The renaming of the cities in India started in 1947 following the end of the British imperial period. Several changes were controversial, and not all proposed changes were implemented. Each had to be approved by the

Central Government A central government is the government that is a controlling power over a unitary state. Another distinct but sovereign political entity is a federal government, which may have distinct powers at various levels of government, authorized or dele ...

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

. The renaming of states and territories in India has also taken place, but until the 2010s with actual substantial name changes in both local language and in English such as the old British state name of Travancore-Cochin to

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

(1956). The most notable exceptions are Indian English spelling-changes of ''Orissa'' to

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

(March 2011) and the union territory of ''Pondicherry'' (which includes the city of

Pondicherry Pondicherry (), now known as Puducherry ( French: Pondichéry ʊdʊˈtʃɛɹi(listen), on-dicherry, is the capital and the most populous city of the Union Territory of Puducherry in India. The city is in the Puducherry district on the sout ...

) to

Puducherry Puducherry or Pondicherry may refer to: * Puducherry (union territory), a union territory of India ** Pondicherry, capital of the union territory of Puducherry ** Puducherry district, a district of the union territory of Puducherry ** Puducherry t ...

Causes for renaming

Need for standardisation of spelling

India has various local languages. Even (Romanised) English spellings in long and wide use often vary depending upon which government department or agency uses them. To the point, a few examples are Quilandy vs.

Koyilandy A Survey of Kerala History, A. Shreedhara Menon ar, Fundriya pt, Pandarani , settlement_type = MunicipalityTaluk , image_skyline = KadaloorPointLight 01.jpg , image_alt = , image_caption ...

, Canannore vs.

Kannur Kannur (), formerly known in English as Cannanore, is a city and a municipal corporation in the state of Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kannur district and situated north of the major port city and commercial hu ...

, and Rangiya vs. Rangia. Different departments of the government may have used official spellings in use at the time, while locations associated with Indian railways mostly maintained British-era spellings. The confusion inherent in such variations has often resulted in serious consequences like people having two "different" addresses (theoretically designating the same place) in their official records leading to legal disputes, or one house having residents of different house addresses due to differing place names. Many people argue that such confusion can lead to indeterminate and/or unintended consequences.

Renaming in local languages

In the post-colonial era, several Indian states' names were changed. Some of these changes coincided with the

States Reorganisation Act The States Reorganisation act, 1956 was a major reform of the boundaries of India's States and territories of India, states and territories, organising them along linguistic lines. Although additional changes to India's state boundaries have b ...

of 1956, a major reform of the boundaries of India's states and territories that organised them along linguistic lines. At this time, for example, Travancore-Cochin was renamed

. Later state name changes include the reorganisation of Madhya Bharat into

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

in 1959; and the renamings of the

Madras State Madras State was a state of India during the mid-20th century. At the time of its formation in 1950, it included the whole of present-day Tamil Nadu (except Kanyakumari district), Coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema, the Malabar region of North and c ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

in 1969, of the

Mysore State Mysore State, colloquially Old Mysore, was a state within the Dominion of India and the later Republic of India from 1947 until 1956. The state was formed by renaming the Kingdom of Mysore, and Bangalore replaced Mysore as the state's capital. ...

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 ...

in 1973, and of Uttaranchal to

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...

in 2007. Name changes have varied with respect to the levels of language at which they have been applied, and also accepted. Some of these local name changes were changes made in all languages: the immediate local name, and also all India's other languages. An example of this is the renaming of predominantly Hindi-speaking Uttaranchal ( hi, उत्तराञ्चल) to a new local Hindi name ( hi, उत्तराखण्ड, link=no ). Other changes were only changes in some of the indigenous languages. For example, the renaming of the

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency, or the Presidency of Fort St. George, also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision (presidency) of British India. At its greatest extent, the presidency included most of southern India, including the ...

in 1947 and then Tamil Nadu in 1969 required non-Tamil speakers to change from an approximation of the British name ( ta, மதராஸ் மாகாணம் ''Madras Presidency'', then ''Madras State'' ta, மதராஸ் மாநிலம், link=no) to a native Tamil name ( ta, தமிழ்நாடு, link=no , 'Tamil country'). In general, changes to the local names of cities in the indigenous languages are less common. However, a change in English may sometimes also be a reflection of changes in other Indian languages other than the specific local one. For example, the change of Madras ( ta, மதராஸ், link=no ''Madras'') to Chennai ( ta, சென்னை, link=no ''Chennai'') was reflected in many of India's languages, and incidentally in English, while the Tamil endonym had always been Chennai and remained unaffected by the change.

