The vast majority of the population of Bangladesh is Bengali—a term describing both an ethnic and a linguistic group. The Bengali people are historically of diverse origin, having emerged from the confluence of various communities that entered the region over the course of many centuries. The Vedda peoples were perhaps the earliest group to settle in the area. According to some ethnologists, they were followed by peoples from the Mediterranean and neighbouring areas, particularly those who spoke Indo-European languages. During the 8th century CE, persons of Arab,

Persian, and Turkish origin moved in large numbers to the subcontinent. By the beginning of the 13th century, they had entered what is now Bangladesh. The contention that contemporary Bengali Muslims are all descended from lower-caste Hindus who had converted to Islam, then, is clearly incorrect; a substantial proportion are descendants of Muslims who reached the subcontinent from elsewhere. Bangladesh is inhabited by hundreds of species of birds. Common house crows are found everywhere, and their cries are detested by many people of Bangladesh, who regard crows as a bad omen. Bulbuls, magpie-robins, and a wide variety of warblers are also found; some are migrants that appear only in winter. Several kinds of flycatchers occur, and there are mynah birds of several kinds. Other species of birds include various game birds, parakeets, cuckoos, hawks, owls, kingfishers, hornbills, hoopoes, woodpeckers, and vultures. Among the eagles, the crested serpent eagle and the ring-tailed fishing eagle are the most common. There also are an array of water birds, including herons, storks, ducks, and wild geese.

Most of the people of Bangladesh follow the religion of Islam, which was made the official religion by a 1988 constitutional amendment. The arrival of Muslims in Bengal at the beginning of the 13th century and the rapid increase in their strength and influence permanently changed the character and culture of the area. When the Muslims first arrived, Hinduism was by far the dominant religion, although there were pockets of Buddhists and a few adherents of local religions. The Hindus remained in the majority through the Mughal period (16th to 18th century). Even as late as the early 1870s,

there were more than 18 million Hindus in Bengal, compared with about 16 million Muslims. From the 1890s onward, however, the weight began to shift toward the Muslims. There were several reasons for the increase in the proportion of the Muslim population. Perhaps the most significant was the activity of ascetics and Sufis (practitioners of Sufism, a mystical form of Islam), who won converts among lower-caste Hindus. Also significant was an influx of Muslims from northern India and from other countries. Most Muslims are Sunni, but there are a small number of Shīʿites, primarily descendants of immigrants from Iran. Hindus form a significant minority, while Roman Catholics and Buddhists constitute just a tiny fraction of the population. Of the tribes in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, the Chakma, Marma, and Mro are mostly Buddhists. Portions of the Kuki, Khomoi, and Mro communities practice local religions. While most of the Mizo are Christians, the Tripura are Hindus.

Bangladesh’s heavy dependence on agriculture has long contributed to seasonal unemployment among rural farmworkers, as well as to a generally low standard of living in many areas. To counteract this imbalance, a policy of industrialization was adopted in the mid-20th century. During the period of Pakistani administration (1947–71),

priority was given to industries based on indigenous raw materials such as jute, cotton, hides, and skins. The principle of free enterprise in the private sector was accepted, subject to certain conditions, including the national ownership of public utilities. The industrial policy also aimed to develop the production of consumer goods as quickly as possible in order to avoid dependence on imports.

Central to the country’s transportation system are networks of waterways, roads, and railways, the last built mostly during British rule. Inland waterways are important, providing low-cost transport and access to areas where land transport would be costly. They carry most of the domestic and foreign cargo. Chief seaports are Chittagong and Mongla, and there are international airports at Dhaka and Chittagong, as well as several other airports offering domestic service.

The forms of transport used on Bangladesh’s roads range from automobiles and buses to the bullock cart. Two-wheeled horse-drawn jigs and bullock carts are still used, primarily in the north in Rajshahi. Town and city dwellers both rely largely on the cycle rickshaw and on two types of three-wheeled vehicles, known locally as auto and tempo. The lightweight cycle rickshaw, which can easily be used on unpaved roads, is the most popular vehicle in towns and villages. The annual inundations that submerge most of the rural roads necessitate the use of so-called country boats—flat wooden boats that are hand-propelled by means of poles or long paddles.

