Marathwada, Konkan, Telangana and Hyderabad-Karnataka region: 1804

As and when time proceeded, the knowledge about India to the European world increased with certain geographers mapping the country with correct locations of kingdoms and forts spread across. The 19th-century mapping of India started to shape accuracy, authenticity and precision, but as we all know well, there existed mispronunciations of various places, giving them a slightly different spelling. Focusing on the great Marathwada region, which consists of today's central Maharashtra and the recent Telangana state, this post shall discuss the various names, spellings and pronunciations of British mapping of a map dated 1804 by Aaron Arrowsmith. 

The year 1804 was the time when the Maratha Confederacy still existed parallelly with the nearly-declined Mughals and rising British power under the East India Company. There were other Europeans as well, but the English and French impact laid more prominence than others. This was the time when Goa was yet to expand in its current form, internal boundaries were still skewed up and there was a range of places whose names are currently obsolete or changed. 

 Today's Marathwada region was at that time spread across the following major territories: 

1. Aurungabad (Aurangabad)
2. Beeder (Bidar)
3. Nandere (Nanded)
4. Bejapoor (Bijapur)

At present, the Marathwada region of Maharashtra covers Aurangabad, Jalna, Beed, Osmanabad, Latur, Nanded, Hingoli and Parbhani. The historic Telangana region consisted of majorly nine divisions - Adilabad, Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Warangal, Rangareddy, Hyderabad, Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar and Khammam, that are now further bifurcated into a total of 31 districts. But if we look back at the early 19th century, certain names such as Nizamabad and Osmanabad are not to be found as these are some of the most recently established settlements named after the ruling Nizam dynasty of the former Hyderabad state. Listing down some of such unheard townships and former names from that era. 

• Pattan / Monghypattan (Paithan, in Aurangabad district)
• Singumneere (Sangamner, in Ahmednagar district)
• Aumednagur (Ahmednagar)
• Namboody (Nimbodi, in Ahmadnagar district)
• Beor (Beed)
• Jalnapoor (Jalna)
• Patery (Pathri, in Parbhani district)
• Nandere (Nanded)
• Candhar (Kandhar, in Nanded district)
• Darwar / Fatteabad (Dharwad)
• Rajoora (Rajura, in Adilabad district)
• Indore (Indur / Nizamabad, Telangana)
• Yelcundul (Elgandel / Elgandal Fort, Karimnagar district)
• Dewarcundah (Devarakonda, in Nalgonda district)
• Sholahpoor / Sholapoor (Solapur)
• Assodnagur (Akluj ?, in Solapur district)
• Punderpoor (Pandharpur, in Solapur district)
• Barenda (Paranda, in Osmanabad district)
• Poorunder (Purandar Fort, the birthplace of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, in Pune district)
• Lazoorna (Lasurne, in Pune district)
• Bejapoor (Bijapur / Vijayapura)
• Nooldroogh (Naldurg, in Osmanabad district)
• Kalbergah (Gulbarga / Kalburagi)
• Alpoor (Allapur, in Yadari Bhuvanagiri district, Telangana)
• Sackur / Nusseritabad (Shahpur / Sagaranadu, in Yadgir district, Karnataka)
• Calliany (Kalyani / Basavakalyan, in Bidar district, Karnataka)
• Beeder / Mahommedabad (Bidar)
• Oudghir (Udgir, in Latur district)
• Nilcundah (Nalgonda)
• Talegauw (Talegaon Bori, in Latur district)
• Balky (Bhalki, in Bidar district)
• Inderah (Indral, in Osmanabad district)
• Raybaugh (Raibag, in Belgaum / Belagavi district)
• Mirjee / Merritch (Miraj, in Sangli district)
• Carrar (Karad, in Satara district)
• Mortizabad (area between Miraj and Karad, that's Uran Islampur, in Sangli district)
• Tambah (Tambave, in Satara district)
• Chipolna (Chiplun, in Ratnagiri district)
• Angenweel (Anjanvel, in Ratnagiri district)
• Dabul (Dabhol, in Ratnagiri district)
• Fort Victoria (Bankot, in Ratnagiri district)

These settlements (and many others) would later form part of the Bombay Province and the Princely State of Hyderabad. The importance of many of the above-mentioned places diminished with age and are today small towns or villages overwhelmed by neighbouring modern cities. Places such as Kalyani (spelt as Calliany) and Fort Victoria (Fort Bankot or Bawankot) are mentioned on several 19th-century maps before the nearby towns of Ratnagiri and Bidar became more important. Certain names don't exist anymore such as Mortizabad, Assodnagar, Nusseritabad etc. An interesting place called 'Indore' existed in the Telangana region, the spelling of which is mentioned as Indur on pre-20th century maps which is now known as Nizamabad. 

Fort Victoria was originally known as the Himmatgad Fort by the Marathas. It was the first stronghold of the British on the Konkan coast, hence christened it as Fort Victoria. Proving to be no good to the British, it was later handed over to the Marathas in the 19th century. 

The settlements of Bijapur, Sholapur, Bidar, Aurangabad etc. have always remained of prime importance in both pre-British and during the English Raj. The Konkan belt was the dominion of the Maratha Confederacy's Peshwa clan, having capital at Satara and Poona (Pune). Berar swung between the Nizam and Maratha territories and by 1804, major parts of the region were annexed to the two royalties. The Princely State of Hyderabad lost much of its lands but gained from the neighbouring Mysore State in the late 18th to early 19th centuries. 

Interestingly, the frontiers of Hyderabad and Bombay Province was much organised in the early 19th century as compared to its changes in the following years. There were several enclaves and exclaves throughout Marathwada and Telangana regions exchanged between Hyderabad State, the Bombay Province and the Deccan States. There were minor enclaves of the Madras Province in Hyderabad as well. 

Below here is a portion of an 1804 dated map of India, created by Aaron Arrowsmith (1750-1823). The portion focuses on only the Marathwada, Konkan, Telangana and Hyderabad-Karnataka (or Kalyana-Karnataka) regions spread across today's Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana states.