2005. Other teams they have beaten are Pakistan and Scotland (both in the 1999 Cricket World Cup), Kenya in 1998/9, Zimbabwe (once in 2003/4, three times in 2004/5), India (once in 2004/5, once in the 2007 Cricket World Cup), Sri Lanka (once in 2005/6), South Africa (once in the 2007 Cricket World Cup) and Ireland (thrice in 2007/08).
| Bangladeshi ODI captains | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Name | Played | Won | Tied | Lost | No result |
| 1 | Gazi Ashraf | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 2 | Minhajul Abedin | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 3 | Akram Khan | 15 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| 4 | Aminul Islam | 16 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| 5 | Naimur Rahman | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 6 | Khaled Mashud | 24 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 2 |
| 7 | Khaled Mahmud | 15 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| 8 | Habibul Bashar | 33 | 8 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| 9 | Rajin Saleh | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 10 | Mohammad Ashraful | 12 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Grand total | 172 | 39 | 0 | 131 | 2 | |
Note: This is a duplicate of /Selected article/7
Bengali, also known by its endonym Bangla (বাংলা, Bāṅlā, [ˈbaŋla] ), is a classical Indo-Aryan language from the Indo-European language family native to the Bengal region of South Asia. With over 237 million native speakers and another 41 million as second language speakers as of 2024, Bengali is the fifth most spoken native language and the seventh most spoken language by the total number of speakers in the world. It is the fifth most spoken Indo-European language.
Bengali is the official, national, and most widely spoken language of Bangladesh, with 98% of Bangladeshis using Bengali as their first language. It is the second-most widely spoken language in India. It is the official language of the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura and the Barak Valley region of the state of Assam. It is also the second official language of the Indian state of Jharkhand since September 2011. It is the most widely spoken language in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal, and is spoken by significant populations in other states including Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha and Uttarakhand. Bengali is also spoken by the Bengali diasporas (Bangladeshi diaspora and Indian Bengalis) across Europe, North America, the Middle East and other regions.
Bengali was accorded the status of a classical language by the government of India on 3 October 2024. It is the second most spoken and fourth fastest growing language in India, following Hindi in the first place, Kashmiri in the second place, and Meitei (Manipuri), along with Gujarati, in the third place, according to the 2011 census of India.
Bengali has developed over more than 1,400 years. Bengali literature, with its millennium-old literary history, was extensively developed during the Bengali Renaissance and is one of the most prolific and diverse literary traditions in Asia. The Bengali language movement from 1948 to 1956 demanding that Bengali be an official language of Pakistan fostered Bengali nationalism in East Bengal leading to the emergence of Bangladesh in 1971. In 1999, UNESCO recognised 21 February as International Mother Language Day in recognition of the language movement. (Full article...) (more...)
Portal:Bangladesh/Selected article archive/January 2008