Why Assam to be Asom?

its time to change allahabad to prayag, ahmedabad to karnavati, and hyderbad to billgatesnagar

Pune, and Mumbai are correct pronunciations of those cities

This fad is all over world. We have new name for major city of Punjab which was name of great Englishman who made good contribution now to pay honors to Late King of KSA. I do not know why writer is so much agitated?

#19 not all over the world. in the US, e.g., a large number of states simply retain the American Indian names for the tribes that lived there (Massachussets, Michigan, North and South Dakota, and so on). Older cities named by Spaniards (San Franciso, Los Angeles, St Augustine) retain their names. In the UK, ancient towns named by Romans who ruled over england at the time retain their name (Manchester etc. - in fact all the ``Chesters`` in england from from the Roman Castra, which was the name for a Roman military garrison station.

By changing names in attempts to get cheap popularity with someone, the governments in many developing countries have merely taken away the historical continuity and name recognition associated with these countries.

But this is indeed funny :

[Mr. Yechury, on the other hand, added a third and to him a ‘secular’ name. ``If anything, we propose the name be changed to Leningrad. The great Vladimir Ilyich is now no longer respected in his own country Russia. At the same time his idelogical contributions to the cause of the Indian people is immense.`` ]

I suggest Delhi should be renamed Macacabad

What about Lahore?

Re: # 20
Thanks for pointing out. May this activity is sign of ever to be developing countries. Also there is obsession about money loosing national air line, Stell making plant , third grade nations with overactive 5th rate leaders. Problem is no body can oppose this game effectively it as if saying let us pay homage to old gone people. Good night good 2007 Feb.

The changing/keeping of names everywhere boils down to the visceral issues of identity and identification. In India and Pakistan, a very widespread belief is that Muslims and British were the historical ``conquerers,`` and others (Hindus etc) were the historical ``defeated.`` In that framework, formerly ``defeated`` peoples seek to return the places to ``original`` names once they gain the right to rule over themselves.

How can we get rid of this mindset of the former ``rulers`` and the ``ruled?`` It is as heartbreakingly common as it is probably silly.

One solution could be for people to acknowledge the history. That will make everyone more sensitive to the concerns of others, so a solution could be found in which no one group feels particularly slighted.

Possibly, then we will all behave more ``rationally``.

tahmed32, those are good examples of places where people have overcome this problem. Many Americans have no problem identifying with their native American roots, and don`t see their identities at odds with the identities of American Indians or of Spaniard Settlers (although it would be an interesting survey to ask native Americans themselves if they would prefer to ``re-establish`` most old names were they to re-gain power). Similarly, UK too seems to have erased the strong mentality of former (Roman) rulers and ruled, with few Briton now identifying themselves and their heritage as such.

We, however, continue to stay close to separate parts of a common heritage,...so the lasting solution may lie in disabling people`s strong and separate identifications with divisive aspects of history.

at least bombay was always called mumbai by locals and poona pune and calcutta kolkata...and i am not talking of old times but by comtemperory locals. e.g., the local radio broadcaster always said ``akashwani, mumbai kendra``. wtf is chennai and bangaluru..and we must change Dehli to Dilli right away. may be south dilli retain Dehli.

jang, kannadigas have always used the name bangaluru or something else sounding fairly similar (could some kannadiga confirm that, please?).

all kannadigas i met (outside) call it baaaynglaur

Re: # 5
Donot forget naked aggression and crossing international borders of Junagarh, Goa, East Pakistan, State of Bhopal ,Kashmir one of most prosporous and peaceful Nizam State and putting H H Nizam under house arrest.

#24 kaalchakra: so the lasting solution may lie in disabling people`s strong and separate identifications with divisive aspects of history.

Good point. british raj is much a part of the subcontinent`s heritage as any other time - whether it is mughal, delhi sultanate and co, the various kingdoms and entire civilizations before that. the city of taxila alone has several layers to it - most notably the greco-buddhist (or gandhara) layer and buddhist period before that. these are all part of a common heritage that needs to be preserved.

It is only the petty minded who destroy what came before them - one of the worst damages done being by a single catholic priest who around the 16th century i think burnt all the burnable manuscripts of the mayan period in central america. or his brother priests who used bricks from the aztec city ot tenochtitlan to build churches, and so mexico city now sits on the rubble of tenochtitlan.

In Pakistan, Lyallpur was founded around 1890 after a visit to the site which was basically a wilderness at the time by the local Deputy Commissioner, and thrived on the chenab canal also built during the british period. It was named Lyallpur after the british governor or Panjab. The name became part of the pakistan`s heritage. What was accomplished by changing it to Faisalabad in 1977 (under Bhutto I think, not under zia) I dont know - he was ousted the same year by Zia and hanged a couple of years later. Zia fared no better - his name is mud as far as Pakistan`s history is concerned.

#29 all this from those who have rejected everything of their heritage.

#30 no bs, please. this is the front page. :-)

Re: # 27
Was Banglore part of Nizam state ?