Moulvibazar Sadar ( bn, মৌলভীবাজার সদর) is an
upazila
An ''upazila'' ( bn, উপজেলা, upôzela, lit=sub-district pronounced: ), formerly called ''thana'', is an administrative region in Bangladesh, functioning as a sub-unit of a district. It can be seen as an analogous to a county or a ...
of
Moulvibazar District
Moulvibazar ( bn, মৌলভীবাজার) also spelled Maulvibazar, Moulavibazar, and Maulavibazar, (former South Sylhet) is the southeastern district of Sylhet Division in northeastern Bangladesh, named after the town of Moulvibazar. It i ...
in the Division of
Sylhet
Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate an ...
,
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
.
History
![Moulvibazar Govt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Moulvibazar_Govt._High_School_Auditorium.jpg)
In ancient times, the region was known as Chandrapur or Chandrarajya.
After the
Conquest of Gour
The Conquest of Sylhet ( bn, শ্রীহট্টের বিজয়, Srīhôtter Bijôy, Conquest of Srihatta) predominantly refers to an Islamic conquest of Srihatta (present-day Sylhet, Bangladesh) led by Sikandar Khan Ghazi, the mil ...
in 1303, many disciples of
Shah Jalal
Jalāl Mujarrad Kunyāʾī (), popularly known as Shah Jalal, was a celebrated Sufi figure of Bengal. His name is often associated with the Conquest of Sylhet and the spread of Islam into the region, part of a long history of interactions betw ...
such as
Shah Mustafa
Syed Shāh Muṣṭafā al-Baghdādi ( ar, سید شاه مصطفى البغدادي), popularly known as Shah Mustafa ( bn, শাহ মোস্তফা), is a Sufi Muslim figure in the Sylhet region. Mustafa's name is associated with the s ...
migrated and settled in present-day Moulvibazar Sadar where they preached Islam to the local people. Mustafa would eventually succeed Raja Chandra Singh as the ruler of Chandrapur after marrying the Raja's daughter. Shah Farang and Shah Darang migrated to Bekhamura (Manumukh), Shah Kamaluddin to Kamalpur (Chowallish), Shah Wali Mahmud to Singkapon, Haji Ahmad Rasool to Ghorakhal (northeast of Hazari Bari), Shah Hilal to Hilalpur, and Babu Dawlat to Bibi Dawlat (Chhankhair).
In 1476, the Minister of Sylhet,
Majlis Alam
Majlis Alam ( bn, মজলিস/মজলিশ আলম, Mojlis/Mojlish Alom, fa, ), was a minister (Dastur) of Srihat (Sylhet) from 1472 to 1476, during the reign of Shamsuddin Yusuf Shah, the Sultan of Bengal of the Ilyas Shahi dynasty.
...
, and his father, Musa ibn Haji Amir, built the
Goyghor Mosque
Goyghor Masjid, ( bn, গয়ঘর খোজার মসজিদ, ar, مسجد الخواجه), also known as the Goyghor Historical Khwaja's Mosque, is an ancient mosque located in the village of Goyghor in Mostafapur Union, Moulvibazar Dis ...
. This mosque hosted shelter for the Afghan warrior,
Khwaja Usman
Khawāja Uthmān Khān Lōhānī ( bn, খাজা উসমান খাঁন লোহানী), popularly known as Khwaja Usman, was a Pashtun chieftain and warrior based in northeastern Bengal. As one of the Baro-Bhuyans, he was a zamind ...
, in 1593 from the
Subahdar of
Mughal Bengal
The Bengal Subah ( bn, সুবাহ বাংলা; fa, ), also referred to as Mughal Bengal ( bn, মোগল বাংলা), was the largest subdivision of the Mughal Empire (and later an independent state under the Nawabs of Beng ...
,
Man Singh I
Man Singh I, popularly known as Mirza Raja Man Singh (21 December 1550 – 6 July 1614) was the 29th Kachwaha Rajput Raja of Amer, later known as Jaipur state, in Rajputana. He was the most powerful and trusted general of the Mughal emp ...
