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The Indian renaming controversy is a result of a movement^{[citation needed]} to change the names of Indian cities from the names used during the British imperial period, back to regional or Indian names. Beginning in 2006, the ruling Congress Party in India pushed through the renaming of Indian cities to their "pre-colonial" names and pronunciations. On December 11, 2005, chief minister Dharam Singh had announced that the Karnataka state government accepted Jnanpith awardee U R Ananthamurthy's suggestion to rename ten cities to their Kannada names. The new names became effective from November 1, 2006. In most of these cases the 'new' names are simply the names by which these cities have always been known in the native language. Thus, local Kannada language newspapers announced that "Bengaluru (Bangalore) is to be renamed as Bengaluru". The two cited reasons behind renamings were to remove an imperial name, or to change pronunciation and spelling to fit local custom. Opponents point to the multi-cultural nature of India as well as that nation's changing role in the global economy. Other major cities that have been renamed include Mumbai (formerly Bombay), Chennai (ex Madras), and Kolkata (ex Calcutta). Image File history File links Circle-question-red. ... Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... The Indian National Congress (also known as the Congress Party) is the largest subscription-based organisation in the world. ... December 11 is the 345th day of the year (346th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... A Chief Minister is the elected Head of Government of a state of India, a territory of Australia or a British overseas territory that has attained self-government. ... N. Dharam Singh (born on December 25, 1936), is the 17th Chief Minister of Karnataka state in India. ... Karnātakā   (Kannada: ಕನಾ೯ಟಕ) (IPA: ) is one of the four southern states of India. ... Jnanpith Award (pronounced Gyanpeeth Award) is the highest literary honour presented by the Government of India. ... U. R. Ananthamurthy was a great thinker and writer of the Kannada language. ... Kannada - aptly described as sirigannada (known to few as Kanarese) is one of the oldest Dravidian languages and is spoken in its various dialects by roughly 45 million people. ... November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 60 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... , “Bombay” redirects here. ... This article or section should be merged with Mumbai Mumbai (previously known as Bombay) is the worlds most populous conurbation, and is the sixth most populous agglomeration in the world. ... , “Madras” redirects here. ... Madras refers to: the Indian city of Chennai, formerly known as Madras, the former Indian state, now known as Tamil Nadu (Plural of Madra): Ancient people of Iranian affinites, who lived in northwest Panjab in the Uttarapatha division of ancient India. ... , “Calcutta” redirects here. ... This article is on Calcutta/Kolkata, the city. ...

Controversy

While local politicians and some historians praised the move, others, particularly in the business community of the affected cities, felt that it was a step backward in building a global reputation. ^[1] Nowhere was the controversy greater than in Bangalore, renamed as Bengaluru. The reason was that Bangalore had become, in the past 15 years, home to more than 1,500 information technology companies and was nicknamed "India's Silicon Valley". So many American companies had moved their operations to the Indian city that a worker whose job was lost to outsourcing called it being "Bangalored". Others feel that Bengaluru is too provincial, when Bangalore is recognized worldwide as synonymous with high tech. Critics across India complained of the cost of changing signage, pointing to better uses for money, such as the improvement of urban infrastructure.

Earlier, Bombay (a pronunciation of Portugese origin) had successfully been renamed Mumbai. The new changes concentrated on eliminating the pronunciations from the days of British India, and were carried out in response to the demands of the Hindu Nationalist Shiv Sena party. 'Mumbai' has long been the name of the city in Marathi and Gujarati, whilst Hindi-speakers called it Bambai.^[2] However, some argue that as the renaming was part of the Shiv Sena's Bhumiputra (son of the soil) policy, it is an attempt to erase evidence of the city's cosmopolitanism and multi-lingual character.^[3] This article or section should be merged with Mumbai Mumbai (previously known as Bombay) is the worlds most populous conurbation, and is the sixth most populous agglomeration in the world. ... , “Bombay” redirects here. ... Anthem God Save The Queen/King British India, circa 1860 Capital Calcutta (1858-1912), New Delhi (1912-1947) Language(s) Hindi, Urdu, English and many others Government Monarchy Emperor of India  - 1877-1901 Victoria  - 1901-1910 Edward VII  - 1910-1936 George V  - January-December 1936 Edward VIII  - 1936-1947 George... SS election symbol Shiv Sena or शिव सेना (meaning Army of Shiva, referring to Shiva) is a political party in India founded on June 19, 1966 by Bal Thackeray, who is the president of the party. ... Marathi (मराठी ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western India (Maharashtrians). ... Gujarati (ગુજરાતી GujÇŽrātÄ«; also known as Gujerati, Gujarathi, Guzratee, and Guujaratee[3]) is an Indo-Aryan language descending from Sanskrit, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. ... Hindi ( , Devanagari: or , IAST: , IPA: ), an Indo-European language spoken mainly in northern and central India, is the official language of the Union along with English. ...

