🏛️ Historical

1. Vanga – Ancient Origins

The name Bengal is indeed linked to the ancient Vanga (also pronounced Bôngô)  refers to an ancient seafaring kingdom mentioned in Sanskrit texts like the Mahabharata, Purāṇas, and Harivaṃśa.

2. Vangala (Vangala) – Early Medieval Usage

Over centuries, the name Vangala evolved into Bangalah or Bangala. The earliest known epigraphic mention of Vangala appears in the Nesari plates—also known as the Nesarika grant—were issued by Rashtrakuta king Govinda III around 805 CE, where mentioning the Pala king

In the 11th century – the term “Vangala” evolved into “Bangala”, along with the relevant epigraphic evidence, particularly from the Tirumalai rock inscription, which is the part of a larger set catalogued in the multi-volume series South Indian Inscriptions.

The Tirumalai rock inscription, located atop a hill in North Arcot district (now Tamil Nadu), is a notable Chola-era inscription commissioned by Rajendra Chola I around 1023–1025 CE.  It’s carved into a smooth rock face near a Jaina relief, content is written in Tamil (the meikeerthi style) and ecounts his northern military campaigns into eastern India, showcasing both the ambition and scope of the Chola Empire at that time.

Significantly, it records how Rajendra Chola’s defeated Dharmapala in Dandabhukti (Midnapur), followed by Dakshina-Radha (Howrah–Hooghly), and then entrance into Vangala desa—where Govindachandra was acknowledged as the king of that region. where Govindachandra, the king, was forced to flee from his elephant in battle.

3. Bangala / Bangalah – Medieval Islamic Period

The term “Bangala” or “Bangalah” became the widely used name for the region:

🏰⚔️ Delhi Sultanate

Around  the 13th century CE -as Islamic rule expanded into eastern India through the conquests of the Delhi Sultanate,The term “Bangala” or “Bangalah” (بَنْغَالَة) began appearing in Islamic texts and maps through Arabic and Persian scholars and travelers.

👑 Sultanate Period

Around  the 14th century, The first independent Sultan of Bengal, Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah, declared himself “Shah of Bangala”(meaning “King of Bengal”), For independent from the Delhi Sultanate solidifying the name as a political and territorial identity.

🕌📜Mughal Period

Around the 16th century, during the Mughal period, the region of Bengal was formally incorporated into the empire’s administrative structure as Subah-i-Bangalah (the Bengal Province). A fascinating cultural theory found in Abu’l-Fazl’s Ain-i-Akbari suggests that the name “Bengal” may have originated from “Bung”—an earlier name for the region—combined with the suffix “-al,” referring to earthen mounds (“al”) built by rulers in the lowlands, thus forming the name “Bengal.”

5. Modern Terms: Bengal and Bangla

Around the 17th century, during the European colonial period—especially under the British East India Company and later the British Raj—the name “Bengal” was adopted from the Persian term Bangāla and adapted into various European languages:

• Portuguese: Bengala
• French: Bengale
• English: Bengal

The British later institutionalized the term “Bengal” in names such as:

• Bengal Presidency
• Bengal Army
• University of Calcutta (originally proposed as the University of Bengal)
• Bengal Renaissance

Today, “Bengal” remains the standard English term for the historical and geographic region that includes modern-day Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, while “Bangla” is used locally to refer to the language, culture, and people.