The University of Dhaka (Bengali: ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় [ɖʰaka biʃʃobid̪d̪alɔe̯], also known as Dhaka University or simply DU), is the oldest university in modern Bangladesh. Established during the British Raj in 1921, it has been a significant contributor to the modern history of Bangladesh. After the Partition of India, it became the focal point of progressive and democratic movements in Pakistan. Its students and teachers played a central role in the rise of Bengali nationalism and the independence of Bangladesh.

The university's distinguished alumni include Fazlur Rahman Khan (pioneer of modern structural engineering), Muhammad Yunus (winner of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize, pioneer of Microcredit), Muhammad Shahidullah (Famous educator, philologist and linguist), Rehman Sobhan (social democratic economist), Mohammad Ataul Karim (physicist), Abul Fateh (one of the founding fathers of South Asian diplomacy), Buddhadeb Bose (20th century Bengali poet) and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (the founding father of Bangladesh). It also enjoyed associations with Satyendra Nath Bose, Vijayaraghavan and Kazi Nazrul Islam.

Dhaka (Bengali: ঢাকা, pronounced: [ˈd̪ʱaka]; English /dɑːkə/, /dækə/; formerly spelled as Dacca) is the capital of Bangladesh. It is the principal city of Dhaka District and Dhaka Division. Dhaka is one of world's most populated cities, with a population of about 7 million people. The Greater Dhaka Area covers a population of 17 million people. The historic quarter of Dhaka stands on the east bank of the Buriganga River. It is located in the central part of the Bengal delta. Bengali Muslims make up the majority of the population, followed by Bengali Hindu, Bengali Buddhist, Bengali Christian and Bahai Faith communities.

The city's name was Jahangir Nagar (City of Jahangir) in the 17th century. It was the Mughal capital of Bengal for 75 years; and flourished in trade and culture as a cosmopolitan commercial capital and the hub of the worldwide muslin and silk trade. The city hosted two major caravansaries of the subcontinent: the Bara Katra and Choto Katra, located on the riverfront of the Buriganga. The Mughals decorated the city with well-laid out gardens, tombs, mosques, palaces and forts. Dhaka became known as the City of Mosques in Bengal. It was also described as the Venice of the East. The old city was home to various Eurasian merchant groups. At the height of its medieval glory, Dhaka was regarded as one of the wealthiest and most prosperous cities in the world. It was central to the economy of Mughal Bengal, which generated 50% of Mughal GDP.

Dhaka is the capital city of Bangladesh.

Dhaka may also refer to:

Places

Bangladesh

Pakistan

India

Other

See also

Dhaka is a gotra (clan) of Jats found in Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh states of India.They are mainly found in Hanumangarh , Ganganagar , Barmer, Jodhpur, Sikar, Jhunjhunu, Churu districts of Rajasthan.

Origin

According to Ompal Singh Tugania's book based on the records of Bhats which is a community of bards and genealogists in North India, Dhaka's are one of few Jat clans having origin from Chauhans.According to Dr Naval Viyogi In a period of third century AD many hoards of Taka coins have been recovered from Nagpur region, which were introduced by the Taka Nagas of North-West. Linguists have informed that these Taka people reached and ruled in the region of Dhaka of Bangla Desh, since the word ' Dhaka' is a linguistic (Pali) variation of Taka. In the second act of Sanskrit play mrcchakatika a dialect has been used by author, known as Takki. Taki, Takka or Dhakka is the Prakrit dialect which has been called by Pischal language of East Bengal spoken around Dhaka, but there is another interpretation too, since word 'Ta' has been changed to 'Dha' due to the tendency of change from Sanskrit to Pali or Prakrit as cited above, hence the original word is Taka from which Dhaka has been derived.