Baṅgamātā (), Bangla Maa (), Mother Bengal or simply Bangla, is a

personification Personification is the representation of a thing or abstraction as a person, often as an embodiment or incarnation. In the arts, many things are commonly personified, including: places, especially cities, National personification, countries, an ...

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

created during the

Bengali Renaissance Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

and later adopted by the Bengali nationalists. Bangamata is identified as Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib, a Muslim woman who lived in Bengal in the 20th century. The Bangamata Sheikh Fojilatunnesa Mujib Science & Technology University has been named after her. In

Bangladeshi Bangladeshis ( ) are the citizens and nationals of Bangladesh, a South Asian country centred on the transnational historical region of Bengal along the Bay of Bengal, eponymous bay. Bangladeshi nationality law, Bangladeshi citizenship was fo ...

Bengali and Indian Bengali poetry, literature, cultural and patriotic song, she has become a symbol of Bengalis and their culture,

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

Tripura Tripura () is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a populat ...

. She is considered as the personification of the

Bengali Language Bengali, also known by its endonym and exonym, endonym Bangla (, , ), is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language belonging to the Indo-Iranian languages, Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. ...

Culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

, The State of West Bengal and People's Republic of Bangladesh. The Mother

represents not only biological motherhood but its attributed characteristics as well – divineness, protection, never ending love, consolation, care, the beginning and the end of life.

Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay (anglicized as Bankim Chandra Chatterjee; 26 or 27 June 1838 – 8 April 1894) was an Indian Bengali novelist, poet, essayist and journalist.Staff writer"Bankim Chandra: The First Prominent Bengali Novelist" ''The ...

, a writer, poet and journalist from

, composed an ode to Mother Bengal called

Vande Mataram Vande Mātaram (Bengali language, Original Bengali: বন্দে মাতরম্‌ ''Bônde Mātôrôm'' Devanagari script: वंदे मातरम्; , Transcreation: I Bow to Thee, Mother) is a poem that was adopted as the nati ...

around 1876 as an alternative to the British royal anthem. In

Amar Sonar Bangla "" (, ) is the national anthem of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. An ode to Mother Bengal, the lyrics were written by Bengali polymath Rabindranath Tagore, while the melody is derived from Baul singer Gagan Harkara's " Ami Kothay Pabo Tare ...

, the national anthem of Bangladesh,

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...

used the word "Maa" (Mother) numerous times to refer to the motherland, i.e. Bengal. Despite her popularity in patriotic songs and poems, her physical representations and images are rare.

History

Partition of Bengal

The first incarnations of Mother Bengal, or Bangamata, emerged during resistance to the partition of Bengal. The partition took place in October 1905 and separated the largely Muslim areas of Eastern Bengal from the largely Hindu areas of Western Bengal. Hindus living in Western Bengal, who dominated Bengal's businesses and rural life complained that the partition would make them a minority in a province due to the incorporation of the

Bihar and Orissa Province Bihar and Orissa was a province of British India, which included the present-day Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, and parts of Odisha. The territories were conquered by the British in the 18th and 19th centuries, and were governed by the then ...

into the

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal until 1937, later the Bengal Province, was the largest of all three presidencies of British India during Company rule in India, Company rule and later a Provinces o ...

. It was during this time the Mother Bengal was an immensely popular theme in Bengali patriotic songs and poems and was mentioned in several of them, such as the song ″Dhana Dhanya Pushpa Bhara″ and ″Banga Amar Janani Amar″ (Our Bengal Our Mother) by

Dwijendralal Ray Dwijendralal Ray (19 July 1863 – 17 May 1913), also known as D. L. Ray, was a Bengali poet, playwright, and musician. He was known for his Hindu mythological and nationalist historical plays and songs known as '' Dwijendrageeti'' or the ''Songs ...

. These songs were meant to rekindle the unified spirit of Bengal, to raise public consciousness against the communal political divide.

Bangladesh Liberation War

Many of Bengali patriotic songs were regularly played on the Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra, the clandestine radio station broadcast to revolutionaries and the Bengali public during the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...

. some of these patriotic songs, such as “Jonmo Amar Dhonno Holo Maa-go” and “Bangla Moder Bangla Maa Amra Tomar Koti Shontan” have significant representations of “Mother Bengal”. She was an icon of freedom and

democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...

against all forms of dictatorship. These patriotic songs are still immensely popular in

and

In art and literature

, by

* Banglar Mati Banglar Jol, by

* Banga Amar Janani Amar, by

* Bangamata (poem), by

, by

in 1905 * O Amar Desher Mati, by

* Bangladesh, by

Kazi Nazrul Islam Kazi Nazrul Islam (24 May 1899 – 29 August 1976) was a Bengalis, Bengali poet, short story writer, journalist, lyricist and musician. He is the national poet of Bangladesh. Nazrul produced a List of works by Kazi Nazrul Islam, large body of ...

* Aaji Bangladesher Hridoy, by

* Bangla Mayer Kol, by S. D. Burman; better known by first line ''Takdum Takdum Bajai ''Bangla''desher Dhol'' * Oh Amar Bangla Maa, by Abul Umrah Fakhruddin and Alauddin Ali *“Aji Bangladesher Hridoy Hote” lit. "From the Heart of Bangladesh" (here bangladesh refers to the country of bengalis and not the present state of People's Republic of Bangladesh) is one of Tagore’s most famous poems and a true masterpiece of Indian literature. The poem was first published in 1905. This is most probably only the picturesque details of Mother Bengal. The poem's historical context is the British colonization of India, which had been ongoing for over two centuries by the time the poem was written. The British had established a stranglehold on Indian society, both politically and economically, and had suppressed the Indian people’s culture and traditions. Tagore’s poem was a direct challenge to this oppression and a call to action for the Indian people to assert their identity and their rights as free people. It became a rallying cry for the Indian independence movement, and its words inspired countless Indians to take up the cause of freedom. The poem’s message of fearlessness and self-determination continues to resonate with Indians today, and it is often cited as an example of the power of poetry to inspire social change. :When did you come out of the heart Bangladesh, :O, Mother dear, with such inexplicable splendor! :It's impossible to take away eyes from you! :The doors of your golden temple have unlocked. :Your right hand holds the blazing sword, the left one takes away fear, :Smile of affection on the eyes, the third eye glaring. :O Mother dear, how uniquely you reveal yourself! :The cloud of your untied hair conceals thunders :Ends of your sunlight coloured robes flutter in the horizon! :It's impossible to take away eyes from you! :The doors of your golden temple have unlocked. :When impassionately did not look up seemed :Poor mother stayed back home, desolate, destitute. :Your torn clothes vanish now, meager smile disappear. :Beams of light scatter from your feet into entire sky :O Mother, your appearance astounds me. :You flood the world with the flow of happiness on the distressed nights :O the mindblower, your word of fearlessness drum the heart :It's impossible to take away eyes from you! :The doors of your golden temple have unlocked.

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=April 2017 National personifications National symbols of Bangladesh Bengali nationalism Personifications of country subdivisions

History

Partition of Bengal

Bangladesh Liberation War

In art and literature

See also

References