Renaming in English

Change in official English spelling

The renaming of cities is often specifically from English to

Indian English Indian English (IE) is a group of English dialects spoken in the republic of India and among the Indian diaspora. English is used by the Indian government for communication, along with Hindi, as enshrined in the Constitution of India. E ...

in connection with that dialect's internal reforms. In other words, the city itself is not actually renamed in the local language, and the local name (or endonym) in the indigenous

languages of India Languages spoken in India belong to several language families, the major ones being the Indo-European languages spoken by 78.05% of Indians and the Dravidian languages spoken by 19.64% of Indians, both families together are sometimes known ...

does not change, but the official spelling in Indian English is amended. An example is the change from English ''Calcutta'' to English ''

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

'' – the local Bengali name ( ) did not change. Such changes in English spelling may be in order to better reflect a more accurate

phonetic Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that studies how humans produce and perceive sounds, or in the case of sign languages, the equivalent aspects of sign. Linguists who specialize in studying the physical properties of speech are phoneticians. ...

transliteration Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one writing system, script to another that involves swapping Letter (alphabet), letters (thus ''wikt:trans-#Prefix, trans-'' + ''wikt:littera#Latin, liter-'') in predictable ways, such as ...

of the local name, or may be for other reasons. In the early years after Indian independence, many name changes were affected in northern India for English spellings of Hindi place names that had simply been romanised inconsistently by the British administration – such as the British spelling ''Jubbulpore'', renamed

Jabalpur Jabalpur is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. According to the 2011 census, it is the third-largest urban agglomeration in Madhya Pradesh and the country's 38th-largest urban agglomeration. J ...

() among the first changes in 1947. These changes did not generate significant controversy. More recent and high-profile changes – including renaming such major cities as Calcutta to Kolkata – have generated greater controversy. Since independence, such changes have typically been enacted officially by legislation at local or national

Indian government The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the Government, national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy lo ...

level, and may or may not then be adopted by the

Indian media The Indian media consists of several different types of communications of mass media: television, radio, Cinema of India, cinema, Newspaper, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based Websites/portals. Indian media was active since the late 18th ...

, particularly the influential Indian press. In the case of smaller towns and districts which were less notable outside and inside India, and where a well known English name (or exonym) could not be said to exist, older spellings used under

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

may not have had any specific legislation other than changes in practice on the romanisation of indigenous Indian language names.

Realignment of the official Indian English name to an alternative local name

Aside from changes to the official English spellings of local names there have also been renaming proposals to realign the official name, hence the English name with an alternative local name. Ethnically sensitive examples include the proposals by the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

(1990, 2001) to rename

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...

to Karnavati and

Allahabad Allahabad (), officially known as Prayagraj, also known as Ilahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi (Benares). It is the administrat ...

Prayagraj Allahabad (), officially known as Prayagraj, also known as Ilahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi (Benares). It is the administrat ...

, the latter ultimately being officially adopted in 2018. These two proposals are changes from the historically Mughal name to a Hindu native name. These can be represented as a change from Urdu language to Hindi language, but since the two languages are variants of Hindustani the proposal is effectively a cultural and ethno-religious proposal rather than a linguistic one.

Adoption of renamed names

Official name changes take place quickly if not immediately in official government sources. Adoption may be slower among the media in India and abroad, and among Indian authors.

Important examples

States

* Travancore-Cochin →

(1st November, 1956). * Madhya Bharat →

(1st November, 1959) *

→

(14th January, 1969) *

→

(1st November, 1973) * Uttaranchal →

(1st January, 2007) * Orissa →

(4th November, 2011) * NEFA →

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares int ...