While Bangladesh’s constitution of 1972 specifies a parliamentary form of government under a prime minister and a president elected by a national assembly, its implementation has been interrupted by coups. In 1975 a military coup led to a regime of martial law, and, though the form of government that followed was a mixture of presidential and parliamentary systems,

power effectively remained with the army. The country experienced additional upsets and periods of martial law in the 1980s, but in 1991 a parliamentary system was restored, with a president as head of state and a prime minister as head of government.The parliament of Bangladesh, called the Jatiya Sangsad (House of the Nation), is a unicameral entity consisting of some 350 seats, most of which are filled through direct election. The remaining seats are reserved for women; these members are elected by the parliament itself. Legislators serve five-year terms. The parliament elects the president, who also serves a five-year term, with a two-term limit. The president then appoints the leader of the legislative majority party (or coalition) as prime minister. The forms of transport used on Bangladesh’s roads range from automobiles and buses to the bullock cart. Two-wheeled horse-drawn jigs and bullock carts are still used, primarily in the north in Rajshahi. Town and city dwellers both rely largely on the cycle rickshaw and on two types of three-wheeled vehicles, known locally as auto and tempo. The lightweight cycle rickshaw, which can easily be used on unpaved roads, is the most popular vehicle in towns and villages. The annual inundations that submerge most of the rural roads necessitate the use of so-called country boats—flat wooden boats that are hand-propelled by means of poles or long paddles.

Bangladesh has maintained essentially the same judicial system that was in operation when the territory was a province of Pakistan and that owes its origins to the system in operation under the British raj. The 1972 constitution divided the Supreme Court of Bangladesh into Appellate and High Court divisions and mandated a complete separation of the judiciary and executive branches of government.

During the subsequent authoritarian regime, however, the power of the Supreme Court was greatly reduced. In 1977 a Supreme Judicial Council was established to draw up a code of conduct for Supreme Court and High Court judges, who may be removed from office by the president upon the council’s recommendation. Judges from the High Court may go on the circuit for a portion of the year to hear cases from lower courts in other parts of the country. Those lower courts include district courts, sessions courts, and several types of magistrate courts. The magistrate courts handle the vast majority of criminal cases.

The foundation of the educational system in Bangladesh was laid down during the period of British rule. The system has three levels—primary, secondary, and higher education. Primary education, which is free but not compulsory, is for children up to about age 10. Only about half of all children attend primary school. Secondary education is divided into three levels—junior secondary, high school,

and higher secondary (intermediate college)—with public examinations being held at the conclusion of each level of schooling. Schools in cities and towns are generally better staffed and financed than those in rural areas.There are hundreds of colleges, most of them affiliated with one of the larger universities, such as the University of Dhaka (1921), the University of Rajshahi (1953), or the University of Chittagong (1966). Other prominent institutions include Jahangirnagar University (1970) on the outskirts of the capital, the Bangladesh Agricultural University (1961) at Mymensingh, the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (1962) at Dhaka, and the Islamic University (1980) at Kushtia. Medical education is provided by several medical colleges and an institute of postgraduate medicine at Dhaka. Each college or institute has a full-fledged hospital attached to it. For vocational training, Bangladesh relies on several engineering colleges and a network of polytechnic and law colleges. In addition, an array of specialized colleges are dedicated to training students in areas such as the arts, home economics, social welfare and research, and various aspects of agriculture.