Usage of new and old names

In many cases the older names continue to be used informally, or survive in the names of universities and other institutions. The Bombay High Court and Madras High Court were named after the erstwhile Bombay and Madras presidencies, and have not been renamed. The Indian Institutes of Technology at Chennai and Mumbai continue to be called IIT Madras and IIT Bombay. The Bombay High Court was inaugurated on August 14, 1862. ... The Madras High Court, one of the landmarks of the metropolis of Chennai, and believed to be the second largest judicial complex in the world, is located near the Parrys Corner, one of the important central business districts of Chennai. ... Bombay Presidency was a former province of British India. ... Madras Presidency, also known as Madras Province and known officially as Presidency of Fort St. ... Location of IITs The Indian Institutes of Technology, or IITs, are a group of seven autonomous engineering and technology oriented institutes of higher education established and declared as Institutes of National Importance by the Government of India. ... Categories: India-related stubs | Universities and colleges in India | Chennai | Tamil Nadu ... The Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT Bombay)is one of the Indian Institutes of Technology. ...

In certain cases, the effort has extended to buildings and institutions named by the former colonizers. For example, Mumbai's Victoria Terminus railway station has been renamed Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus after the 17th century Maratha Emperor. Many colonial-era street names, particularly in Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai have been changed, but many, particularly in southern cities, continue to have British-era names. , “Bombay” redirects here. ... CST Railway Station Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) (better referred to by its acronym CST) - is a historic railway station on Mumbai suburban railway. ... , Delhi ( , Hindi: , Punjabi: , Urdu: ) sometimes referred to as Dilli, is the second-largest metropolis in India after Mumbai with a population of 13 million. ... , “Calcutta” redirects here. ... , “Bombay” redirects here. ...

Proposed future changes

Other name changes that have been proposed include Ahmedabad to Karnavati, Lucknow to Lakshmanpuri or Lakhanpur, Patna to Pataliputra, Aurangabad to Sambhajinagar, Allahabad to Prayag, Faizabad to Saket and Delhi to Dilli, Hastinapur or Indraprastha^{[citation needed]}. Several of these name changes would reflect a change not from British to Indian, but from Muslim to Hindu^{[citation needed]}. Ahmedabad, Allahabad and Faizabad are all Muslim names; Aurangabad is named for the Muslim Mughal emperor Aurangzeb^{[citation needed]}. , Ahmedabad (Gujarati: , Hindi: अहमदाबाद ) is the largest city in the state of Gujarat and the seventh-largest urban agglomeration in India, with a population of almost 51 lakhs (5. ... The Chhota Imambara in Lucknow , Lucknow ( , Hindi: लखनऊ, Urdu: لکھنؤ, ) is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state of India. ... , Paá¹­nā   (Hindi: पटना) is the capital of the Indian state of Bihar, and one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in the world. ... For other uses, see Aurangabad. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Faizabad (Hindi: फ़ैज़ाबाद, Urdu: فیض آباد) is a city on the banks of river ghaghra Saryu in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. ... , Delhi ( , Hindi: , Punjabi: , Urdu: ) sometimes referred to as Dilli, is the second-largest metropolis in India after Mumbai with a population of 13 million. ... The Mughal Empire (alternative spelling Mogul, which is the origin of the word Mogul) of India was founded by Babur in 1526, when he defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans at the First Battle of Panipat. ... Aurangzeb (Persian: (November 3, 1618 – March 3, 1707), also known as Alamgir I, was the ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1658 until 1707. ...

See also

• List of renamed Indian public places

Ever since the British left India in 1947, many cities, streets, places and buildings throughout India were assigned new Indian names. Certain old names, however, continue to be popular. ...

References

1. ^ City of Boiled Beans prepares to change its name
2. ^ Samuel Sheppard Bombay Place-Names and Street-Names (Bombay: The Times Press) 1917 pp104-5
3. ^ Sujata Patel "Bombay and Mumbai: Identities, Politics and Populism" in Sujata Patel & Jim Masselos (Eds.) Bombay and Mumbai. The City in Transition (Delhi: Oxford University Press) 2003 p4; Suketu Mehta Maximum City. Bombay Lost and Found (New York: Alfred Knopf) 2004 p130

Suketu Mehta is a novelist and journalist based in New York City. ...

External links

• The Politics of Name Changes in India
• Bangalore to become Bengalooru: The politics of renaming cities
• City of Boiled Beans prepares to change its name