(20th January 1972)

Cities

Notable city names that were officially changed by legislation after independence include: *

( hi, जबलपुर), from ''Jubbulpore'', respelled in 1947 *

Jajmau Jajmau also known as Jajesmow during British Era, is a suburb of Kanpur, India. It is situated on the banks of the Ganges River. Jajmau is an industrial suburb. It has the population of about 652,831 according to census 2011. It is believed to b ...

( hi, जाजमऊ), from ''Jajesmow'', respelled in 1948 *

Kanpur Kanpur or Cawnpore ( /kɑːnˈpʊər/ pronunciation (help·info)) is an industrial city in the central-western part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Founded in 1207, Kanpur became one of the most important commercial and military stations o ...

( hi, कानपुर), from ''Cawnpore'', respelled in 1948 *

Vadodara Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district and is situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River, from the state capital ...

( gu, વડોદરા), from ''Baroda'', respelled in 1974 *

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

( ml, തിരുവനന്തപുരം), from ''Trivandrum'', respelled in 1991 *

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

( mr, मुंबई), from ''Bombay'', renamed in 1995 *

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

( ml, കൊച്ചി), from ''Cochin'', respelled in 1996 *

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

( ta, சென்னை), from ''Madras'', renamed in 1996 *

( bn, কলকাতা), from ''Calcutta'', respelled in 2001 *

Medininagar Medininagar, formerly Daltonganj, is a city municipal corporation in the Indian state of Jharkhand. It is the headquarters of Palamu division and Palamu district, as well as the subdivision and block of the same name. The city is situated on ...

( hi, मेदिनीनगर), from ''Daltonganj'', renamed in 2004 *

Kadapa 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 popul ...

(), from ''Cuddapah'', respelled in 2005 *

( ta, புதுச்சேரி), from ''Pondicherry'', renamed in 2006 *

Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

( kn, ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು), from ''Bangalore'', respelled in 2014 * Belagavi ( kn, ಬೆಳಗಾವಿ), from ''Belgaum'' in 2014 *

Tumakuru Tumkur, officially renamed as Tumakuru, is a city located in the southern part of Indian state of Karnataka. Tumkur is situated at a distance of northwest of Bangalore, the state capital along NH 48 and NH 73. It is the headquarters of the ...

( kn, ತುಮಕುರು), from ''Tumkur'' in 2014 *

Hubballi Hubli, officially known as Hubballi, is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. The twin cities Hubli–Dharwad form the second largest city in the state by area and population and the largest city in North Karnataka. Hubli is in Dharwad distr ...

( kn, ಹುಬ್ಬಳ್ಳಿ), from ''Hubli'' in 2014 *

Shivamogga Shimoga, officially known as Shivamogga, is a city and the district headquarters of Shimoga district in the central part of the state of Karnataka, India. The city lies on the banks of the Tunga River. Being the gateway for the hilly region of ...

( kn, ಶಿವಮೊಗ್ಗಾ), from ''Shimoga'' in 2014 *

Hosapete Hospet also known as Vijayanagara is the largest city and district headquarters of the Vijayanagara district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located on the banks of the Tungabhadra River and is 13 km from Hampi. The present day Ha ...

( kn, ಹೊಸಪೇಟೆ), from ''Hospet'' in 2014 *

Mysuru 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 ...

( kn, ಮೈಸೂರು), from ''Mysore'' in 2014 *

Kalaburagi Kalaburagi, formerly known as Gulbarga, is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kalaburagi district and is the largest city in the region of North Karnataka (Kalyana-Karnataka). Kalaburagi is 6 ...

( kn, ಕಲಬುರಗಿ), from ''Gulbarga'' in 2014 * Chikkamagaluru ( kn, ಚಿಕ್ಕಮಗಳೂರು), from ''Chikmagalur'' in 2014 *

Vijayapura Vijayapur is a town in Devanahalli taluk and Bangalore Rural district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Vijayapura's old name is Vadigenahalli. Local villagers still refer Vijayapura as Vadigenahalli. Geography Vijayapura is located at . It has ...

