[8][9] Another popular theory states that Dhaka refers to a membranophone instrument, dhak which was played by order of Subahdar Islam Khan I during the inauguration of the Bengal capital in 1610.

[10] Some references also say it was derived from a Prakrit dialect called Dhaka Bhasa; or Dhakka, used in the Rajtarangini for a watch station; or it is the same as Davaka, mentioned in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta as an eastern frontier kingdom.

[14] The ancient city of Dholsamudra in present-day Gazipur served as one of the capitals of the Buddhist Pala Empire.

In the sixth century, forts were built in Toke and Ekdala which continued to be used as late as the Mughal Period.

[6] Under Islamic rule, the centre moved to the historic district of Sonargaon, the regional administrative hub of the Delhi and the Bengal Sultanates.

By winning the grace of the Afghan chieftain, Isa Khan gradually increased his strength and status and by 1571, the Mughal Court designated him as the ruler of Bhati.

[16] Mughal histories, mainly the Akbarnama, the Ain-i-Akbari and the Baharistan-i-Ghaibi refers to the low-lying regions of Bengal as Bhati.

Keeping in view the theatre of warfare between the Baro-Bhuiyans and the Mughals, the Baharistan-i-Ghaibi mentions the limits of the area bounded by the Ichamati River in the west, the Ganges in the south, the Tripura to the east; Alapsingh pargana (in present Mymensingh District) and Baniachang (in greater Sylhet) in the north.

The Baro-Bhuiyans rose to power in this region and put up resistance to the Mughals, until Islam Khan Chisti made them submit in the reign of Jahangir.

[18] Dhaka became the capital of the Mughal province of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa in 1610 with a jurisdiction covering modern-day Bangladesh and eastern India, including the modern-day Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa.

[19] Dhaka became one of the richest and greatest cities in the world during the early period of Bengal Subah (1610-1717).

In 1704, as the consequence of change in the policy of revenue collection, Bala Ram's son Sri Krishna was installed as the zamindar of Bhawal by Murshid Quli Khan.

[24] In 1878, British Raj conferred Raja title to Zamindar Kalinarayan Roy Chowdhury who oversaw the Bhawal estate.

Sultan Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah established a mint in Fatehabad during his reign in the early 15th century.

In Ain-i-Akbari, it was named as Haweli Mahal Fatehabad during the reign of Emperor Akbar in the Mughal Empire.

[26] By the 19th century, the town was renamed as Faridpur in honour of the Sufi saint Shah Fariduddin Masud, a follower of the Chishti order of Ajmer.

[26] Haji Shariatullah and Dudu Miyan led the conservative Faraizi movement in Faridpur during the early 19th century.

The Faridpur Subdivision was a part of Dacca Division in the Bengal Presidency established by the East India Company.

It bestowed privileges on the Dhaka Nawab Family, which dominated the city's political and social elite.

The city became the seat of government for Eastern Bengal and Assam, with a jurisdiction covering most of modern-day Bangladesh and all of what is now Northeast India.

[35] The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization established a medical research centre (now called ICDDR,B) in the city in 1960.

[citation needed] In the 1990s and 2000s, Dhaka experienced improved economic growth and the emergence of affluent business districts and satellite towns.

Dhaka Division consisted before 2015 of four city corporations, 13 districts, 123 upazilas and 1,248 union parishads.

Note: * revised area and its population after excluding the districts transferred to the new Mymensingh Division.