Thread by @abdaal

A non exhaustive thread on the origin of Cuttack street and market names

Lal Bagh - Named after the Lal Bagh Palace of Mughal Governors. Later used by Marathas and British. Present building built in 1870 for Commissioner of Orissa. Now Shishu Bhavan.

Meria Bazar - Either named after the medhs of the various pujas or the colony of the rescued Merias from what is now Kandhamal who were saved from human sacrifice by the Meria Commission of 1840s

Buxi Bazaar - Mir Bakshi was the paymaster of Maratha and Mughal armies. The area is NOT named after the freedom fighter Buxi Jagabandhu. British records from 10 yrs before his imprisonment show the name as Bakshi Bazaar

Naya Sadak - The road is only relatively new! It was built in late 17th century by the Mughal governor as a new market place leading from Lal Bagh Palace. Survives as one of the few straight roads of the city

Kafla Bazar - Appears in early records as Qafila Bazar. Likely to have been the central market for the caravans or qafilas that brought in goods from North India

Chauliaganj - The Marathas around the 1780s designated this suburb as the main paddy (chawal) market of the town.

Jobra - Unclear. But the Savara tribe of hills nearby have a similar word for a pond or marsh. Likely to have been a waterlogged area along the Mahanadi. Described as a “charming little village of mango orchards” by John Beames, Collector in 1875

Chaudhri Bazar - Named after a Marwari trader who was the benefactor of the Jain temple nearby. Dates from the Maratha rule

Dewan Bazar - Named after the Dewan of the Subahdar of Orissa under Aurangzeb's rule who constructed the mosque in the market. Dates from 1660s.

Alamchand Bazar - A khatri trader and bureaucrat who rose to be the Dewan of Nawab Shujauddin when he was Governor of Orissa in 1720s. Shuja later became the Nawab of Bengal. Alam Chand followed his master and became Rai Rayan, the virtual number two of the Nawab's realm

Mansinghpatna - Clearly named after Raja Mansingh who defeated the Afghans and established Mughal rule in 1590. He is also believed to have constructed the original Laxmi Narayana Temple in this area for the Rajputs in his army.

Bidanasi - Doubtful but likely to be a corruption of Varanasi. The Kesari kings of Odisha sought to replicate all the pilgrim sites of the Hindu world in their realm. The fort of Abhinava Katak Varanasi (New Fort of Varanasi) was their creation.

Badambadi, Rajabagicha, Banabagicha - Numerous gardens covered the area between Chandni Chowk and Barabati. The agricultural fields lasted till the early 20th century

Balu Bazar - Reference to the days when the Kathjori's sand used to blow across in the summer months.

Chakkar Padia - Cuttack’s Race Course was a favourite of the sahibs. Name is either from the Polo Chukkers or the horse race itself. The entire area is now a part of Ravenshaw University

Purighat - Before the bridge, this was where the Kathjori was crossed for going to Puri

Cantonment Rd - The Old Secretariat and today’s Police Headquarters housed a major Army cantonment from 1810 to 1910s. The NCC offices are its last remnant. All bungalows on the road housed Army officers with a few Civil Servants. Till 1970s, the Mahanadi abutted the road

Suddur Bazar - Extinct name for the markets around Manisahu Chowk. Called Sadar or Main Market as they supplied the nearby Cantonment

Bank Bazar - Another extinct name for the market opposite Big Bazaar. Housed Cuttack’s first bank in 1830s. Now UCO Bank main branch.

Firingi Bazar - William Bruton visited Cuttack in 1632. Shah Jahan’s Dy Governor of Orissa allowed East India Co to open its factories at Cuttack, Hariharpur and Balasore. The Cuttack factory was located here till Maratha rule. Firingi was the generic name for all Westerners.

Sutahat - The great textile and yarn market of the province. As early as 1640s, the British describe 3000 weaver families in Jagatsinghpur. Their produce was doubtless sold in Cuttack town.

Ranihat - Unfortunately obscure. A very old name but no mention of the Rani in history

Barabati - 12 batis or 240 bighas - the fort’s total area. Abul Fazl describes it as having 9 courtyards. When conquered in 1803, it had crenellations on the river side, double walls, bastions on the gates and a huge flagpost. PWD vandalised it till 1850 to make roads.

Bajrakabati - An old embankment was located on what is the main road now. The name probably refers to its sluice gates

Chandni Chowk - Not a road but a water tank at the crossroads in front of the Lal Bagh palace that reflected moonlight. All traces of it are long lost

Kanika Chhak - Reference to the decaying Cuttack palace of the Kanika Estate, one of the largest Zamindaris of Odisha - now in Kendrapara district. It had as many as 648 villages and the Zamindar was given the title of Raja.

And that is it! Hope this thread motivates my fellow Cuttackias to explore the city (after the Lockdown of course!) and discover its hidden history for themselves.

PS - Will be happy to cover anything prominent that I have left out here. Post it as a reply to this tweet