( kn, ವಿಜಯಪುರ), from ''Bijapur'' in 2014 * Ballari ( kn, ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ), from ''Bellary'' in 2014 *

Mangaluru Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka–Ker ...

( kn, ಮಂಗಳೂರು), from ''Mangalore'' in 2014 * Rajahmahendravaram (), from ''Rajahmundry'' in 2015 *

Gurugram Gurgaon (pronunciation: �ʊɽɡãːw, officially named Gurugram (pronunciation: �ʊɾʊɡɾaːm, is a city located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest of the nationa ...

( hi, गुरुग्राम) from ''Gurgaon'' in 2016 *

( hi, प्रयागराज ), from ''Allahabad'', renamed in 2018 * Atal Nagar ( hi, अटल नगर), from ''New Raipur'' in 2018 *

Narmadapuram Hoshangabad, officially known as Narmadapuram is a city and municipality in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of both Hoshangabad district and Narmadapuram division. It is located in central India, on the south ...

( hi, नर्मदापुरम), from ''Hoshangabad'' ( hi, होशंगाबाद), renamed in 2021. * Darashiv, from Osmanabad, renamed in 2022. For others, by state order, see

list of renamed Indian cities and states Since India gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, names of many cities, streets, places, and buildings throughout the republic of India have been systematically changed, often to better approximate their native endonymic pronunci ...

. *

Alappuzha Alappuzha or Alleppey () is the administrative headquarters of Alappuzha district in States and territories of India, state of Kerala, India. The Kerala Backwaters, Backwaters of Alappuzha are one of the most popular tourist attractions in Indi ...

( ml, ആലപ്പുഴ), from ''Alleppey'' *

Baranagar ("City of hogs") , settlement_type = City , image_seal = , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , pushpin_map = India West Bengal#India3#Asia , pushpin_label_ ...

( bn, বরানগর), from ''Barahanagore'' *

Guwahati Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...

( as, গুৱাহাটী), from ''Gauhati'' *

Indore Indore () is the largest and most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of both Indore District and Indore Division. It is also considered as an education hub of the state and is t ...

( hi, इंदौर), from ''Indhur'' *

Kanchipuram Kanchipuram ('; ) also known as ''Conjeevaram,'' is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from Chennaithe capital of Tamil Nadu. Known as the ''City of Thousand Temples'', Kanchipuram is known for its temple ...

( ta, காஞ்சிபுரம்), from ''Kāñci-pura And Conjevaram'' *

( ml, കണ്ണൂർ), from ''Cannanore'' *

Kollam Kollam (), also known by its former name Quilon , is an ancient seaport and city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The city i ...

( ml, കൊല്ലം), from ''Quilon'' *

( ml, കൊയിലാണ്ടി), from ''Quilandi'' *

Kozhikode Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...

( ml, കോഴിക്കോട്), from ''Calicut'' *

Kumbakonam Kumbakonam (formerly spelt as Coombaconum or Combaconum) or Kudanthai is a city municipal corporation in the Thanjavur district in the States of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located from Thanjavur and from Chennai and is the headq ...

( ta, கும்பகோணம்), from ancient name ''Kudanthai'' * Mayiladuthurai ( ta, மயிலாடுதுறை), from ''Mayavaram'' ancient name ''Mayuram'' * Narmada ( gu, નર્મદા), from ''Nerbudda'' *

Nagaon Nagaon (previously Nowgong; Assamese নগাঁও), is a town and a municipal board in Nagaon district in the Indian state of Assam. It is situated east of Guwahati. History This division was organised on the both banks of Kalang river ...

( as, নগাওঁ), from ''Nowgong'' *

Nashik Nashik (, Marathi: aːʃik, also called as Nasik ) is a city in the northern region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Situated on the banks of river Godavari, Nashik is the third largest city in Maharashtra, after Mumbai and Pune. Nashik ...

(

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

: नाशिक), from Gulshanabad ( Mughal Era) *

Palakkad Palakkad (), formerly known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery is a city and municipality in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of the Palakkad District. Palakkad is most densely populated municipal ...

