Bangladesh trivia: 46 questions and answers

Dhaka. Dhaka is the capital and by far the largest city. Chittagong is the main seaport, and Kolkata is across the border in India.

Taka. Bangladesh pays in the Bangladeshi taka, written ৳. The kyat is Myanmar's currency and the ringgit is Malaysia's.

Bengali (Bangla). The constitution names Bengali (Bangla) as the state language. The struggle to have Bengali recognised in the 1950s was a key step towards independence.

India and Myanmar. India and Myanmar are the only land neighbours. India surrounds Bangladesh on three sides, and Myanmar borders it in the southeast. Nepal and Bhutan are close but separated by a narrow strip of India.

True. True. Bangladesh drives on the left, like India, Pakistan and the United Kingdom.

16 December. Pakistan's forces surrendered in Dhaka on 16 December 1971, celebrated as Victory Day. Independence had been declared on 26 March 1971, and 21 February remembers the Language Movement of 1952.

Recognition of Bengali as a state language. They were demanding recognition of Bengali as a state language of Pakistan, whose government wanted Urdu alone. Bengali was made an official language in 1956.

Jahangirnagar. Dhaka was renamed Jahangirnagar, after the Mughal emperor Jahangir. Shahjahanabad was the Mughal city of Delhi, and Murshidabad and Fatehpur Sikri are in today's India.

Amar Sonar Bangla. Tagore wrote Amar Sonar Bangla, 'My Golden Bengal', in 1905. Jana Gana Mana, also by Tagore, is India's anthem; Ekusher Gaan remembers 21 February 1952, and Notuner Gaan is a march by Kazi Nazrul Islam.

True. True. The Pala dynasty was Buddhist, and its king Dharmapala built the great monastery of Somapura at Paharpur.

False. False. East Bengal became the eastern part of Pakistan, later called East Pakistan. It became independent as Bangladesh in 1971.

True. True. At least 300,000 people died when it struck East Pakistan on 12 November 1970, most of them in the storm surge.

Ilish (hilsa). The ilish (hilsa), a bony fish of the herring family, is the national fish. Most of the world's ilish is caught in Bangladeshi waters.

Ground mustard seeds. Shorshe means mustard: the fish is cooked in a sharp sauce of ground mustard seeds and mustard oil, with turmeric and green chillies.

Cooked rice soaked in water overnight. Panta bhat is cooked rice soaked in water overnight, eaten in the morning with salt, onion and chilli. Rice layered with raw meat is kacchi biryani, and spiced puffed rice is jhalmuri.

Clay. It is set overnight in clay pots. Water slowly evaporates through the pot's walls, which makes the yoghurt thick and creamy.

True. True. Kacchi means raw: marinated raw meat is layered with rice, and the pot is sealed so everything cooks slowly together. It is the classic wedding dish of Old Dhaka.

False. False. Food is eaten with the right hand. The left hand is not used to bring food to the mouth, and things are given and taken with the right hand.

Rajshahi. Rajshahi, the largest city of the north, is a historic centre of silk weaving and is known for its mangoes.

Sreemangal. Sreemangal, in the Sylhet Division, is surrounded by rolling tea estates and is often called the tea capital of Bangladesh.

True. True. The city is officially called Chattogram, closer to its Bengali name, though Chittagong is still widely used in English.

The Bengal tiger. The Bengal tiger lives in the Sundarbans, the largest mangrove forest in the world, and often swims between its islands.

The Buddhist monastery ruins at Paharpur. The Buddhist monastery ruins at Paharpur, Somapura Mahavihara, have been on the list since 1985. As of 2026 Bangladesh's other two World Heritage Sites are the Mosque City of Bagerhat and the Sundarbans.

Louis Kahn. The American architect Louis Kahn designed it. Building began in 1964 and it was completed in 1982. Le Corbusier and Alvar Aalto were approached first but were not available.

False. False. Despite its name it has many more than sixty domes. The name may come from its sixty stone pillars.

True. True. Work began in 1678, but the governor Shaista Khan stopped it after his daughter Pari Bibi died. Her tomb stands inside the fort.

True. True. It is about 120 km long and is often called the longest natural sea beach in Asia.

21 February. It is marked on 21 February, the day students were killed in Dhaka in 1952. UNESCO proclaimed it in 1999.

India. Tagore wrote India's Jana Gana Mana as well as Bangladesh's Amar Sonar Bangla.

A red disc on a green field. The flag is a red disc on a green field, set slightly towards the flagpole. The red stands for the rising sun and for those who died for independence.

2000. Bangladesh became the tenth Test-playing nation on 26 June 2000 and played its first Test against India in Dhaka that November.

False. False. The national bird is the doel, the oriental magpie-robin, a small black and white songbird. The peacock is India's national bird.

True. True. In 2023 UNESCO added the rickshaws of Dhaka and their bright painted decoration to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

Water. Pani means water, the usual word in Bangladesh. Rice is bhat, fish is machh and tea is cha.

Cooked rice. Bhat is cooked rice, eaten at almost every meal. Sweets are mishti.

Spicy. Jhal means spicy or hot, as in jhalmuri, spicy puffed rice. Sweet is mishti.

True. True. Kal can mean yesterday or tomorrow, and the verb shows which one is meant.

Assalamu alaikum. Assalamu alaikum, 'peace be upon you', is the usual greeting among Muslims. Nomoshkar is used mainly by Hindus, Khoda hafez means goodbye and Dhonnobad means thank you.

Dhonnobad. Dhonnobad means thank you. Thik achhe means OK, maf korben means excuse me, and kemon achhen? means how are you?

True. True. Khoda hafez, 'may God protect you', is a common goodbye, especially among Muslims.

False. False. Thik achhe means OK or all right. 'I don't understand' is ami bujhte parchhi na.

999. Dial 999 for police, fire or ambulance from any phone in Bangladesh.

November to February. November to February is cool and dry. April and May are very hot, and the monsoon from June to September brings heavy rain and floods.

Agree the fare and the destination. Agree the fare and the destination before you set off. Few drivers speak English, so ask your hotel to help if you can.

False. False. Drink sealed bottled water, skip ice unless you know it was made with safe water, and choose freshly cooked hot food.

True. True. Both men and women should dress modestly, and shoes come off before entering a mosque, temple or home.