Haridwar
city in India
Haridwar (; Hindi: [ɦəɾɪd̪waːɾ] ; formerly Mayapuri) is a city and municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. With a population of 228,832 according to 2011 census, it is the second-largest city in the state and the largest in the district. Haridwar is located at the south western part of the state.
The city is situated on the right bank of the Ganges river, at the foothills of the Shivalik ranges. Haridwar lies in a doab region where people speak Khari Boli, which is a dialect of Hindi. The other districts of doab region lie in Western Uttar Pradesh. Haridwar is regarded as a holy place for Hindus, hosting important religious events and serving as a gateway to several prominent places of worship. The word 'Haridwar' means the gateway to the Lord Hari. The most significant of the events here is the Kumbha Mela, which is celebrated every 12 years in Haridwar. During the Haridwar Kumbh Mela, millions of Hindu pilgrims, devotees, and tourists congregate in Haridwar to perform ritualistic bathing on the banks of the Ganges to wash away their sins to attain moksha.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Haridwar” is city in India. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Haridwar, city and India, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “city in India” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 24, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q273030. VIAF identifies the subject as 150200437. The Library of Congress control number is n88080888. Authority coordinates are 29.967, 78.167. 2 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2011.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
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Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
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Questions for further research
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Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Haridwar” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.