The Bengali language began to assume a distinct form in the 7th century CE, and by the 11th century a tradition of Bengali literature had been established. Litterateurs received official patronage under both the Pala (8th to 12th century) kings and early Muslim rulers; under the Senas (11th and 12th centuries) and Mughals (early 16th to mid-18th century),

however, they were generally unsupported. Nevertheless, Bengali language and literature thrived in various traditions of music and poetry that were practiced outside the court, laying the foundation for the so-called “Bengali Renaissance” of the 19th century. The renaissance was centred in Kolkata (Calcutta) and led by Ram Mohun Roy (1772–1833); its luminary poet, Rabindranath Tagore(1861–1941), composed the national anthems of both India and Bangladesh and was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. In its early years the movement espoused the virtues of Western education and liberalism, and it was largely confined to the Hindu community.

The Bengali language, Islamic religion, and rural character of Bangladesh all serve to unify the country’s culture to a considerable degree. Although some regional variation occurs across the Bengali community, cultural differences between ethnic, religious, and social minorities and between rural and urban populations are much more salient.

The historical prevalence of Islamic arts in Bangladesh is especially evident in the many mosques, mausoleums, forts, and gateways that have survived from the Mughal period. Like Muslim architecture elsewhere in the subcontinent, these structures are characterized by the pointed arch, the dome, and the minaret. The best-preserved example is the 77-dome mosque at Bagerhat in the south. The ruins of Lalbagh Fort, an incomplete 17th-century Mughal palace at Dhaka, also provide some idea of the older Islamic architectural traditions. While such Mughal architecture belongs in style and conception to the same school as medieval buildings in northern India, a unique innovation in Bangladesh has been the translation into brick and mortar of the sloping four-sided thatched roof found in the countryside. Some remains of pre-Muslim Buddhist architecture have been unearthed at Paharpur and Mahasthan in the north and at Maynamati in the south. They are said to date from the 8th century, and they exhibit the circular stupa pattern characteristic of ancient Buddhist monasteries in India. Public buildings in the British and Pakistani periods sometimes followed the Mughal style, but preferences subsequently shifted to the International Style, which was prevalent in the United States and Europe in the mid-20th century. The softness of Bangladesh’s subsoil precludes the construction of skyscrapers.

Programs are broadcast on radio and television in English and in Bengali; news on the radio is also broadcast in Urdu, Hindi, Burmese, and Arabic. Both radio and television are controlled by the government. By contrast, most newspapers are privately owned, and the constitution provides for freedom of the press. The Bengali newspapers have relatively small circulations,

a fact that reflects the low level of literacy in the country. Nonreaders, however, are still exposed to the ideas and influence of the press, as newspapers are often read aloud in groups. Although their circulation is smaller than that of the Bengali papers, English dailies exercise a disproportionate influence, because their patrons belong to the educated classes. Major Bengali dailies include the Daily Prothom Alo, Dainik Ittefaq, and Dainik Jugantor; major English dailies include The Daily Star, New Age, and The New Nation.

During the rule of the emperor Aurangzeb (reigned 1658–1707), the English East India Company was permitted to establish its base at Calcutta (Kolkata). The British gained strength in the region as the Mughal empire weakened. In 1757, following a battle in the town of Plassey between forces led by British soldier Robert Clive and the Mughal nawab (viceroy) Sirāj-ud-Dawlah,

