Kolar district ) is a district in the state of

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Kolar Kolar or Kolara is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Kolar district. The city is known for its milk production and gold mines. It is also known for Someshwara temple and Kolaramma temple. History The Wes ...

( ಕೋಲಾರ) is the district headquarters. Located in southern Karnataka, it is the state's easternmost district. The district is surrounded by the Bangalore Rural district on the west,

Chikballapur district Chikkaballapura district is a district in the state of Karnataka, India. On 23 August 2007, it was carved out of the pre-existing Kolar district which was the fourth largest district (before bifurcation) of Karnataka by moving the talukas of Ga ...

on the north, the Chittoor district and

Annamayya district Annamayya district is one of the twenty-six districts in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and one of the eight districts in the Rayalaseema region formed from Rajampeta Parliamentary Constituency. Rayachoti is the district administrative h ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

on the east and the

Krishnagiri district Krishnagiri district is one of the 38 districts (a district in the north western part) of the state of Tamil Nadu, in India. This district is carved out from Dharmapuri District by 2004. The municipal town of Krishnagiri is the district head ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

on the south. On 10 September 2007, it was bifurcated to form the new district of Chikballapur. Due to the discovery of the

Kolar Gold Fields Kolar Gold Fields (K.G.F.) is a mining region in K.G.F. taluk (township), Kolar district, Karnataka, India. It is headquartered in Robertsonpet, where employees of Bharat Gold Mines Limited (BGML) and BEML Limited (formerly Bharat Earth Mov ...

, the district has become known as the "Golden Land" of India. People are citing that still

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

is present in

mines abundantly and also exists in

Mulbagal Mulabagilu is a town and taluk headquarters of Mulabagilu taluk in the Kolar district in the state of Karnataka, India. It lies just off the National Highway 75 as the easternmost town of the state and a hill landmark. Etymology "Mulabagilu" (� ...

Bangarapet Bangarapet is a town in Kolar district in the state of Karnataka, India. Bangarapet is the headquarters of the taluk of Bangarapet. Bangarapet was originally called Bowringpet, named after an officer working in the Kolar Gold Fields. This town ...

Malur Malur (Kannada - ಮಾಲೂರು) is a town and taluk headquarters in Kolar district of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is 30 km from Kolar, the district headquarters, and about 25 km from Bangalore. It is accessible from Bangalore by road a ...

Srinivasapura Srinivaspur is a town located in the Kolar district of Karnataka state, India. The latitude 13.33 and longitude 78.22 are the geocoordinate of the Srinivaspur. Bengaluru is the nearby state capital for Srinivaspur town. It is located around 1 ...

taluks of

Kolar District Kolar district ) is a district in the state of Karnataka, India. Kolar ( ಕೋಲಾರ) is the district headquarters. Located in southern Karnataka, it is the state's easternmost district. The district is surrounded by the Bangalore Rural d ...

. However it must have to be confirmed by the state and as well central govt authorities.

History

Kolar, formerly known as Kolahala, Kuvalala and Kolala, was called Kolahalapura during the Middle Ages. In

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

, ''kolahahapura'' means "violent city" and it was the battlefield for the warring

Chalukyas The Chalukya dynasty () was a Classical Indian dynasty that ruled large parts of southern and central India between the 6th and the 12th centuries. During this period, they ruled as three related yet individual dynasties. The earliest dynas ...

in the north and the Cholas in the south. In 1004 AD, the Cholas annexed Kolar until 1116.

Vishnuvardhana Vishnuvardhana (r. 1108–1152 CE) was a king of the Hoysala Empire in what is today the modern state of Karnataka, India. He ascended the Hoysala throne after the death of his elder brother Veera Ballala I in c.1108. Originally a followe ...

(1108-1142) freed Gangavadi from the Cholas and, to commemorate his victory, built the

Chennakesava Temple Chennakeshava Temple, also referred to as Keshava, Kesava or Vijayanarayana Temple of Belur, is a 12th-century Hindu temple in the Hassan district of Karnataka state, India. It was commissioned by King Vishnuvardhana in 1117 CE, on the banks of ...

