From Langra to Hanrivanga: How did mangoes get their names?

Mango is probably the only thing in this country that is loved without reservation. If one day, we find in the history books that emperors fought in the name of mangoes, we wouldn't be surprised. "Who would get stuck with the aati part and who would get the pulpy ones"- is a burning question. 

There are some really popular mangoes in the country like Langda, Chausa, Harivanga, Fazli, Amrapali, Dosheri, Himsagar etc. But how did we come up with such a variety of names for mangoes? Let's dig into the pulp of some of the stories. 

Langda: No, the mango is not langda or crippled. Don't try to find a crippled bend on it. The story goes back to Emperor Akbar's era. Akbar planted one lakh mangoes in Darbhanga in Bihar in an orchard called Lakh Bagh. In that orchard, this variety was also planted. But it didn't get much attention. Then in the 1800's one fakir in Banaras planted a tree and started growing more of this variety. According to a report of Indian Anandabazar Patrika, that fakir had problems in his legs; he couldn't walk properly. And from there the mango got the name Langda, which means crippled.   

Golapkhas: Golapkhas was named after its fragrance. The slight red tint on its cheek, the thin skin like a rose petal, intoxicating fragrance that'll make you drunk- such are the qualities of this mango. 

Fazli: We are very secular when it comes to mangoes. We don't divide our love for it according to religion, age, beauty, gender or anything. In the 1800s, there lived an old woman in Gour region. She used to live in a shabby hut which had a mango tree in the front yard. One day, the collector Rajvensh came to visit the area. The old lady went to visit him with mangoes from that tree. The collector loved it so much that he wanted to know the name of it. But the old lady couldn't understand what he was asking. She thought he was asking her name. So she replied 'Fazli bibi'. According to Mahbub Siddiqee, founder of Heritage Rajshahi, from that day the mango was called Fazli.      

Hanrivanga: This mango has got quite a story to tell about its naming. As mentioned on Bangladesh National Portal, in the Barendro region of our country, there was a zamindar named Taj Bahadur Singh. He had a fascinating mango orchard filled with a variety of mangos. One of Taj Bahadur Sing's subjects, Nafal Uddin brought a seeding of a very sweet mango and planted it on his courtyard. Barendo region has dry weather and very dry soil. So he hung an earthen pots or Hanri filled with water over the plant. The pot had a hole beneath to water the plant. One day some naughty kids came and cracked the pot with gulti. It was broken. And that's how the mango got stuck with such interesting name. 

Amrapali: In the year 1978, mango researchers of India created a new breed. They mixed two breeds Dosheri and Nilam to create this new one- which was pretty to look at; its sweetness will capture your senses and its fragrance will take you to a dreamy land. A fruit with such qualities deserves a legendary name. And there it was – as mentioned on Bangladesh National Portal, it was named after the famous Indian court dancer Amrapali.