There's a lot of hue and cry over the blipping of Mihir Joshi's song. Debate is raging on artistic freedom and argument is even stretched to state that the renaming of then Bombay to present Mumbai was politically motivated. They argue that Mumbai and Bombay are the same and recollect Shakespeare saying of "Whats there in name?" That is absurd!
This write up is being written to bust the myth.
Let's first delve in to how the name Bombay and Mumbai originated and what they represent.
Bombay:- It's a Portuguese word meaning Bom bahia, a good bay. It places emphasis on the usefulness of natural harbour of Bombay as a good port to dock in the 16th Century AD. Compared to other ports on Western coast,this was a better option,in terms of distance and was less congested. In 1661, the port and adjoining city was given to British as a dowry. Even though the ownership changed,the old name continued and British called it as Bombay,instead of Bom Bahia.
Mumbai:- The word originates from the name of local deity Momai Mata,which later became the now Mumba Devi. Thus,the city gets its name from the mother goddess,the protector and benefactor of the inhabitants.
It must be now clear to the reader that difference between words Bombay and Mumbai is not only on basis of origin,but the former represents a colonial and superiority of the Europeans. Mumbai on the other hand is original name,supported by the local culture.
If people are still interested in using the word Bombay, it only shows that they are yet to come out of slave mentality. The choice is yours.
P.S: The same is true for some other cities too. Chennapatnam became Madras as Visakhapatnam became Vizag.
Not only city's name but some last names were also changed when Britishers found it difficult to pronounce. To name a few, Mukhopdhyay became Mukherjee, Bandopdhyay Banerjee and Chattopdhyay Chaterjee.
Reference:http://www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/trading/bombay/history.html
This write up is being written to bust the myth.
Let's first delve in to how the name Bombay and Mumbai originated and what they represent.
Bombay:- It's a Portuguese word meaning Bom bahia, a good bay. It places emphasis on the usefulness of natural harbour of Bombay as a good port to dock in the 16th Century AD. Compared to other ports on Western coast,this was a better option,in terms of distance and was less congested. In 1661, the port and adjoining city was given to British as a dowry. Even though the ownership changed,the old name continued and British called it as Bombay,instead of Bom Bahia.
Mumbai:- The word originates from the name of local deity Momai Mata,which later became the now Mumba Devi. Thus,the city gets its name from the mother goddess,the protector and benefactor of the inhabitants.
It must be now clear to the reader that difference between words Bombay and Mumbai is not only on basis of origin,but the former represents a colonial and superiority of the Europeans. Mumbai on the other hand is original name,supported by the local culture.
If people are still interested in using the word Bombay, it only shows that they are yet to come out of slave mentality. The choice is yours.
P.S: The same is true for some other cities too. Chennapatnam became Madras as Visakhapatnam became Vizag.
Not only city's name but some last names were also changed when Britishers found it difficult to pronounce. To name a few, Mukhopdhyay became Mukherjee, Bandopdhyay Banerjee and Chattopdhyay Chaterjee.
Reference:http://www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/trading/bombay/history.html
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