Amtali

About Amtali

Amtali (Bengali: আমতলী) is the easternmost upazila of Barguna District in Barisal Division, Bangladesh.

Etymology

The name “Amtali” is of Bengali origin and is commonly interpreted as meaning “the place beneath the mango trees.” Since ancient times the banks of the Payra River were lined with numerous mango trees. Boatmen used to tie their boats to the trunks of these trees. Over time, the place where boats were moored under the shade of the mango trees came to be known as “Amtala”, and later “Amtali.” Another explanation connects the name to the Amtali River, a branch of the Payra that once flowed from north to south along the eastern side of the present Amtali port. A different local legend offers that when Amtali was still a forest-covered and remote area, a Magh leader from Arakan named Ampati obtained a lease from the British Raj and began cultivating here. It is therefore also thought that the name “Amtali” may have originated from the name of Ampati Magh.

History

The South Tepura mouza in Haldia Union, Amtali Upazila is home to the dargah of Ghazi and Kalu. Nearby stands a brick-built enclosure (indira), and a short distance away lies the site where their disciples, known as the Twelve Awliya, are believed to have gathered. During the reign of Mughal emperor Jahangir, the Muslim population in greater Patuakhali began to increase as many Sufi pirs and awliya from Arabia, Iran and Iraq came to propagate Islam in the region. The village of Faqirkhali is home to a large reservoir and lofty hill which is understood to have been excavated and used as a khanqah by one of these missionary faqirs. The village of Gunaighar hosts the mazar (mausoleum) of Rahman Faqir, Mashakira village hosts the mazar of Kawthar Dawlat Shah Faqir and Ponra village is home to the mazar of Mainuddin Faqir.

Amtali had a historical importance in the coastal defence network of the Bengal Subah during the Mughal period. In the 17th century, the area suffered repeated raids by Magh and Portuguese pirates which started to depopulate vast areas of the lower delta, and it is known that there once existed a Portuguese fort at Khepupara, near Amtali. This prompted Mughal authorities to establish an earthen fort in the village of Patakata in Chaora Union, Amtali for protection and counterattack. It was strategically situated on the Chaora River, which once extended nearly 20 kilometres and served as an important inland waterway. Over time, the river’s course changed and its strong current diminished, leaving behind only a large earthen mound that marks the remnants of the earlier defensive fortification. It is generally thought to have been constructed under Subahdar Shaista Khan of Bengal, perhaps under the initiative of his son Buzurg Umed Khan. However, other historians alternatively attributed its establishment to the defensive initiatives undertaken by Prince Shah Shuja or Faujdar Agha Baqer Khan. During the reign of Emperor Aurangzeb, Amtali was placed under the Aurangpur pargana.

During the Konbaung conquest of Arakan in 1785, the Buddhist Maghs of Rakhine fled to Baliatali in Amtali and began to settle there. Amtali was also home to the Mians of Bighai, a Muslim taluqdar clan of wealthy fish traders that had risen to prominence. They were awarded a taluq and settled near the Bighai Haat (present-day Patuakhali Sadar). During the colonial period, a minor by the name of Mufizuddin Chowdhury had become the head of the family. The estate was misappropriated by Chowdhury's naib, Ishwar Chandra Dutta, and the remaining portions were sold off to Mr. Brown in order to cover debts. Despite these upheavals, Chowdhury's three daughters of continue to reside in their ancestral home, the Miah Bari of Bighai.

In 1853, a thana was founded by the British Raj in Gulishakhali village on the banks of the Payra. The Gulishakhali Thana administered present-day Amtali, Kalapara and Patuakhali Sadar. In 1871, it was included

Source: Wikipedia →