May 20, 2013
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Description
Bangladesh officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is located on the fertile Ganges-Brahmaputra delta and forms part of the ancient and historic region of Bengal. The name Bangladesh means "Country of Bengal" in the official Bengali language. To its south lies the Bay of Bengal, while it is bordered by the Republic of India on the north, west and east, and Burma to the southeast. It is separated from Nepal and Bhutan by India's narrow Siliguri corridor and is situated in geographical proximity to China. With a population of over 160 million people, Bangladesh is the world's eighth most populous country as well as one of the world's most densely populated countries. It is home to the fourth largest population in the Muslim world.
The present-day borders of the country were established during the partition of the British Indian Empire in 1947, when eastern Bengal became part of the newly formed nation of Pakistan. However, it was separated from West Pakistan by nearly 1,500 km of Indian territory. Due to political exclusion, ethnic and linguistic discrimination and economic neglect by the politically dominant western wing, popular agitation and civil disobedience led to the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. After independence, the new state endured poverty, famine, political turmoil and military coups. The restoration of democracy in 1991 has been followed by relative calm and economic progress.
(via Freebase)
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