Belur Belur may refer to: Places * Belur, Karnataka, a town in Karnataka, India ** Belur temple (Chennakeshava temple), Belur * Belur, Tamil Nadu, a town in Salem district, Tamil Nadu, India * Belur, West Bengal, a neighbourhood of Howrah, India ** Be ...

. Kolaramma and Someshwara are notable temples in Kolar. The Kolaramma temple, built in Dravida

Vimana Vimāna are mythological flying palaces or chariots described in Hindu texts and Sanskrit epics. The "Pushpaka Vimana" of Ravana (who took it from Kubera; Rama returned it to Kubera) is the most quoted example of a vimana. Vimanas are also men ...

style during the secondnd century, is dedicated to

Shakti In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and r ...

. It underwent renovations under

Rajendra Chola I Rajendra Chola I (; Middle Tamil: Rājēntira Cōḻaṉ; Classical Sanskrit: Rājēndradēva Cōla; Old Malay: ''Raja Suran''; c. 971 CE – 1044 CE), often referred to as Rajendra the Great, and also known as Gangaikonda Chola (Middle Tamil ...

in the 10th century and the Vijayanagara kings in the 15th century. Someswara Temple is an example of 14th-century

Vijayanagara Vijayanagara () was the capital city of the historic Vijayanagara Empire. Located on the banks of the Tungabhadra River, it spread over a large area and included the modern era Group of Monuments at Hampi site in Vijayanagara district, Bell ...

art. Kolar's early history was compiled by Fred Goodwill, superintendent of the Wesleyan Tamil mission in

Bangalore Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...

and the Kolar Gold Fields, and his studies have been published in a number of journals. Older than Bangalore, Kolar dates back to the second century. The

Western Gangas Western Ganga was an important ruling dynasty of ancient Karnataka in India which lasted from about 350 to 1000 CE. They are known as "Western Gangas" to distinguish them from the Eastern Gangas who in later centuries ruled over Kalinga (mo ...

made Kolar their capital, ruling

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

, Coimbatore, and Salem. During the 13th century Bhavanandi composed '' Nannool'', his treatise on Tamil grammar. Under the Cholas, King Sridhar kora (ruled 970–985) reportedly built the temple for Renuka and founded the city of Kolaahalapuram. Veera Chola,

Vikrama Chola Vikrama Chola, known as Kō Parakēsari Varman, was a 12th-century ruler (''r. c''. 1118–1135 CE''The Cōḷas.'' 62-63.) of the Chola Empire in southern India. He succeeded his father Kulothunga I (''r. c.'' 1070–1120 CE) to the throne.''The ...

and

built stone structures with inscriptions at

Avani Avani is a small village in Mulbagal, Mulabaagilu taluk, Kolara district in Karnataka, India, about ten miles from Kolar Gold Fields. The village is located at 32 km from Kolara, the district centre and 13 km from Mulabaagilu, the Talu ...

, Sitti Bettta and elsewhere. Chola inscriptions, which document the rule of Adithya Chola I (871-907),

Raja Raja Chola I Rajaraja I (947 CE – 1014 CE), born Arunmozhi Varman or Arulmozhi Varman and often described as Raja Raja the Great or Raja Raja Chozhan was a Chola emperor who reigned from 985 CE to 1014 CE. He was the most powerful Tamil king in South ...

and Rajendra Chola I of Kolar, refer to Kolar as Nikarili Cholamandalam and Jayam Konda Chola Manadalam. Inscriptions from Rajendra Chola I also appear on the Kolaramma Temple. Many Siva temples were built in Kolar during the reign of the Cholas, including the Someshwarar and Sri Uddhandeshwari Temples at Maarikuppam Village, the Eswaran Temple at Oorugaumpet and the Sivan Temple at Madivala Village. Chola rule of Kolar lasted until 1116. The inscriptions are neglected, and some have been vandalised. In 1117 Kolar became part of the Hoysala Empire; in 1254 it was bestowed to Ramanatha, one of King Someshwara's two sons. The Hoysala were defeated by the

Vijayanagara Empire The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana and Mahar ...