( ml, പാലക്കാട്) from ''Palghat'' *

Panaji Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

( kok, पणजी) from ''Panjim'' *

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...

( mr, पुणे), from ''Poona'' *

Ramanathapuram Ramanathapuram (), also known as Ramnad, is a town and a municipality in Ramanathapuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Ramanathapuram district and the second largest town (by population) in ...

( ta, ராமநாதபுரம்), from ''Ramnad'' * Sagar ( hi, सागर), from ''Saugor'' *

Shimla Shimla (; ; also known as Simla, List of renamed Indian cities and states#Himachal Pradesh, the official name until 1972) is the capital and the largest city of the States and union territories of India, northern Indian state of Himachal Prade ...

( hi, शिमला), from ''Simla'' *

Thalassery Thalassery (), formerly Tellicherry, is a municipality, Commercial City on the Malabar Coast in Kannur district, in the state of Kerala, India, bordered by the districts of Mahé (Pondicherry), Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kasaragod and Kodagu (Karna ...

( ml, തലശ്ശേരി), from ''Tellicherry'' *

Thanjavur Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the Gr ...

( ta, தஞ்சாவூர்), from British name ''Tanjore'' *

Thane Thane (; also known as Thana, the official name until 1996) is a metropolitan city in Maharashtra, India. It is situated in the north-eastern portion of the Salsette Island. Thane city is entirely within Thane taluka, one of the seven talukas ...

( mr, ठाणे), from British name ''Tannah'' *

Thoothukudi Thoothukudi (formerly Tuticorin) is a port city, a municipal corporation and an industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city lies in the Coromandel Coast of Bay of Bengal. Thoothukudi is the capital and he ...

( ta, தூத்துக்குடி), from ''Tuticorin'' and its short form ''Tuty'' *

Thrissur Thrissur (), formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the third largest urban agglomeration in Kerala after Kochi and Kozhikode, and t ...

( ml, തൃശൂർ), from ''Trichur'' *

Tindivanam Tindivanam is a town and a municipality in Viluppuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the second largest town in Villupuram District after the headquarters town Villupuram. Important roads from north to south (NH 45) Tami ...

( ta, திண்டிவனம் ), from ''Tinthirivanam'' *

Tiruchirapalli Tiruchirappalli () ( formerly Trichinopoly in English), also called Tiruchi or Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with bein ...

( ta, திருச்சிராப்பள்ளி), from ''Trichinopoly'' and its short form ''Trichy'' *

Tirunelveli Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tami ...

( ta, திருநெல்வேலி), from ''Tinnevelly'' *

Tiruvallikeni Triplicane, known in the vernacular as Thiruvallikeni, is one of the oldest neighbourhoods of Chennai, India. It is situated on the Bay of Bengal coast and about from Fort St George. The average elevation of the neighbourhood is 14 metres ...

( ta, திருவல்லிக்கேணி), from ''Triplicane'' *

Udhagamandalam Ooty (), officially known as Udhagamandalam (also known as Ootacamund (); abbreviated as Udhagai), is a city and a municipality in the Nilgiris district of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located north west of Coimbatore and so ...

( ta, உதகமண்டலம்), from ''Ootacamund'' and its short form ''Ooty'' *

Viluppuram Viluppuram, Villupuram, or Vizhuppuram () is a Municipality and the administrative headquarters of Viluppuram district. Located south west of a Tiruvannamalai and north west of Cuddalore null The town serves as a major railway junction, ...

( ta, விழுப்புரம்), from Vizhupparaiyar And Vizhimaa Nagaram *

Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...

( hi, वाराणसी), from ''Benares'' *

Vatakara Vatakara, also spelled Vadakara (formerly Badagara), , french: Bargaret, is a Municipality in the state of Kerala, India. Vatakara is located between Kannur and Kozhikode. The municipality of Vatakara covers an area of and is bordered by ...

( ml, വടകര), from ''Badagara'' *

Virudhachalam Virudhachalam or Vriddhachalam is a Town and taluk headquarters in Cuddalore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The ancient name of this town is Thirumudhukundram. As per the 2011 census, the town had a population of 73,585 of which ...

