Harikela was a kingdom in ancient Bengal encompassing much of the eastern regions of the Indian Subcontinent

Indian subcontinent

The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...

. There are numerous references to the kingdom in historical texts as well as archeological artifacts including silver coinage.

History

The kingdom was ruled by the Candra dynasty during the 10th century CE. They were overthrown by the Varman dynasty

Varman dynasty

The Varman dynasty ruled Kamarupa from 350 to 650. Pushyavarman the first historical ruler of Assam established this dynasty in c350 AD...

 who were in turn overthrown by the Deva dynasty

Deva dynasty

Deva Dynasty was a Hindu dynasty of early medieval Bengal, ruled over eastern Bengal after the Sena dynasty. The capital of this dynasty was Bikrampur in present-day Munshiganj District of Bangladesh. The end of this dynasty is not yet known.This Hindu Vaishnava dynasty is different from an...

. In the 17th century the Mughal Empire absorbed and brought Harikela under the province of Bengal.

Geography

For a time its capital was near Chittagong

Chittagong

Chittagong ) is a city in southeastern Bangladesh and the capital of an eponymous district and division. Built on the banks of the Karnaphuli River, the city is home to Bangladesh's busiest seaport and has a population of over 4.5 million, making it the second largest city in the country.A trading...

 before being moved to Munshiganj by the Candras. Arab traders recognised Harikela (known as Harkand in Arabic) as the coastal regions of Bengal

Bengal

Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...

 (near Chittagong) in the early period and included Sylhet

Sylhet

Sylhet , is a major city in north-eastern Bangladesh. It is the main city of Sylhet Division and Sylhet District, and was granted metropolitan city status in March 2009. Sylhet is located on the banks of the Surma Valley and is surrounded by the Jaintia, Khasi and Tripura hills...

 in the later period reaching as far as the ancient Sundarbans

Sundarbans

The Sundarbans [Sundarban Tour Booking-9051115228] is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world.The name Sundarban can be literally translated as "beautiful jungle" or "beautiful forest" in the Bengali language...

.