, which ruled Kolar from 1336 to 1664. During this period, the Sri Someshwara Temple at Kolar was built. For 50 years in the 17th century Kolar was under

Maratha The Marathi people ( Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as ...

rule as part of the Jagir of

Shahaji Shahaji Bhonsale (Pronunciation: �əɦad͡ʒiː c. 1594 – 1664) was a military leader of India in the 17th century, who served the Ahmadnagar Sultanate, the Bijapur Sultanate, and the Mughal Empire at various points in his career. As a membe ...

, followed by 70 years of Muslim rule. In 1720 it became part of the

Province of Sira The Province of Sira, also known as Carnatic-Balaghat, was a subah (imperial first-level province) of the Mughal empire in South India that was established in 1687 by conquering emperor Aurangzeb (like Bijapur in 1686 and Golkonda in 1687) and la ...

, with Fateh Mohammed (the father of

Hyder Ali Hyder Ali ( حیدر علی, ''Haidarālī''; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the at ...

) the province's

Faujdar Faujdar is a term of pre-Mughal origins. Under the Mughals it was an office that combined the functions of a military commander along with judicial and land revenue functions. In pre-Mughal times, the term referred to a military officer but d ...

. Kolar was then ruled by the

Marathas The Marathi people ( Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a ...

, the Nawab of

Cuddapah Kadapa (colonial spelled Cuddapah) is a city in the southern part of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is located in the Rayalaseema region, and is the district headquarters of YSR Kadapa district. As of the 2022 Census of India, the city had a popula ...

, the Nizam of Hyderabad and Hyder Ali. It was under

British rule The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was hims ...

from 1768 to 1770 before a brief Maratha rule followed by Hyder Ali. In 1791

Lord Cornwallis Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, (31 December 1738 – 5 October 1805), styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as the Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army general and official. In the United S ...

conquered Kolar and returned it to the Kingdom of Mysore in the peace treaty of 1792. In the Kolar region, inscriptions document the reigns of the Mahavalis (Baanaas), the

Pallavas The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The dynasty rose to prominence after the downfall of the Satavahana dynasty, with whom they had formerly served as f ...

and the Vaidumbaas.

Benjamin Lewis Rice Benjamin Lewis Rice (17 July 1837 – 10 July 1927), popularly known as B. L. Rice, was a British historian, archaeologist and educationist. He is known for his pioneering work in deciphering inscriptions, especially in Kannada, and in Sansk ...

recorded 1,347 inscriptions in the Kolar District, in the 10th volume of his ''

Epigraphia Carnatica ''Epigraphia Carnatica'' is a set of books on epigraphy of the Old Mysore region of India, compiled by Benjamin Lewis Rice, the Director of the Mysore Archaeological Department. Over a period of about ten years between 1894 and 1905, Rice publis ...

'', of the inscriptions, 422 are in

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

, 211 in

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

. But the oldest are in

. This was the original language. Tamil came in with the Cholas in the 11th century, and Telugu with Vijayanagar kings after the 15th. The period covered by the inscriptions is from 4th to the 18th century.

List of tourist attractions in Kolar district

List of tourist attractions in Kolar district important temple and tourist attractions details are provided here

Taluks

Bangarpet Bangarapet is a town in Kolar district in the state of Karnataka, India. Bangarapet is the headquarters of the taluk of Bangarapet. Bangarapet was originally called Bowringpet, named after an officer working in the Kolar Gold Fields. This town ...

