13 July, 2006

Mumbai? What About Bombay? :: The Explainer

Link: Mumbai? What About Bombay? - How the city got renamed. By Christopher Beam

As a result of recent events more Americans know that Bombay has been renamed Mumbai. From the article it seems that many in India still call it Bombay. So you have the irony of non-Indians outside of India striving to use the city's official name while many within India continue to call the city Bombay.

Note also: In 1996, Madras became Chennai.

Meanwhile, in the U.S., Madras is back in style. Then there's Burberry which is so in style it hurts.

2 comments:

B.D. said...

Yep, it's kind of funny. I find myself having to correct myself for saying Chennai when I hear so many Indians saying Madras--and not just for the city but for the whole of Tamil Nadu. Talk about being non-PC.

Anyone who goes to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam (formerly Saigon) will find all the native southerners adamantly clinging to the name Saigon, which I don't blame them for doing, for both political reasons and the sake of brevity.

Al Sinjab said...

Yay for eighties fashion! I'm sure anyone who's been to 80s night can understand why exercise attire was so popular! I missed the 80s scene the first time around so I'm thrilled that I get a turn to slip on some leggings and bust a groove to Tainted Love!

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