Karnataka

Date of formation	November 1, 1973
Capital	Bangalore
Governor	T. N. Chaturvedi
Chief Minister	Dharam Singh
Area	192,000 km²
Population  - Total  - Density	55,868,200 (2004) 290.98/km²
Literacy rate:  - Total  - Male  - Female	58.36% 66.34% 50%
Urbanization:	33.98%

Karnataka (ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ in Kannada) is one of the four southern states of India. Before 1973, the state was known as Mysore state, as it was formed out of the former Kingdom of Mysore in 1950, and enlarged in 1956 to include the Kannada-speaking regions of neighboring states. Karnataka's capital Bangalore is the only city in the state with a population of more than 1 million. Other major cities include Mysore, Mangalore, Hubli-Dharwad, Bellary and Belgaum. There are many noteworthy Hindu holy places in Karnataka, of which Udupi, Dharmasthala, Sringeri, Horanadu, Kollur are well known.

As of 2001, it is one of 10 Indian states with a population greater than 50 million. 90% of India's gold production comes from Karnataka.

Geography

Karnataka is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, Goa to the northwest, Maharashtra to the north, Andhra Pradesh to the east, Tamil Nadu to the east and southeast, and Kerala to the southwest.

The state has three principal physical zones;

• The coastal strip, between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea, which is lowland, with moderate to high rainfall levels.
• The Western Ghats, a mountain range inland from the Arabian Sea, rising to about 900m average height, and with moderate to high rainfall levels.
• The Deccan Plateau, comprising the main inland region of the state, which is drier and verging on the semi-arid.

There are several suggested etymologies for the name Karnataka. The most reasonable one is that it comes from "karu" + "nadu" meaning "elevated land". It is interesting to note that Karnataka has one of the highest average elevations of Indian states at 1500 feet.

Districts

see article Districts of Karnataka

Language

Due to the linguistic basis for the formation of the Indian states, language is a very important part of a state's identity. The predominant language of this area is Kannada, which is its official language. Other languages include Kodava Takk, Tulu and Konkani, as well as the languages of the surrounding states: Marathi, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam.

History

The history of Karnataka can be traced back to the times of Ashoka. They were ruled by the Kadambas, the Gangas, the Chalukyas, the Hoysalas, the Vijayanagara empire, Tippu Sultan and Hyder Ali, the Wodeyars of Mysore and by the British over time.

After Indian independence, The Wodeyar Maharaja acceded to India. In 1950, Mysore became an Indian state, and the former Maharaja became its rajpramukh, or governor. After accession to India, the Woyedar family was given a pension by the Indian state until 1975, and members of the family still reside in part of their ancestral palace in Mysore.

On November 1, 1956, Mysore State was enlarged to its present boundaries, incorporating the state of Coorg and the Kannada-speaking portions of neighboring Madras, Hyderabad, and Bombay states, with an elected governor and state assembly. On November 1 1973 the name of the state was changed to Karnataka.

Natural Areas

Karnataka is home to several national parks, including Bandipur National Park in Mysore District, Bannarghata National Park in Bangalore District, Nagarhole National Park in Mysore and Kodagu districts, Kundremukh National Park in Dakshina Kannada and Chickmagalur districts, and Anshi National Park in Uttara Kannada District.

There are also a number of wildlife sanctuaries and nature preserves.

See also

• List of famous people from Karnataka.