BANGLADESHI INFORMATION FOR YOU: SHORTLY BANGLADESH

VITAL STATISTICS

Shortly Vital Statistics Of Bangladesh Official Name : People’s Republic of Bangladesh Area : 144,000 square kilometers Capital : Dhaka Government : Parliamentary democracy Currency : Taka (approximately 70 Taka=USD 1) Language : Bangla National Days : National Martyrs Day - February 21 Independence Day - March 21 Victory Day - December 16 Population : 2006 estimate: 147 million Principal Crop : Rice National Bird : Magpie Robin National Fish : Hilsa National Fruit : Jackfruit Favorite Meal : Fish curry Seasons : 6 seasons each 2 months long Spring, Stormy, Monsoon, Steamy, Foggy, Winter

THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF BANGLADESH

Officially Name : The People's Republic Of Bangladesh The People's Republic of Bangladesh is a country in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south. Together with the Indian state of West Bengal, it makes up the ethno-linguistic region of Bengal. The name Bangladesh means "Country of Bengal" in the official Bengali language. Bengali is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal and Assam mostly in the districts of Cachar, Karimganj, Hailakandi, Dhubri, Goalpara and Nogaon. With nearly 230 million total speakers, Bengali is one of the most spoken languages . With its long and rich literary tradition, Bengali serves to bind together a culturally diverse region. In 1952, when Bangladesh used to be East Pakistan, this strong sense of identity led to the Bengali Language Movement, in which several people braved bullets and died on February 21. This day has now been declared as the International Mother Language Day

OFFICIAL STATUS

Bengali is the national and official language of Bangladesh and one of the 23 official languages recognized by the Republic of India.It is the official language of the states of West Bengal and Tripura. It is a major language in the Indian union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.It was made an official language of Sierra Leone in order to honour the Bangladeshi peacekeeping force from the United Nations stationed there. It is also the co-official language of Assam, which has three predominantly Sylheti-speaking districts of southern Assam: Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi.The national anthems of both India and Bangladesh were written by the Bengali Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore

SPOKEN AND LITERARY VARIETIES

Bengali exhibits diglossia between the written and spoken forms of the language. Two styles of writing, involving somewhat different vocabularies and syntax, have emerged

BANGLA ACCADEMY

Bangla Academy established on 3 December 1955, is the national academy for promoting Bangla language in Bangladesh. The main office of the organisation is located at the Burdwan House on the campus of the University of Dhaka, beside Ramna Park.

NATIONAL SYMBOLS OF BANGLADESH

Anthem : Amar Shonar Bangla Animal : Royal Bengal Tiger Bird Oriental : Magpie Robin Fish : Hilsa Flower : White Water Lily Fruit : Jackfruit Sport : Kabadi Calendar : Bengali calendar

MAJOR CITY AREA POPULATION

City / City population / Metro population