The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition. 2002.
Bangladesh
(bahng-gluh-DESH, bang-gluh-DESH) Republic in southern Asia, bordered by India to the north, west, and east; the Bay of Bengal to the south; and Burma to the southeast. Its capital and largest city is Dacca.
‡ Created as East Pakistan in 1947, when India gained its independence from Britain and Muslim leaders demanded a Muslim state. Separated by cultural differences and one thousand miles of Indian territory from a neglectful central government in West Pakistan (now Pakistan), Bangladesh achieved its independence in 1971 after a bloody revolt and Indian intervention. It has been struck frequently by devastating typhoons.
