Mysore Palace of Karnataka which is known for its history and grandeur.
The state which we currently know as Karnataka was divided into more than 20 provinces at the time of the country’s independence. These also included Bombay Presidency, Hyderabad State and Madras and it was part of Mysore State. After independence, Mysore became a part of India. Then due to the movement of Kannada speaking people, a new state Mysore was created. However, the Kannada people did not like this name and wanted to keep the old name of their state Karnataka. Due to this, the name of Mysore was changed to Karnataka on 1 November 1973.
However, the story is not just that. Mysore and Karnataka both are very ancient names. Let us know what is the whole story of these two names?
What is the story of Karnataka?
The Vijayanagara Empire established in the year 1336 was the Karnataka Empire or Karnataka country. Vijayanagara or modern Hampi was the capital of the Karnataka Empire. Ancient Mysore had also become a part of this empire. Then the Vijayanagara Empire collapsed and in the year 1565, the Hindu Wadiyar kings declared Mysore an independent state. Hyder Ali, a soldier, snatched power from Mysore’s ruling Wodeyar brothers Devraj and Nandaraj in 1761 and Muslim rule was established over Mysore.
It was during the time of Hyder Ali that the British had set their sights on Mysore. Haider fought many battles with them. Later his son Tipu took over the power of Mysore and continued protecting it from the British for a long time. He also fought many battles with the British and had to give them half of his kingdom as a treaty. However, after the death of Tipu in 1799 during the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War, the British took control of Mysore.
After the death of Tipu, the British captured Mysore.
State of Mysore was formed in the year 1956
When the country became independent after a long fight against the British, the State of Mysore became an integral part of India. When Andhra Pradesh was formed in the year 1853, many districts of the then Madras were merged into Mysore. Due to this the local people got angry and started agitating. In view of this, on the basis of language, the government formed the State of Mysore or Mysore State on 1 November 1956, in which all the Kannada speaking areas were included together.
That’s why the name of Mysore state was changed
Kannada speaking people were not satisfied with the name of Mysore State. He wanted it to be named Karnataka, as it was in ancient times. Even during the British times it was called Karnatik. But the royal people of the old Mysore region were not in favor of changing the name of Mysore state to Karnataka.
Therefore, they put many obstacles in the way of bringing about this change. Whereas the common people were in favor of naming their state Karnataka at any cost. Ultimately they won and it was agreed to change the name of the state, which the royal people had to accept.
By passing a resolution in the Mysore Assembly, the name of the state was approved as Karnataka.
Resolution passed in Mysore Assembly
In view of the agitation of the common people, a resolution was passed in the Mysore State Assembly in July 1972. In this, the name of the state was approved as Karnataka. It was implemented on November 1, 1973, i.e. the day on which Mysore State was formed in independent India. The then Chief Minister of the state was Devraj Urs.
Where did the name Karnataka come from?
Actually, there are different explanations regarding the name Karnataka. But one universal explanation is that Karnataka means the high land of black soil. Actually Karu means black and high and Naat means land. That means the high land of black soil was called Karnataka. It includes high land because the word altitude has been taken from the Deccan plateaus.
Maharaja Palace is the royal palace of Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV.
The history of the word Mysore is related to Purana.
The word Mysore is a distorted form of Mysuru. This word was taken from Mahishur or Mahishasurana Uru. In Kannada it means city of Mahishasura. According to the story of Devi Bhagwat, Mysuru was ruled by a demon named Mahishasura, who had a head like a buffalo. The gods and goddesses had appealed to Mother Parvati to save them from Mahishasura. On this, he took the form of Chamundeshwari Devi and killed Mahishasura on Chamundi hill located near Mysuru.
That is why even today this hill is known as Chamundi Hill and the city is known as Mysore or Mysuru. However, later this word Mysuru got corrupted to Mysuru and then to Mysore. That is, the word Mysore exists since ancient times, which means the city of Mahishasura.
Also read: Can couples from other religions marry in Arya Samaj?