Nawada is a part of the ancient Magadh Empire located in south Bihar.

The origin of the name Nawada is from Persian Nau-abad, which means "New Town" which was earlier known as ‘The Eliot Market (Bazaar)’.

After its acquisition, Nawada was in great disorder until 1845, when it became the headquarters of the newly created subdivision.

The local offices were destroyed, but government records were saved by the native officials who hid them in a cave on a neighboring hill.

Two miles to the north, there is a Jain temple standing in the middle of a large water tank to the west of the public road, but the city itself contains no important building and has little historical interest.

It was also the birthplace and workplace of Indrabhuti Gautama, the chief disciple of Lord Mahavir in Jainism.

From Gaya through NH 120 & SH 8 (Bihar) By air, Nawada is well connected to several airports of Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal: This town has some good educational institutes like Government Engineering College,[6] Nawada Vidhi Mahavidyalaya,[7] Rajendra Memorial Women's (RMW) College,[8] Kanhai Lal Sahu (KLS) College.