History of the name: Cox’s Bazar

Cox’s Bazar is also known by the name “Panowa”, the literal translation of which means “yellow flower”. Its other old name was “Palongkee”. The modern Cox’s Bazar derives its name from Captain Cox (died 1798), an army officer serving in British India. Captain Cox was specially mobilized to deal with a century long conflict between Arakan refugees and local Rakhains. The Captain was a compassionate soul and the plight of the people touched his heart. He embarked upon the mammoth task of rehabilitating refugees in the area, and made significant progress. The work he had done earned him a place in the hearts of the locals and to commemorate his role in rehabilitation work a market was established and named after him as Cox’s Bazaar (“Cox’s Market”). Often termed as the “World’s longest beach”, Cox’s Bazar is yet to become a major tourist destination in Asia allegedly due to lack of publicity.