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republic in S Asia, N of the Bay of Bengal: a member of the Commonwealth of Nations; a former province of Pakistan. 54,501 sq. mi. (141,158 sq. km).
Capital: Dhaka.
Contemporary Examples

Whereas in 2002 Bangladesh saw 500 attacks annually, it now sees about 100 per year.
Oscar-Winning ‘Saving Face’ Directors’ Battle to End Horror of Acid Attacks Shakthi Jothianandan March 7, 2012

A one-meter increase displaces almost 20 million people in Bangladesh alone.
Al Gore Warms Up Lloyd Grove December 8, 2009

Instead, India must be punished for stealing Kashmir in 1947 and for helping Bangladesh secede from Pakistan in 1971.
Pakistan’s Jihadist Threat: Obama’s Terrorism Challenge in 2012 Bruce Riedel December 21, 2011

But the group is free to plot and plan in Pakistan and it has cells in the Persian Gulf, Bangladesh, England, and elsewhere.
Mumbai Attacks: Four Years Later Bruce Riedel November 25, 2012

The retail giant might have worked with the Bangladesh factory that collapsed, killing hundreds.
JCPenney’s Very Good Bad Day Daniel Gross April 28, 2013

In Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, we’ve seen Muslim-majority countries elect a woman to lead.
Obama’s Egypt Address The Daily Beast Video June 3, 2009

Embassies have been closed across a large swath of Muslim countries, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and Bangladesh.
Fears of Al Qaeda Affiliate’s Plot Behind U.S. Travel Alert Daniel Klaidman August 2, 2013

In Bangladesh Friday, rescuers pulled a living woman from the rubble of a factory that had collapsed 17 days earlier.
The Bangladesh Factory Collapse Survivor and More Miraculous Rescues (VIDEO) Holly Bernal, Ben Teitelbaum May 9, 2013

Bangladesh was East Pakistan at the time, geographically separated from West Pakistan by the vast expanse of India.
Bangladesh’s Unfinished War K. Anis Ahmed March 10, 2013

Now he was responsible for all American espionage activities from Morocco to Bangladesh.
Charlie Wilson’s CIA Adventures George Crile February 10, 2010

noun
a republic in S Asia: formerly the Eastern Province of Pakistan; became independent in 1971 after civil war and the defeat of Pakistan by India; consists of the plains and vast deltas of the Ganges and Brahmaputra Rivers; prone to flooding: economy based on jute and jute products (over 70 per cent of world production); a member of the Commonwealth. Language: Bengali. Religion: Muslim. Currency: taka. Capital: Dhaka. Pop: 163 654 860 (2013 est). Area: 142 797 sq km (55 126 sq miles)

nation formed 1971 from former East Pakistan, from Bengali for “Bengali country,” from Bangla “Bengali” + desh “country.”
Bangladesh [(bahng-gluh-desh, bang-gluh-desh)]

Republic in southern Asia, bordered by India to the north, west, and east; the Bay of Bengal to the south; and Burma to the southeast. Its capital and largest city is Dacca.

Note: Created as East Pakistan in 1947, when India gained its independence from Britain and Muslim leaders demanded a Muslim state. Separated by cultural differences and one thousand miles of Indian territory from a neglectful central government in West Pakistan (now Pakistan), Bangladesh achieved its independence in 1971 after a bloody revolt and Indian intervention. It has been struck frequently by devastating typhoons.