( ta, விருத்தாச்சலம்), from Vriddhachalam ancient name Thirumudhukundram *

Vijayawada Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises NT ...

(), from ''Bejawada, anciently Vijayavatika in Mahabharata and Rajendrachola pura during

Chola dynasty The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...

'' *

Visakhapatnam , image_alt = , image_caption = From top, left to right: Visakhapatnam aerial view, Vizag seaport, Simhachalam Temple, Aerial view of Rushikonda Beach, Beach road, Novotel, Novotel Visakhapatnam, INS Kursura (S20), INS ...

(), from ''Waltair'', and before that ''Vizagapatam'' and its short form ''Vizag'' Town names that derive from ancient names: *

Mandi Mandi may refer to: Places * Mandı, Azerbaijan India * Mandi, Jammu and Kashmir, a town on the Mandi River in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir * Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, a city in Himachal Pradesh ** Mandi State, former princely sta ...

( hi, मंडी), derived from ''Mandav Nagar'' *

Nellore Nellore is a city located on the banks of Penna River, in Nellore district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of the district, as well as Nellore mandal and Nellore revenue division. It is the List of cities in ...

(), in ancient times ''Simhapuri''

Proposed changes

Several other changes have been proposed for states and towns.

States and union territories

to Keralam *

Nagaland Nagaland () is a landlocked state in the northeastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south and the Sagaing Region of Myanmar to the east. Its capital cit ...

to Naganchi *

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

to Bangla * Dadra and NagarHaveli and Daman and Diu to DaDaDiNaHa (દદાદિનહ) (ददादिनह)

Cities

Bihar

Patna Patna ( ), historically known as Pataliputra, is the capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Patna had a population of 2.35 million, making it the 19th largest city in India. ...

to Pataliputra

Gujarat

to Karnavati

Himachal Pradesh

to Shyamala

Kerala

to Ananthapuri

Madhya Pradesh

Bhopal Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...

to Bhojpal

Maharashtra

* Islampur to Ishwarpur

Telangana

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

to Bhagyanagar *

Karimnagar Karimnagar is also known as Elagandula (Ancient name) is a city and District Headquarters in the Indian state of Telangana. Karimnagar is a major urban agglomeration and fifth largest City in the state. It is governed by Municipal corporation a ...

to Yelagandula * Nizamabad to Indur *

Mahbubnagar Mahabubnagar is a city in Mahabubnagar District of the Indian state of Telangana named after the 6th Nizam, Mahboob Ali Khan. It is the headquarters of Mahabubnagar mandal in Mahabubnagar revenue division. The city is also the largest in the ...

to Palamuru *

Adilabad Adilabad is a city which serves as the headquarters of Adilabad district, in the Indian state of Telangana. Telugu language, Telugu is the native language of Adilabad. Adilabad is famous for its rich cultivation of cotton. Hence, Adilabad is a ...

to Eddulapuram *

Mahabubabad Mahabubabad is a town and the district headquarters of Mahabubabad district in the Indian state of Telangana. It is on the west bank of the Munneru, which is one of the tributaries of the River Krishna. Mahabubabad is known for the Bayyaram Mine ...

to Manukota

Uttar Pradesh

Muzaffarnagar Muzaffarnagar is a city under Muzaffarnagar District in the Indian State of Uttar Pradesh. It is situated midway on the Delhi - Haridwar/ Dehradun National Highway (NH 58) and is also well connected with the national railway network. It is ...

to Laxmi Nagar *

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...

to Lakhanava * *

References

External links

*
Geographical Dictionary of Ancient and Mediaeval India
' by Nundo Lal Dey * {{Usurpe

}—''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

''
12 Cities in Karnataka get a name change
��Karnataka.com
India's Bangalore in name change
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BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

Shashi Tharror: Becoming Bengaloorued
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Business Standard ''Business Standard'' is an Indian English-language daily edition newspaper published by Business Standard Private Limited, also available in Hindi. Founded in 1975, the newspaper covers the Indian economy, infrastructure, international busine ...

'' Cities and towns in India

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 ...

Geographic history of India

History of the Republic of India Linguistic controversies Names of places in India