Introduction
Sundarbans is a mangrove area in the delta formed by the confluence of
the Padma, Brahmaputra and Meghna Rivers in the Bay of Bengal. It
spans the area from the Baleswar River in Bangladesh's division of
Khulna to the Hooghly River in India's state of West Bengal. It
comprises closed and open mangrove forests, land used for agricultural
purpose, mudflats and barren land, and is intersected by multiple
tidal streams and channels. Four protected areas in the Sundarbans are
enlisted as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Sundarbans West (Bangladesh),
Sundarbans South (Bangladesh), Sundarbans East (Bangladesh) and
Sundarbans National Park (India).
Name
The literal meaning of Sundarbans (Bengali: সুন্দরবন) is "beautiful
forest". Alternatively, it was proposed that the name is a corruption
of Samudraban, Shomudrobôn ("Sea Forest"), or Chandra-bandhe, the name
of a tribe. However, the likely origin of the word is Sundari or
Sundri, the local name of the mangrove species Heritiera fomes
abundant in the area.
Location
The Sundarban forest lies in the vast delta on the Bay of Bengal
formed by the super confluence of the Hooghly, Padma (both are
distributaries of Ganges), Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers across
southern Bangladesh. The seasonally flooded Sundarbans freshwater
swamp forests lie inland from the mangrove forests on the coastal
fringe. The forest covers 10,000 km2 (3,900 sq mi) of which about
6,000 sq km (2,300 sq mi) are in Bangladesh. The Indian part of
Sundarbans is estimated to be about 4,110 sq km (1,590 sq mi), of
which about 1,700 sq km (660 sq mi) is occupied by water bodies in the
forms of river, canals and creeks of width varying from a few metres
to several kilometres.
