# Rajshahi Division

Rajshahi Division (Bengali: রাজশাহী বিভাগ) is one of the eight first-level administrative divisions of Bangladesh. It has an area of 18,174.4 square kilometres (7,017.2 sq mi) and a population at the 2022 Census of 20,353,119. Rajshahi Division consists of 8 districts, 70 upazilas (the next lower administrative tier) and 1,092 unions (the lowest administrative tier).
The region has historically been dominated by various feudal Rajas, Maharajas and Zamindars. Formerly comprising 16 districts, a new division (Rangpur Division) was formed with the 8 northern districts of the old Rajshahi Division from early 2010.

## Etymology and names

The Rajshahi Division is named after Rajshahi District. Dominated by various feudal Rajas, Maharajas and zamindars of mixed origins throughout history, the name is a compound of the words Raj and Shahi, both of which can be translated into reign or kingdom. Archaic spellings in the English language also included Rajeshae.

## History

Rajshahi Division was created in 1829 by the local British Government. It was the largest division in Bengal Province. During partition of Bengal in 1947, the division was partitioned in two halves. The eastern half remained as Rajshahi division, while its western half became Jalpaiguri division of West Bengal, India. In January 2010, Rangpur Division split from Rajshahi division.

## Demographics

Religion in Rajshahi division (2022) :
| Religion | Religion | Percent | Percent |
| Muslims | Muslims | 93.71% | 93.71% |
| Hindus | Hindus | 5.70% | 5.70% |
| Christians | Christians | 0.41% | 0.41% |
| Others | Others | 0.18% | 0.18% |
At the time of the 2022 Bangladeshi census, Rajshahi division had a population of 20,351,864. Muslims are 19,071,092 which is 93.71% of the population, while Hindus are 1,159,152 which is 5.70% of the population. Other religions (almost entirely Christianity and indigenous faiths) are only 0.59% of the population and are mainly found among the ethnic minorities.

## Districts

* Natore
* Rajshahi
* Sirajganj
* Pabna
* Bogura
* Chapainawabganj
* Naogaon
* Joypurhat

## Education

The major educational institutes in Rajshahi are:
* University of Rajshahi (RU)
* Rajshahi Polytechnic Institute (RPI)
* Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET)
* Rajshahi Medical University ( RMC)
* North Bengal International University (NBIU)
* Rajshahi Medical College (RMC)
* Bangladesh Army University of Engineering & Technology
* Rajshahi Science & Technology University
* Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College, Bogra
* Joypurhat Girls Cadet College, Joypurhat
* Rajshahi College
* Rajshahi Govt. City College, Rajshahi
* New Govt. Degree College, Rajshahi
* Rajshahi Cadet College
* Azizul Haque College, Bogra
* Bogra Zilla School
* Pabna Zilla School
* Pabna Cadet College
* Pabna Textile Engineering College
* Govt. Edward College, Pabna
* Pabna University of Science and Technology
* Pabna Medical College, Pabna
* Joypurhat Government College
* Shaheed M. Monsur Ali Medical College, Sirajganj
* Government Laboratory High School Rajshahi
* Rajshahi Collegiate School (RCS), Rajshahi
* Naogaon K.D. Government High School, Naogaon
The University of Rajshahi (established 1953) is the second largest university of Bangladesh with around 50 disciplines and 6 institutes. Rajshahi Collegiate School (established in 1828) is one of the oldest school in the country and Indian sub-continent which became again the best school in Bangladesh in 2018.

## Notable residents

* Montazur Rahman Akbar, film-maker, grew up in Akkelpur.
* Group Captain (Rtd.) Saiful Azam, fighter pilot, was Member of Parliament (MP) for Pabna-3 from 1991 to 1996.
* Manzoor Alam Beg, photographer
* Apu Biswas
* Mohammad Ali Bogra
* General Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri, OBE, former Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army
* Pramatha Chaudhuri, writer
* Samson H. Chowdhury, business mangate
* Zahid Hasan, stage actor
* Amjad Hossain, (Member of National Assembly of Pakistan), organiser of Bangladesh War of Independence in 1971.
* A. B. Mirza Azizul Islam, advisor of military-backed 2007-2008 caretaker government
* Taijul Islam, player for the Bangladesh national cricket team
* Abdul Jalil, politician
* James
* Air Vice Marshal (Rtd.) A. K. Khandker, first Chief of Staff of Bangladesh Air Force (1971–1975), Former Minister, Ministry Planning of Bangladesh
* Mahiya Mahi
* Amiya Bhushan Majumdar, Indian novelist
* Partha Pratim Majumder
* Bande Ali Mia, poet
* Bidya Sinha Saha Mim
* Mohammed Fazle Rabbee, cardiologist, intellectual
* Mushfiqur Rahim
* Arifur Rahman
* Tarique Rahman
* Ziaur Rahman
* Sqn Ldr Sarfaraz Ahmed Rafiqui, War hero of Indo-Pak War of 1965