# Rajnagar Upazila

Rajnagar (Bengali: রাজনগর) is an upazila of the Moulvibazar District in Sylhet Division, Bangladesh. The district has roughly 43,070 houses and an area of approximately 340 km$^2$. There are three well-known rivers which flow across the Upazila border side of Rajnagar: the Kushiara in the North, the Manu across the southern three unions (Kamarchak, Tengrabazar, and Mansurnager), and the Dholai across Kamarchak and the southern border.

## Etymology

The name of the city, Rajnagar is derived from two words, Raj and nagar, meaning "City of the King". It possibly refers to the kings of the ancient Ita kingdom wherein Rajnagar was the capital.

## History

It is suggested that the area was inhabited by Buddhists and Hindus as evidence from inscriptions suggests there was an ancient university in Panchgaon, Rajnagar. The terrain was headquarters of the ancient Ita Kingdom founded by Raja Bhanu Narayan and its capital was in the villages of Bhumiura and Eolatoli.. Copper plates have been found from 930 AD in Paschimbagh, Tengubazar Mandir, Rajnagar. The district was also part of the ancient Kamarupa kingdom. In the mid-14th century, Shah Ruknuddin settled and propagated Islam in Kadamhata, Ita Pargana. Ruknuddin's mazar remains in Kadamhata Bazar.
Rajnagar contains many tea gardens and historical places. During the Bangladesh Liberation War, the Panchgaon Factory in Rajnagar Upazila produced cannons under the command of M. A. G. Osmani. A famous historical cannon, nicknamed Jahankosa, built by Janardan Karmakar remains in display in Dhaka. The first Upazila Chairman Freedom Fighter Rana Choudhury is the founder of Rajnagar Degree College (Principal Abdul Ahad Choudhury founded the college in 1982); Major General Abdu Rab is the co-founder of that college. The present Upazila Chairman is Freedom Fighter Md. Askir Khan of the Ruling Party Awamileague. For the last two terms Md. Misbahuduzza (Velai) of Awamileague has been the Upazila Chairman of Rajnagar. Munshibazar is one of the most important commercial unions in this Upazila due to the large number of goods and services. The tea gardens produce plenty of different types of tea and fruit as well. It has big Hawrs and hills that makes it unique one in the upazilla. A list of important figures in Munshibazar are given below.
* Eng. Syed Golam Sarwar, Ex-Superintendent Engineer, DPHE, BANGLADESH
* Mr. Mohtossir Ali, Educationalist
* Mr. Engineer Farashat Ali, Chairman, NRB Commercial Bank Limited, Bangladesh
* Dr. Syed Sharmin Sarwar, M. A. G. Osmani Medical College, Sylhet, Bangladesh.
* Mr. Syed Golam Shahajarul Alam, Director, Bangladesh Bank.
* Mr. Khan Jamal Nurul Islam. writer & Journalist (Editor-of Shahajalal Darpan, fortnight Bengali).
* Mr. K M Abu Taher Choudhury . Prominent Journalist (President of Bangladesh Journalist Association of UK.)

## Demographics

Religions in Rajnagar Upazila (2022) :
| Religion | Religion | Percent | Percent |
| Islam | Islam | 77.98% | 77.98% |
| Hinduism | Hinduism | 21.95% | 21.95% |
| Other or not stated | Other or not stated | 0.07% | 0.07% |
According to the 2011 Census of Bangladesh, Rajnagar Upazila had 43,070 households and a population of 232,666. 60,790 (26.13%) were under 10 years of age. Rajnagar had a literacy rate (age 7 and over) of 48.62%, compared to the national average of 51.8%, and a sex ratio of 1056 females per 1000 males. 14,134 (6.07%) lived in urban areas. Ethnic population was 1,788 (0.77%).
As of the 1991 Bangladesh census, Rajnagar has a population of 174280. Males constitute are 50.66% of the population, and females 49.34%. This Upazila's eighteen up population is 87249. Rajnagar has an average literacy rate of 27.2% (7+ years), and the national average of 32.4% literate.

## Administration

Rajnagar Upazila is divided into eight union parishads: Fatehpur, Kamarchak, Mansurnagar, Munshi Bazar, Panchgaon, Rajnagar, Tengra, and Uttarbhag. The union parishads are subdivided into 143 mauzas and 267 villages.

## Notable people

* Begum Serajunnessa Choudhury, businesswoman and politician
* Shah Ruknuddin, Sufi preacher