the East India Company emerged as the dominant political power in Suba Bangalah. Under Gov.-Gen. Charles Cornwallis (served 1786–93), a permanent settlement system was established in the territory—now called the Bengal Presidency—whereby property rights were granted in perpetuity to local zamindars (landlords). This property policy indirectly stimulated the growth of a new landed middle class—especially in Calcutta—called the bhandralok. Initially, the bhandralok was dominated by upper-caste Hindus, but the Muslim presence began to increase toward the end of the 19th century. In time, this middle class emerged as the most active advocate of Indian self-government.The province of Bengal was almost impossible to administer, even after Assam was made a separate province in 1874. In 1905, largely at the initiative of the viceroy George Nathaniel Curzon, two new provinces were created, ostensibly on a geopolitical basis; these provinces were Western Bengal, including Bihar and Orissa, and Eastern Bengal and Assam. With its capital at Calcutta, Western Bengal had a Hindu majority, while the province of Eastern Bengal and Assam, with its capital at Dhaka, was predominantly Muslim. Aside from increasing administrative efficiency, Curzon’s move was intended to position the Muslims as a counterweight to the Hindus. The partition elicited vociferous protest in Western Bengal, especially in Calcutta, where the Indian National Congress (also called the Congress Party; formed in 1885) played a prominent role. Indian Muslim leaders, however, mostly supported the partition, and in 1906 they gathered at Dhaka under the patronage of Nawab Salimullah and set up the All-India Muslim League. Their efforts secured separate electorates and separate constituencies for the Muslims under the constitutional reforms of 1909, but they could not save the partition. In 1912 the partition was annulled, Bihar and Orissa were constituted into a new province, and Assam reverted to its separate status.Following the reunification of Bengal, the Congress Party and the Muslim League worked together for self-government; among the leaders of this effort were Nawab Salimullah, Chitta Ranjan Das, Fazl ul-Haq, and Sarat Chandra Bose. Communal animosities resurfaced in the early 1920s, however, in the wake of a failed nonviolent alignment between the Indian Muslim front known as the Khilafat Movement and the Hindu-led Indian nationalist Noncooperation Movement under Mohandas Karamchand (Mahatma) Gandhi. Consequently, in order to achieve political goals, it became necessary to adopt coalition tactics that would transcend communal antagonisms; the politician who proved most adept at this was Fazl ul-Haq, chief minister of Bengal from 1937 to 1943. He set up his own Peasants and Tenants (Krishak Proja) Party and formed a coalition with the Muslim League. In 1940, at the league’s annual gathering at Lahore, Fazl ul-Haq proposed the so-called “Pakistan Resolution,” demanding independent states for Muslims. The following year, however, he was expelled from the Muslim League; he formed a new coalition and continued to serve as chief minister. In 1942 new rounds of political dialogue commenced, but no agreement could be reached. With legislative elections in 1946, the Muslim League returned to power under the leadership of Hussain Shaheed Suhrawardy, who subsequently became chief minister of Bengal. In August of that year an intense Muslim-Hindu communal conflict erupted in Calcutta, and it eventually spread well beyond the borders of Bengal. This event, combined with protracted and unfruitful discussions between the various groups, made the partition of India appear inevitable. Suhrawardy, Sarat Chandra Bose, and several other prominent political leaders reopened negotiations for a separate, independent, united Bengal.In March 1947 Louis Mountbatten became the last viceroy of British India, with a mandate to transfer powers. As plans were being formulated for the partition of India, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, a leading figure of the Muslim League, advocated for the formation of a united Bengal; Mountbatten was not against the idea, but Mahatma Gandhi and the Congress Party opposed it. When British colonial rule ended in August 1947, two new countries—India and Pakistan—were born, and Bengal was split between them. West Bengal went to India, and East Bengal formed the eastern wing of Pakistan, which was bisected by a vast tract of northern India.

In January 1972 Mujib was installed as the first prime minister of the new parliamentary government of Bangladesh, and Abu Sayeef Choudhury became president. Still troublesome, however, were various local paramilitary forces, known as Razakars, that supported the Pakistani cause. The Bengali Razakar force was called Al-Badr, while the Urdu-speaking force was known as Al-Shams.

As Bangladeshi retribution against these pro-Pakistani forces ensued, Urdu speakers—known as Biharis, though most had been born locally rather than in Bihar—fled into enclaves where their numbers gave some security; nevertheless, many were killed. Hundreds of thousands of Biharis were placed in overcrowded refugee camps, where decades later many still awaited asylum in Pakistan.Bangladesh’s constitution of 1973 provided for a secular state, a parliamentary form of government, a bill of rights, and a strong commitment to local government. Acceptance by the international community, however, presented a challenge. The initial application of Bangladesh to join the United Nations was vetoed by China; it was not until 1974 that Bangladesh was admitted to the organization. The new country confronted many other problems as well, including the restoration of transportation, communication, and international trade networks; the rehabilitation of the power supply; the revitalization of education, health, and population programs; and the resumption of agricultural and industrial production.