Place names in India

Place names in India are usually in Indian languages. Other languages include Portuguese, Dutch, English and Arabic.

Since Indian Independence, several Indian cities have adopted pre-English names, most notably Mumbai (formerly Bombay) and Kolkata (formerly Calcutta).

Common place names

Most place names are named after prominent geographical features, such as rivers and lakes. Others are named after personalities such as kings or mythological characters. Although Hindu mythology was a main influence, Islamic and Christian influences are present, particularly in central and northern India.

Anglicized names

Some anglicized names have been officially changed to reflect native spellings. The names of the cities, towns, and villages are usually in Indian languages, while most street names carry English names. Examples: Washermanpet, George Town, Chennai

Variations

Certain names have variations in different languages. Oor/Ooru is a common Dravidian name which means a place, also known as Oor in Tamil and Malayalam, whereas it is called Ooru in Telugu and Kannada.

Andhra Pradesh and Telangana

Common suffixes are Ooru, Palli, Abad, Pudi, Pedu, Pet/Peta, Patnam, Wada, Cherla, Seema, etc.

Suffix	meaning	Common place names
Ooru/Ur/Ore	Village	Guntur, Nellore, Chittoor, Eluru
Abad	Cultivated Place	Hyderabad, Secunderabad, Nizamabad
Patnam	city	Visakhapatnam, Machilipatnam
Wada	Area	Vijayawada, Vemulawada
Palli/Palle	Village	Peddapalli, Madanapalle
Nagar/Nagaram	city	Karimnagar, Mahabubnagar, Vizianagaram
Pet/Peta	town	Suryapet, Chilakaluripet

Arunachal Pradesh

Namdapha National park, Roing, Tezu, Sakteng Wildlife sanctuary, Namsai, Parsurum Kund, Bhairabkunda, Khonsa, Jairampur, Bhismaknagar, Changlang, Hawai, Nampong, Koloriang, etc.

Bihar

Bodh Gaya, Patna, Rajgir, Gaya, Raxaul, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Pawapuri, Sasaram, Hajipur, Bihar Sharif, Kesaria, Sonpur, Munger and Bagalpur Division.

Chhattisgarh

Raipur, Jagdalpur, Bilaspur, Durg, Kanger Ghati National Park, Bhilai, Sirpur, Ambikapur, Korba, Kawardha, Raigarh, Dongargarh, Tirarthgar, Atal Nagar, Mainpat, Indravati National Park, Ratanpur, Rajim, Chitrakoot, Rajnandgaon, Dhamtari, Kanker and Champa.

Delhi

New Delhi, Gurugram, Mehrauli, Karol Bagh, Delhi, Rohini, Chanakyapuri, Sonipat, Dwarka, Vasant Kunj, Pitam Pura, Bahadurgarh, Greater Kailash, Delhi Cantonment, Shahpur Jat, Shahdara, Najafgarh, Badarpurh, Nangloi Jat, Saidul Ajaib and Bawana.

Goa

Panaji, Calangute, Palolem Beach, Anjuna, Baga, Old Goa, Candolim, Margao, Vagator, Colva, Dona Paula, Vasco Da Gama, Mandrem, Morjim, Canacona, Mapusa, Arpora, Bogmalo Beach, Benaulim, Cavelossim, Ponda, Varca, Bardez, Majorda, Mobor, Dabolim, Agonda and Mormugao.

Jammu and Kashmir

Pangong Tso, Zanskar, Nyak Tso, Samba, Ramban, Khardong, Manikiala and Ranjit Sagar Dam Lake.

Jharkhand

Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Purulia, Deoghar, Dhanbad, Maithon, Hazaribagh, Netarhat, Bokaro Steel City, Ghatshila, Giridih, Rajmahal, Dumka, Parasnath Hill, Rajrappa, Medininagar, Patratu, Chaibasa, Panchet, Betla, Deoghar, Sahebganj, Pakur, Kodarma and McCluskieganj, Gumla.

