Not the ‘city of boiled beans’: A relook at the origin of Bengaluru’s name
Researchers and historians say there’s a need to set the record straight and separate folklore from research-based theories to trace the origin of Bengaluru’s name
According to one of the most popular stories of the origin of Bengaluru city’s name, an old woman living in the forest offered boiled beans and water to the 13th century king from the Hoysala dynasty, Veera Ballala II, quenching his hunger and thirst after he was lost during a hunting expedition. To express his gratitude, he named the forest “Benda Kaalu Ooru” or “Bendakaalooru”, which translates to The City of Boiled Beans, which, over the centuries became Bengaluru as the forest was replaced by a town and then a city.
This folklore has been passed on for generations and often finds its way into the speeches of politicians, or in the trivia shared with the migrants to Silicon Valley. However, researchers and historians say there’s a need to set the record straight and separate folklore from research-based theories to trace the origin of the city’s name.
However, even that is not simple since there are multiple theories based on different experts’ interpretations of historical facts and most of these have no corroboration in history.
Chidananda Murthy proposed one of the popular historical theories behind the name. According to the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) officials, Murthy claimed that Bengaluru’s name may have been derived from the white quartz stones found in Balepet, Nagarthpet, and Chikpet areas of the city, resulting in it being called ‘Biliya Kallina Ooru’, or a city of white quartz stones. Over the years, it became Bengaluru, as per Murthy’s theory.
Another theory claims that the city name originated from ‘Bengawaluru’, which means the place of the bodyguards. Its proponents argue that the army of the Hoysala empire, especially ‘Bengawalu Pade’ or the bodyguards of the rulers, had their garrison in the city, giving it the name Bengawalu, and Ooru-- a generally used in names of villages, towns, and cities-- was added to it over the years. However, like the previous one, this theory too doesn’t have any historical corroboration.
SK Aruni, director of the ICHR south regional centre and a leading scholar in the city, has a different take. He points out that Venkatanatha or Venkateshwara of Tirupati was an important deity in south India, especially in Bengaluru.
“If you look at old homes in Bengaluru, several houses were named after Venkatesha. He was a local deity, and over a period of time, Venakanaooru might have become Bengaluru. This is my theory,” said Aruni.
Rajesh HG, a scholar, and editor of Itihasa Darapana said there was another theory that Bengaluru’s name originated from the Benga tree, known as Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb, which was once seen widely in the city. He said that it was argued that the city was called Benganooru (land of Benga), which later became Bengaluru.
While the above theories are not corroborated by any historical evidence, there is one theory that all experts believe has the strongest claim since it is backed by a historical scripture.
In Begur, located around 15 km from Bengaluru city, inside a temple, researchers discovered some inscriptions, specifically a ‘Veera Kallu’ or a Heroic Stone-- a slab depicting heroic acts of people. This stone dating back to the 890 AD depicts a battle scene named ‘Bengaluru Yuddha’ or the Battle of Bengaluru.
The stone tells the story of Nagattara, who pledged his allegiance to Ereyappa Arasu, the Ganga ruler at the time. According to the inscription, in the Battle of Bengaluru in 890 AD, Nagattara’s son Buttanapati and adopted son Pervonasetti died.
The Begur hero stone has carvings of battle scenes and war techniques, prepared by Ereyappa Arasu, and it says that Nagattara, too, died in the battle of Tumbepadi, fought between the dynasties of Gangas and Rashtrakutas. It also mentions 10 localities in Bengaluru, which were then villages and donated to another chieftain after Nagattara’s demise.
Suresh Moona, a renowned historian, said this was a research-backed theory about the city’s name. “The city called Bengaluru existed as early as 800 AD, but it was not the city we know today. It is claimed that the mother of Kempe Gowda, the founder of Bengaluru city, was from old Bengaluru and when Gowda decided to build a new city, he named it after his mother’s birthplace, Bengaluru,” said Moona.
He said that the theory was closer to truth because of the historical inscriptions.
“Will we ever know where the name comes from? I don’t know. But these theories backed by a study of history should be promoted more and made into modern folklore instead of the one about boiled beans,” Moona added.