* Mulbagilu * Srinivaspura *

Demographics

In the 2011 census, the district had a

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 1,536,401—roughly equal to that of

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the nort ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

. It ranked 324th of India's 640 districts). The district has a population density of , with a growth rate of 11.04 percent from 2001 to 2011. Kolar's

sex ratio The sex ratio (or gender ratio) is usually defined as the ratio of males to females in a population. As explained by Fisher's principle, for evolutionary reasons this is typically about 1:1 in species which reproduce sexually. Many species d ...

is 976

females Female (symbol: ♀) is the sex of an organism that produces the large non-motile ova (egg cells), the type of gamete (sex cell) that fuses with the male gamete during sexual reproduction. A female has larger gametes than a male. Females ...

per 1,000 males. Its

literacy rate Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...

is 74.33 percent. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 30.32% and 5.13% of the population respectively. The district has 15 towns and a total of 3,321 villages (2,889 inhabited villages and 432 uninhabited). At the time of the 2011 census, 51.51% of the population spoke

, 22.67%

, 12.88%

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

as their first language.

Culture

The district's primary language is

; Urdu, Tamil and Telugu are spoken by large minorities. Kolar Gold Fields (KGF) has an

Anglo-Indian Anglo-Indian people fall into two different groups: those with mixed Indian and British ancestry, and people of British descent born or residing in India. The latter sense is now mainly historical, but confusions can arise. The '' Oxford English ...

population. Festivals include the 13-day summer Karaga, celebrated in Malur and usually beginning the first Friday after

Ugadi Ugadi or Yugadi, also known as Samvatsarādi (), is New Year's Day according to the Hindu calendar and is celebrated in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka in India. It is festively observed in these regions on the first ...

; the water festival Theppothsava, and Dyavara.

Notable people

* L. Basavaraju - noted writer in Kannada * Sir M Visvesvaraya - Bharat Ratna and First Engineer of India *

D. V. Gundappa Devanahalli Venkataramanaiah Gundappa (17 March 1887 – 7 October 1975), popularly known as DVG, was an Indian writer, poet and philosopher in Kannada-language. He is one of the stalwarts of modern Kannada literature. His most notable work is th ...

- Kannada poet * K. C. Reddy - first Chief Minister of Karnataka * Maasti Venkatesh Ayengar - Kannada writer and

Jnanpith Award The Jnanpith Award is the oldest and the highest Indian literary award presented annually by the Bharatiya Jnanpith to an author for their "outstanding contribution towards literature". Instituted in 1961, the award is bestowed only on Indian w ...

recipient * K. H. Muniyappa - Former

Union Minister The Union Council of Ministers Article 58 of the ''Constitution of India'' is the principal executive organ of the Government of India, which is responsible for being the senior decision making body of the executive branch. It is chaired by t ...

of state for

Indian Railways Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tota ...

; represented Kolar in the

Parliament of India The Parliament of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the president of India and two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the ...

for six terms * N. R. Narayana Murthy - Chairman and Chief Mentor of Infosys Technologies Limited *

Soundarya K. S. Sowmya (18 July 1972 – 17 April 2004), better known by her stage name Soundarya, was an Indian actress who worked predominantly in Telugu films and has also worked in Kannada, Tamil, Hindi and Malayalam films. She was regarded as one o ...

- South Indian film actress *

A. N. Prahlada Rao A. N. Prahlada Rao (born 24 July 1953) is an Indian author and Kannada-language crossword compiler/ Constructor. Career A. N. Prahlada Rao was born at Abbani in the Kolar district of Karnataka, India. He started his career as a journalist and was ...

- author and crossword * B. K. S. Iyengar - the founder of the style of yoga as exercise known as "Iyengar Yoga" and was considered one of the foremost yoga teachers in the world. *

Picchalli Srinivas Picchalli Srinivas is an Indian singer, music director, theatre personality and activist, known for his works in Kannada. Apart from numerous folk songs, Srinivas has sung a few film songs. For his song "Dodda Gowdara" in the movie ''Amasa'', he ...

- popular singer and theatre personality

Media

* ''Kolara Patrike'' - first Kannada daily newspaper * ''Kolaravani'' - Kannada daily newspaper * ''Kannada Thilaka'' – Kannada daily newspaperKannada Thilaka
/ref>

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kolar District Districts of Karnataka kn:ಕೋಲಾರ