Karnataka

Common endings are Ooru, Palaya, Halli, Pete, Seeme. Less common are prefixes such as Sri.

Suffix	meaning	Common place names
Bhavi	well	Arabhavi, Sulibhavi, Bilebhavi, Nagarbhavi
Gud	habitation	Nanjangud, Handigud
Halli	village	Kanchamaranahalli,
Keri	colony	Madikeri, Tallikeri,
Kote	fort	Bagalakote,
Ooru/uru	village	Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Chikkamagaluru, Kitturu. Emmiganuru,
Pete	town	Chikkupete, Hosapete
Pura	city	Kundapura, Narasimharajapura, Kanakapura

Kerala

In Kerala, most names are based on Tamil root words just as in Tamil Nadu. Common suffixes include Oor, Cheri/Sheri, Kulam, Kaadu, Naadu and Mangalam. Examples: Kadavoor, Puthusherry, Kuttanad and Kunnamangalam

Maharashtra

Mumbai, Ellora Caves, Aurangabad, Pune, Lonalva, Nashik, Shirdi, Alibag, Mahabaleshwar, Ganpatipule, Matheran, Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Nagpur, Kolhapur, Khandala, Malvan, Ajanta, Panchgani, Takarli, Satara, Ratnagiri, Raigad Fort, Thane, Igatpuri, Saputara and Bhandardara.

Manipur

Imphal, Loktak Lake, Moreh, Moirang, Ukrhul, Andro, Bishnupur, Shirui, Kakching, Churachandpur, Tamenglong, Thoubaul, Khangkhui, Jiribam, Leimaram, Khonghampat, Khongjom, Leimakhong, Tengnoupaul, Chandel, Kangpokpi, Senapati, Nambol, Nony, Jessami, Singda, Thanga and Khayang.

Mizoram

Aizawl, Lunglei, Champhai, Thenzhal, Murlen National Park, Serchhip, Murlen, Siaha, Kolasib, Hmuifang, Vairegte, Mamit, Saitual, Lengteng Wildlife Sanctuary, Zokhawthar, Baktawng, Farkawn, Phulpui, Sialsuk, Khawnlung, Tlabung, Lengpui and Ngengpui Wildlife Sanctuary.

Orissa

In Odisha (formerly known as Orissa) common suffixes are Pur, Garh, Gada.

Suffix	Meaning	Common Place names
Pur	City	Sambalpur, Berhampur,Rairangpur, Subarnapur, Puri
Garh	Fort	Bargarh, Debagarh, sundergarh, Nayagarh

Tamil Nadu

In Tamil Nadu, common suffixes are Oor, Puram, Kudi, Cheri, Paakkam, Pattinam, Palayam, Kaadu, Pettai, Mangalam, Seemai and Kuppam. One common prefix is Thiru. The majority of names are in Tamil language. Telugu and Kannada place names can be seen in border areas. Sanskrit names are found because of the historical relationship of Sanskrit with Hinduism.

Suffix	Meaning	Common Place names
Oor/ur	city	Ambattur, Thanjavur, Karur, hosur, tirupur
Kaadu	Forest	Yercaud,
pattinam	Coastal area	Nagapattinam
puram	ectal	kanchipuram, ramanathapuram, viluppuram
ore	city	coimbatore, cuddalore, vellore
ni	bee	theni
kal	paving stone	namakkal
kudi	drink	karaikkudi, paramakudi, thoothukkudi

Tripura

Common suffix include mura.

suffix	meaning	common places
assa		Ambassa, Bagbassa
bari		Churaibari, Jolaibari
chhara		Laxmanchhara, Nabinchhara, Karaichhara, Bagaichhara, Dhanichhara, Sanichhara
mura		Teliamura, Sonamura,

Places with multiple names

Some cities have different names in different languages

• Mangalore is also known as Kudla, Mangalapuram and Kodial.

Global Indian influence in place names

See Indosphere, Sanskritization, Indianization of Southeast Asia.

See also

• Renaming of cities in India
• List of Indian cities on rivers
• List of cities and towns in India