Aligarh

Aligarh
City
From top, left to right: Sir Syed Mosque; Aligarh Clock Tower;, Bab-e-Syed, Church of Ascension; Aligarh Habitat Centre; Kennedy House Complex, which houses Aligarh's Cultural Education Center
Aligarh Location in Uttar Pradesh, India Show map of Uttar Pradesh Aligarh Aligarh (India) Show map of India
Coordinates: 27°53′N 78°05′E / 27.88°N 78.08°E / 27.88; 78.08
Country	India
State	Uttar Pradesh
Division	Aligarh
District	Aligarh
Government
• Type	Municipal Corporation
• Body	Aligarh Municipal Corporation
• Mayor	Prashant Singhal (BJP)[1]
Elevation	178 m (584 ft)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	874,408
• Rank	53
Demonym	Aligarian
Language
• Official	Hindi[3]
• Additional official	Urdu[3]
• Regional	Braj Bhasha
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN Code	202001, 202002
Telephone code	0571
Vehicle registration	UP-81
Website	aligarh.nic.in

Aligarh ( ^ⓘ; formerly known as Koil^[4]) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district, and lies 342 kilometres (213 mi) northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately 130 kilometres (81 mi) southeast of the capital, New Delhi. The cities and districts which adjoin Aligarh are: Gautam Buddha Nagar, Bulandshahr, Sambhal, Badaun, Kasganj, Hathras, Etah and Mathura. As of 2011, Aligarh is the 53rd most populous city in India.

The recorded history of Aligarh begins in the 12th century, under the name Kol. Kol was a major city of the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire, serving as both a political and economic centre. Beginning with a major rebuilding of the Aligarh Fort in the 16th century, the city was renamed several times before eventually settling on the current name, Aligarh, in the mid-1700s. It is notable as the seat of Aligarh Muslim University, which was founded here as Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College in 1875, initiating the Aligarh Movement.