.
In 1771,
Moulvi Syed Qudratullah
Moulvi Syed Qudratullah Sattar Munsef, ( bn, মৌলভী সৈয়দ কুদরত উল্লাহ ছাত্তার মুন্সেফ; born 1750) was a Bengali judge and entrepreneur. He is best known as the founder of Town ...
established a bazaar near the banks of the
Manu River
Manu may refer to:
Geography
*Manú Province, a province of Peru, in the Madre de Dios Region
**Manú National Park, Peru
**Manú River, in southeastern Peru
*Manu River (Tripura), which originates in India and flows into Bangladesh
*Manu Temple ...
using his
zamindar
A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as a ...
i land. He started importing edible goods, such as fruits and vegetables opening up opportunities for people to purchase as well as sell. The location allowed easy access through river and land transport. The Sadar Upazila was first founded as Moulvibazar
Thana
Thana means "police station" in South Asian countries, and can also mean the district controlled by a police station.
* Thanas of Bangladesh, former subdistricts in the administrative geography of Bangladesh; later renamed ''upazila''
* in (Briti ...
in 1882. In 1912, there was an anti-British protest held in the village of Jagatshi, organised by Swami Dayananda. The anti-British
Khilafat Movement
The Khilafat Movement (1919–24), also known as the Caliphate movement or the Indian Muslim movement, was a pan-Islamist political protest campaign launched by Muslims of British India led by Shaukat Ali, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, Hakim Ajma ...
in 1921 also spread to Moulvibazar and campaigners that were present included
Chittaranjan Das
Chittaranjan Das (5 November 1870 – 16 June 1925), popularly called ''Deshbandhu'' (Friend of the Nation), was an Indian freedom fighter, political activist and lawyer during the Indian independence movement and founder-leader of the Swara ...
,
Hussain Ahmed Madani
Hussain Ahmad Madani (6 October 1879 – 5 December 1957) was an Indian Islamic scholar, serving as the principal of Darul Uloom Deoband. He was among the first recipients of the civilian honour of Padma Bhushan in 1954. and
Sarojini Naidu
Sarojini Naidu (''née'' Chattopadhyay; 13 February 1879 – 2 March 1949) was an Indian political activist, feminist and poet. A proponent of civil rights, women's emancipation, and anti-imperialistic ideas, she was an important person in Indi ...
. In 1932, the
Ali Amzad Government Girls' High School
Ali Amzad Government Girls' High School ( bn, আলী আমজাদ সরকারী বালিকা উচ্চ বিদ্যালয়) is a public secondary school located at Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila, Moulvibazar
Moulvibazar ( ...
was opened as a public school.
During the
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Benga ...
, armed resistance begun at the village of
Srirainagar in Kanakpur on 27 March 1971. The
Pakistani army
The Pakistan Army (, ) is the land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the Partition of British India, which occurred as a result ...
was said to have made a surprise attack on the procession there in which two people were killed. The
Naria massacre
Naria massacre ( bn, নড়িয়া হত্যাকান্ড) refers to the massacre of 28 Bengali Hindus of Naria village in the district of Sylhet in East Pakistan on 5 May 1971 by the Pakistani occupation army.
Background
The v ...
took place on 5 May in Upper Kagabala. On 20 December, a number of people were killed and wounded by mine explosions at the premises of the Moulvibazar Government High School. The thana was turned into an
upazila
An ''upazila'' ( bn, উপজেলা, upôzela, lit=sub-district pronounced: ), formerly called ''thana'', is an administrative region in Bangladesh, functioning as a sub-unit of a district. It can be seen as an analogous to a county or a ...
in 1984. In 2005, the
Saifur Rahman Stadium was established, acting as a multi-use arena fitting 15,000 people.
Geography
Moulvibazar Sadar is located at . It has 40,573 households and total area 344.34 km
2. It is bordered by
Balaganj
Balaganj ( bn, বালাগঞ্জ) is an upazila of Sylhet District in Sylhet Division, Bangladesh.
