A Study of Gangaridai: The Forgotten History of Bengal

Abstract

Gangaridai or Gangaridai is a term that finds mention in the classical Greco-Roman works dealing with the conquest of Alexander the Great. This particular term has no Sanskrit equivalent making it harder to equate the descriptions made by the foreign authors with indigenous sources. Nonetheless, taking hints from the geographical markers used by the Greco-Roman authors, Gangaridai is identified with a region close to the mouth of the river Ganges. However, the exact nature of the term is also not distinct as multiple authors used it in a variety of sense - either it was a nation in its own right, a subsidiary of Magadha or was merely a race. One thing that these sources have in common is the description of a powerful army under the banner of Gangaridai, though the exact statistics also vary. The royal residence Gangê as a political as well as an economic centre is also one of the consistent mentions in the classical writings. The port city was the hub of important trade and seafaring activities having relations extending from the Roman empire, in the west, to the Far East as well as internal trade through river and land across the Indian subcontinent. The article is aimed towards enumerating the different mentions of Gangaridai by discussing the information that can be gained from the Greco-Roman literatures and their critical analysis, also attempting to determine its location and historical significance on one hand, while also providing material evidence to corroborate the known information through archaeological discoveries in the present times.

DOI: 10.46700/asssr/2025/v7/i2/155