Firingi Bazar Explained

Firingi Bazar
Native Name:ফিরিঙ্গি বাজার
Native Name Lang:bn
Nickname:Porto Grande de Bengala[1]
Portuguese Bengal
Other Name:Firingi Bunder
Settlement Type:Ward
Seal Size:100px
Pushpin Map:Bangladesh Chittagong division#Bangladesh#Asia
Pushpin Label Position:centre
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of Chittagong in Bangladesh
Pushpin Mapsize:260
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Bangladesh
Subdivision Type1:Division
Subdivision Name1:Chittagong
Subdivision Type2:District
Subdivision Name2:Chittagong
Government Type:Municipality
Governing Body:Chittagong City Corporation
Established Title:Establishment
Population Density Urban Km2:Auto
Population Demonym:Farangs, Firingis, Chittagonian, Chatgaiya, Sitainga
Timezone:BST
Utc Offset:+6
Coordinates:22.335°N 91.8325°W
Postal Code Type:Postal code
Postal Code:4000, 4100, 42xx
Area Code Type:Calling code
Area Code:+880 31
Demographics Type1:Languages
Demographics1 Title1:Official
Demographics1 Info1:BengaliEnglish
Blank Name Sec1:UN/LOCODE
Blank4 Name Sec1:Police
Blank4 Info Sec1:Chattogram Metropolitan Police
Blank5 Name Sec1:International Airport
Website:ccc.gov.bd
Blank Emblem Size:150px
Blank Emblem Type:Chittagong City Corporation Seal
Seal Alt:Official Seal of the Chittagong City Corporation

Firingi Bazar (Bengali: ফিরিঙ্গি বাজার, Portuguese: Firingi Bunder) is a ward and settlement along the Karnaphuli River in Chittagong. The small part of Chittagong is well known for being the capital of the Portuguese settlement in Chittagong and Portuguese Bengal.[2]

This is one of the two Firingi Bazars in Bangladesh the other being located in the capital city of Dhaka.

The upbringing of the settlement comes from the Portuguese times of colonialism in India which was known as the colony of Portuguese India (1505–1961). The Portuguese descendants of these were called Farang. Thus meaning European in the Persian language. These descendants created settlements all over the coast of Bengal in cities such as Chittagong, Dhaka, Kolkata, Chandannagar and Hoogly and Bandel. These settlements resulted in recreation of Portuguese architecture in the region of Bengal and creations of churches, trading posts etc. by missionaries.

One of the world's oldest ports with a functional natural harbor for centuries,[3] Chittagong appeared on ancient Greek and Roman maps, including on Ptolemy's world map. It was located on the southern branch of the Silk Road. In the 9th century, merchants from the Abbasid Caliphate established a trading post in Chittagong.[4] The port fell to the Muslim conquest of Bengal during the 14th century. It was the site of a royal mint under the Delhi Sultanate, Bengal Sultanate and Mughal Empire.[5] Between the 15th and 17th centuries, Chittagong was also a center of administrative, literary, commercial and maritime activities in Arakan, a narrow strip of land along the eastern coast of the Bay of Bengal which was under strong Bengali influence for 350 years. During the 16th century, the port became a Portuguese trading post and João de Barros described it as "the most famous and wealthy city of the Kingdom of Bengal".[6] The Mughal Empire expelled the Portuguese and Arakanese in 1666.

The Nawab of Bengal ceded the port to the British East India Company in 1793.

Notes and References

  1. News: Porto Grande de Bengala . 3 September 2021 . The Daily Star . 10 July 2017 . en.
  2. Web site: Chattogram, Bangladesh Population (2023) – Population Stat. populationstat.com. 11 March 2023.
  3. Book: Ring. Trudy. Asia and Oceania: International Dictionary of Historic Places. Watson. Noelle. Schellinger. Paul. 12 November 2012. Routledge. 978-1-136-63979-1. en.
  4. Islam . Shariful . Hoque . Muhammad Manirul . Unpublished Umayyad and Abbasid Silver Coins in the Bangladesh National Museum . Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (Hum.) . 62 . 2 . 205–231 . 9 March 2022 . 9 October 2022 . https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.asiaticsociety.org.bd/journal/H_DEC_2017/4_H_Shariful%20%20&%20Monir.pdf . dead .
  5. Web site: Mint Towns . Banglapedia . 5 August 2021 . 16 March 2022.
  6. Web site: Chittagong History, Population, & Facts . 23 February 2022. Encyclopædia Britannica. en.