Etymology
The name Balaganj is derived from the Bengali word ''bala'' meaning 'strength' and the Persian/Bengali word ''ganj'' that means ...
in the north,
Rajnagar and
Kamalganj in the east,
Srimangal
Sreemangal ( bn, শ্রীমঙ্গল, Srimongol) is an upazila of Moulvibazar District in the Sylhet Division of Bangladesh. It is located at the southwest of the district, and borders the Habiganj District to the west and the Indian state ...
in the south and
Nabiganj
Nabiganj ( bn, নবীগঞ্জ, Nobīgonj) is an Upazila of Habiganj District in the Division of Sylhet, Bangladesh.
History
After the Conquest of Gour in 1303, many disciples of Shah Jalal migrated and settled in present-day Nabiganj wher ...
in the west.
Administration
![Maulvibazar SadarUpazila](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Maulvibazar_SadarUpazila.png)
Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila is divided into
Moulvibazar
Moulvibazar ( bn, মৌলভীবাজার) is a town in north-eastern Bangladesh just south of Sylhet. It is the capital of Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila and Moulvibazar District, and is located on the banks of the Manu River. The town has ...
Municipality and 12
union parishad
Union council ( bn, ইউনিয়ন পরিষদ, translit=iūniyan pariṣad, translit-std=IAST), also known as union parishad, rural council, rural union and simply union, is the smallest rural administrative and local government unit ...
s: Akhailkura, Amtail, Chandnighat, Ekatuna, Giasnagar, Kamalpur,
Kanakpur Union
Kanakpur Union ( bn, কনকপুর ইউনিয়ন) is a Union Parishad under Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila of Moulvibazar District in the division of Sylhet, Bangladesh. It has an area of 23.5 square kilometres and a population of 18,458. ...
, Khalilpur, Monumukh,
Mostafapur Union, Nazirabad, and Uparkagabala. The union parishads are subdivided into 196 mauzas and 429 villages.
Moulvibazar Municipality is subdivided into 9 wards and 48
mahalla
is an Arabic word variously translated as district, quarter, ward, or "neighborhood" in many parts of the Arab world, the Balkans, Western Asia, the Indian subcontinent, and nearby nations.
History
Historically, mahallas were autonomous social ins ...
s.
Demographics
![Moulvibazar Govt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Moulvibazar_Govt._High_School_administration_%26_main_building.jpg)
As of the
1991 Bangladesh census
In 1991, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, conducted a national census in Bangladesh. They recorded data from all of the districts and upazilas and main cities in Bangladesh including statistical data on population size, households, sex and age ...
, Moulvibazar Sadar has a population of 239,378. It has now grown to 281,593 according to later censuses. Males constitute 51.56% of the population, and females 48.44%. Its over-18 population is 126,303. Most of the people are
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
. There are over 45,000
Hindus
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
, 150
Buddhists
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
, 17
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
and 319 of other faiths.
Education
According to Banglapedia,
Ali Amzad Government Girls' High School
Ali Amzad Government Girls' High School ( bn, আলী আমজাদ সরকারী বালিকা উচ্চ বিদ্যালয়) is a public secondary school located at Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila, Moulvibazar
Moulvibazar ( ...
, founded in 1932, is a notable secondary school. Moulvibazar Sadar has an average literacy rate of 48.6%.
The literacy rate for the urban areas is 65.2% while in the rural areas it is 45.7%.
The Upazila has 5 colleges as well as vocational, primary teacher, nurse, youth, blind welfare training institutes. It also has a co-operative institute, a horticulture research institute. There are 17 primary schools and 7 community and satellite schools, in addition to 16 kindergartens. In total, there are 42
madrasa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated '' ...
s.
Notable people
*
Bajloor Rashid MBE Mbe may refer to:
* Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo
* Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria
* Mbe language, a language of Nigeria
* Mbe' language, language of Cameroon
* ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language
Molal ...
