Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Medieval India c9.s2.13

c9.s2.13

It may be mentioned in this connection that, besides Gauḍa in Bengal, some other tracts in different parts of India were also known by this name. One such Gauḍa was the modern Gonda District of Uttar Pradesh, in which the celebrated city of Śrāvastī was situated.⁴ It is, however, possible to think that Gauḍa as the name of Goṇḍa was a later modification of the older name of the area in imitation of the famous land of East India. The name of the Goṇḍ people of Central India was often Sanskritized as Gauḍa and the land inhabited by the Goṇḍs came also to be known by this name. Kannaḍa Gauḍa or Gavuḍa meaning ‘a village headman’ has nothing to do with Bengal. The same is the case with Oriya Gauḍa meaning ‘a milkman’ and written as Gokuṭa in some inscriptions.