Sylhet District

Sylhet District (Bengali: সিলেট), located in north-east Bangladesh, is one of the four districts in the Sylhet Division, which contains Sylhet, the regional capital.

This article is about the district of Sylhet. For other uses, see Sylhet (disambiguation).

Sylhet
সিলেট
District of Bangladesh
Sylhet District
From top: Lalakhal, Bichnakandi, Shah Jalal Dargah, Keane Bridge, view of Jaflong hills
Location of Sylhet District in Bangladesh
Location of Sylhet District in Bangladesh
Expandable map of Sylhet District
Coordinates: 24°53′N 91°52′E
Country Bangladesh
DivisionSylhet Division
Established1782
Government
 • Deputy CommissionerMd. Mozibor Rahman[1]
Area
[2]
 • Total3,452.07 km2 (1,332.85 sq mi)
Population
 (2022 census)[3]
 • Total3,857,037
 • Density1,100/km2 (2,900/sq mi)
DemonymSylheti
Time zoneUTC+06:00 (BST)
Postal code
3100
HDI (2018)0.596[4]
medium · 11th of 21
Websitesylhet.gov.bd

History
Main article: History of Sylhet

Sylhet district was established on 3 January 1782, and until 1878 it was part of Bengal Province under Dhaka Division. However, in that year, Sylhet was moved to the newly created Assam Province, and it remained as part of Assam up to 1947 (except during the administrative reorganisation of Bengal Province between 1905 and 1912). Sylhet district was divided into five subdivisions and the current Sylhet District was known as the North Sylhet subdivision. In 1947, Sylhet became a part of East Pakistan as a result of a referendum (except 31⁄2 thanas of Karimganj subdivision) as part of Chittagong Division.[5] It was subdivided into four districts in 1983–84 with the current Sylhet District being known as North Sylhet. It became a part of Sylhet Division after its formation in 1995. Sylhet has played a vital role in the Bangladeshi economy. Several of Bangladesh's finance ministers have been Members of Parliament from the city of Sylhet.[5]

Demographics
Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1981 1,777,784—    
1991 2,153,301+1.93%
2001 2,555,566+1.73%
2011 3,434,188+3.00%
2022 3,857,037+1.06%
Sources:[3][6]

According to the 2022 Census of Bangladesh, Sylhet District had a population of 3,857,037, 21.9% of whom lived in urban areas. The household size was 5.2. The population density was 1,117 people per km2. The literacy rate (age 7 and over) was 76.3%, compared to the national average of 74.7%.[3]

Religions in Sylhet district (2022)[3]
Religion Percent
Muslims
 
 92.52%
Hindus
 
 7.32%
Other or not stated
 
 0.15%
Religion in present-day Sylhet district[lower-alpha 1]
Religion Population (1941)[7]: 36–37  Percentage (1941) Population (2011)[6] Percentage (2011)
Islam 561,124 73.34% 3,180,766 92.62%
Hinduism 189,226 24.73% 248,154 7.23%
Tribal religion 14,360 1.88% 2,174 0.06%
Others [lower-alpha 2] 361 0.05% 3,094 0.09%
Total Population 765,071 100% 3,434,188 100%

Muslims make up 92.52% of the population while Hindus are 7.32% of the population. Ethnic population is 12,781, mainly Khasi.

Administration

Sylhet District is divided into thirteen upazilas.[5]

The upazilas are:

Geography and climate

Sylhet has a typical Bangladeshi tropical monsoon climate (Köppen Am) bordering on a humid subtropical climate (Cwa) at higher elevations. The rainy season starts from April to October and it is so hot and humid with very heavy showers and thunderstorms almost every day, whilst the short dry season starts from November to February and it is very warm and fairly clear. Nearly 80% of the annual average rainfall of 4,200 millimetres (170 in) occurs between May and September.[8]

The city is located within the region where there are hills and basins which constitute one of the most distinctive regions in Bangladesh. The physiography of Sylhet consists mainly of hill soils, encompassing a few large depressions known locally as "beels" which can be mainly classified as oxbow lakes, caused by tectonic subsidence primarily during the earthquake of 1762.

Geologically, the region is complex having diverse sacrificial geomorphology; high topography of Plio-Miocene age. Available limestone deposits in different parts of the region suggest that the whole area was under the ocean in the Oligo-Miocene. In the last 150 years three major earthquakes hit the city, at a magnitude of at least 7.5 on the Richter Scale, the last one took place in 1918, although many people are unaware that Sylhet lies on an earthquake prone zone.[9]

A tea garden at Jaflong, Sylhet
Climate data for Sylhet, Bangladesh
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 25.2
(77.4)		 27.1
(80.8)		 30.4
(86.7)		 30.8
(87.4)		 30.8
(87.4)		 30.9
(87.6)		 30.9
(87.6)		 31.6
(88.9)		 31.2
(88.2)		 30.9
(87.6)		 29.2
(84.6)		 26.3
(79.3)		 29.6
(85.3)
Average low °C (°F) 12.9
(55.2)		 14.2
(57.6)		 18.1
(64.6)		 20.8
(69.4)		 22.6
(72.7)		 24.4
(75.9)		 24.9
(76.8)		 25.0
(77.0)		 24.3
(75.7)		 22.5
(72.5)		 18.4
(65.1)		 14.0
(57.2)		 20.2
(68.3)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 8
(0.3)		 31
(1.2)		 146
(5.7)		 372
(14.6)		 569
(22.4)		 796
(31.3)		 834
(32.8)		 621
(24.4)		 548
(21.6)		 232
(9.1)		 30
(1.2)		 13
(0.5)		 4,200
(165.1)
Source: WMO[10]

Notable people

See also

Notes
  1. North Sylhet subdivision and Beanibazar thana of Sylhet district
  2. Including Jainism, Christianity, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Ad-Dharmis, or not stated

References
  1. pmis.mopa.gov.bd/pmis/Forms/dclist.php
  2. "registered through Argeweb". geohive.com. Archived from the original on 26 February 2014.
  3. Population and Housing Census 2022: Preliminary Report. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. August 2022. pp. viii, 28, 30, 39, 44, 46. ISBN 978-984-35-2977-0.
  4. "Sub-national HDI – Area Database – Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  5. Ashfaq Hossain (2012). "Sylhet District". In Sirajul Islam and Ahmed A. Jamal (ed.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
  6. "Bangladesh Population and Housing Census 2011 Zila Report – Sylhet" (PDF). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.
  7. "Census of India, 1941 Volume IX Assam Province" (PDF). 1941.
  8. Monthly Averages for Sylhet, BGD Archived 1 July 2019 at the Wayback Machine MSN Weather. Retrieved 25 May 2009.
  9. Siddiquee, Iqbal (10 February 2006). "Sylhet growing as a modern urban centre". Our Cities: 15th Anniversary Special. The Daily Star. Retrieved 25 May 2009.
  10. "Climatological Information". WMO. Retrieved 20 January 2015.

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