, businessman and former president of the
Bangladesh Caterers Association UK
Bangladesh Caterers Association UK (abbreviated as BCA) is the Umbrella organization, umbrella organisation of British Bangladeshi, British-Bangladeshi restaurants. It was established in 1960 to represent the catering industry run by the ethnic ...
.
*
Saifur Rahman {{Short description, Male name
Saifur Rahman (Saudi Arabia ar, سيف الرحمن }) is a male Muslim given name, meaning ''sword of the Most Gracious''.
سيفور meaning Saifur in arabic.
This may refer to:
*Akhundzada Saif-ur-Rahman Mubara ...
, longest serving
Finance Minister of Bangladesh
The Finance Minister of Bangladesh heads the Ministry of Finance of the Government of Bangladesh. It is one of the most important positions in the Cabinet and the Finance Minister must deal with all the other departments and plays an important rol ...
.
*
Shah Mustafa
Syed Shāh Muṣṭafā al-Baghdādi ( ar, سید شاه مصطفى البغدادي), popularly known as Shah Mustafa ( bn, শাহ মোস্তফা), is a Sufi Muslim figure in the Sylhet region. Mustafa's name is associated with the s ...
, associated with spreading Islam to Moulvibazar
*
Syed Abdul Majid
The Hon'ble Moulvi Khan Bahadur Syed Abdul Majid, CIE ( bn, সৈয়দ আব্দুল মজিদ; 1872–1922), also known by his daak naam Kaptan Miah ( bn, কাপ্তান মিঞা), was a Bengali politician, lawyer and ...
CIE, first native minister of Assam, pioneer of the agricultural industry
*
Syed Qudratullah, founder of
Moulvibazar
Moulvibazar ( bn, মৌলভীবাজার) is a town in north-eastern Bangladesh just south of Sylhet. It is the capital of Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila and Moulvibazar District, and is located on the banks of the Manu River. The town has ...
*
Rangalal Sen
Rangalal Sen (24 September 193310 February 2014) was a Bangladesh academician and writer. In 2011, he was inducted as the National Professor of Bangladesh.
Early life
Sen was born into a Sylhetis, Sylheti Bengali Hindu, Hindu family in the villag ...
,
National Professor
National Professor ( bn, জাতীয় অধ্যাপক) is a prestigious teaching award given by the Government of Bangladesh for outstanding contribution on the field of education. It is awarded by the president of Bangladesh according ...
of
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
.
*
Syed Mohsin Ali, Former Member of the
Jatiya Sangsad
The Jatiya Sangsad ( bn, জাতীয় সংসদ, lit=National Parliament, translit=Jatiyô Sôngsôd), often referred to simply as the ''Sangsad'' or JS and also known as the House of the Nation, is the supreme legislative body of ...
from
Moulvibazar-3
Moulvibazar-3 is a constituency represented in the Jatiya Sangsad (National Parliament) of Bangladesh since 2019 by Nesar Ahmed of the Awami League.
Boundaries
The constituency encompasses Moulvibazar Sadar and Rajnagar upazilas.
History ...
, Former Bangladesh
Minister of Social Welfare and former President of
Moulvibazar District
Moulvibazar ( bn, মৌলভীবাজার) also spelled Maulvibazar, Moulavibazar, and Maulavibazar, (former South Sylhet) is the southeastern district of Sylhet Division in northeastern Bangladesh, named after the town of Moulvibazar. It i ...
Unit of Awami League.
*
Hosne Ara Wahid, Member of Parliament, lived in Moulvibazar.
See also
*
Upazilas of Bangladesh
An ''upazila'' ( bn, উপজেলা, upôzela, lit=sub-district pronounced: ), formerly called ''thana'', is an administrative region in Bangladesh, functioning as a sub-unit of a district. It can be seen as an analogous to a county or a ...
*
Districts of Bangladesh
*
Divisions of Bangladesh
References
{{Moulvibazar District