Kannauj | |
---|---|
city | |
Nickname(s): Perfume Capital of India; Grasse of the East | |
Coordinates: 27°04′N 79°55′E / 27.07°N 79.92°ECoordinates: 27°04′N 79°55′E / 27.07°N 79.92°E | |
Country | India |
State | Uttar Pradesh |
District | Kannauj |
Elevation | 139 m (456 ft) |
Population (2001) | |
• Total | 1,656,616 |
Languages | |
• Official | Hindi/Urdu |
Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
Website | www |
Khannajo (Hindi: कन्नौज, Urdu: قنوج), also spelt Kanauj, is a city, administrative headquarters and a municipal board or Nagar Palika Parishad in Kannauj district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city's name is a modern form of the classical name Kanyakubja (The city of the hunchbacked maidens). It was also known as Mahodaya during the time of Mihira Bhoja. Kannauj is an ancient city, in earlier times the capital of the Empire of Harsha under Emperor Harsha. It is said that Kanyakubja Brahmin's of which Shandilya's (Rishi Bharadwaj was one of the disciple of Rishi Sandilya) held to have constituted one of the three prominent families of Kanyakubja Brahmins.[3]are originally from Kannauj. Kannauj is known for the distilling of scents and is a market center for tobacco, perfume, and rose water. It has given its name to a distinct dialect of the Hindi and Urdu language known as Kanauji, which has two different codes or registers.
Kannuaj remained a focal point for the three powerful dynasties, namely the Gurjara Pratiharas, Palas and Rashtrakutas, between the 8th and 10th centuries. The conflict between the three dynasties has been referred to as the Tripartite struggle by many historians.
There were initial struggles but ultimately the Gurjara Pratiharas succeeded in retaining the city. The Gurjara-Pratiharas ruled Avanti (based at Ujjain), which was bounded to the South by the Rashtrakuta Empire, and the Pala dynasty to the East. The Tripartite Struggle began with the defeat of Indrayudh at the hands of Gurjara-Pratihara ruler Vatsaraja. The Pala ruler Dharampala was also keen to establish his authority at Kannauj, giving rise to a struggle between Vatsaraja and Dharampala. Dharampala was however defeated. Taking advantage of the chaos, the Rastrakuta ruler Dhruva surged northwards, defeated Vatsaraja, and took Kannauj for himself, completing the furthest northern expansion by a South Indian ruler.