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HomeOpinionPoVLakshmanpur? Lakhnavati? Historians are at war over Lucknow's identity

Lakshmanpur? Lakhnavati? Historians are at war over Lucknow’s identity

Scholars are heatedly debating the origins of Lucknow’s name. Some say that it was used in the Mughal era.

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Lucknow, the city of Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb, is witnessing a political slugfest — over its name.

After the Yogi Adityanath government rechristened Faizabad and Allahabad as Ayodhya and Prayagraj in 2018, a section of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders are demanding to rename Lucknow. Pratapgarh MP Sangam Lal Gupta wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath asking for Lucknow to be renamed ‘Lakshmanpuri’. “When the country has entered Amrit Kaal, it seems totally improper to regale the coming generation with stories of indulgence and uselessness of Nawabs and giving them a message of slavery,” Gupta wrote.

The controversy deflated when the UP CM himself told ABP News last week that “as of now,” the capital “is being known as Lucknow and will remain as it is.” But the push to rename Lucknow is not new. BJP’s Kalraj Mishra and Lalji Tandon — both former governors — also raised it in 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Some say that ‘Lucknow’ was used to refer to the city during the Mughal era, much before the Nawabs came to Awadh in 1720. Scholars trace mythology and legend to show how ‘Lakshmanpuri’ possibly came about. In his 1926 book Guzashta Lucknow, historian Abdul Halim Sharar gave a detailed account of the city’s history. “When Raja Ramchandraji adorned the throne after conquering Lanka and completing his exile, he gifted the land to his partner and beloved brother Lakshmanji. A basti (locality) came into existence on a hummock on the banks of the river (Gomti). It was called Lakshmanpur, and the hummock came to be known as ‘Lakshman Teela’,” he noted.

Yogesh Praveen, who has authored 16 books on the history of Awadh, explained in Tajdare Awadh (2015) that Lakshman Teela has been a religious place “since ancient times”. “There was a shesh koop (well) and temple here. Travellers from far off would offer flowers and fruits. It was their belief that the offering reaches Lord Dharnishwar shesh residing in Pataal Lok (netherworld in Hindu mythology). Lakshman was sheshavatar (incarnation of serpentine demigod) and hence, his worship in this place was natural.”

He adds that by the 13th century, Lakhnavati had become Lucknow but does not explain how. Shah Peer Muhammad, the disciple of Chishti sufi order preacher Shah Mina, established a hold over the Lakshman Teela in the 15th century. His tomb was later built above it.

“While Shah Muhammad could not destroy the shesh koop teerth in his lifetime, he was buried at the spot after his death and the sheikhs started calling the place ‘Shah Muhammad ka Teela’,” he wrote.

No consensus

There is no consensus among historians over when the city came to be called Lucknow. Sharar’s account differs from Praveen’s on the probable time when the name ‘Lucknow’ started to be used. Sharar says that the name was only used from Akbar’s reign onwards.

“When Mughal emperor Akbar divided the empire into 12 provinces, the name of the abode of the subedar or (governor-general) of Awadh was found to be ‘Lucknow’. This was 1590,” he states in Guzashta Lucknow.

According to Sharar, Abdurrahim, a sheikh from Bijnor and Akbar’s associate, arrived in the city and constructed a fort on a mound near the Lakshman Teela. It was stronger than the surrounding forts and came to be known as Macchi Bhawan or Khas Mahal.

“The mason who constructed the Macchi Bhawan was an ahir called Lakhna, and they say that it was in his name that the city came to be known as Lucknow. It seems to me that Lakshmanpuri got distorted to Lucknow,” he writes.

Historian Irfan Habib says that as per historical records, the name Lucknow had come into existence before Akbar. “Possibly in the 15th century during the Lodi dynasty or early 16th century, but it was definitely the pre-Akbar period,” he says.

Aligarh Muslim University professor Nadeem Rezavi says it takes time for a city’s name to establish itself. “Naturally, there are conflicts. Mostly, if a city is named after a person, it is based on the legends of the time and place. The name Lucknow was definitely in usage by the 16th century, but some people are of the opinion that it was there even before that,” he says.

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