Guj: પાટણ pāṭaṇa
‘(Anahil’s) City’ -City/District, Gujarat
From Skt/Guj: pattana/paṭṭana, ‘town’, ‘city’.
King Vanaraja of the 8thC Chavda dynasty founded this city and, according to legend, named it Anahilpur or Anahilpattana after a cowherd who chose the location. The word Patan is a corruption of this.
Anhilpur Patan served as the capital of three dynasties in medieval Gujarat: the Chavadas (8-10thC), the Chalukyas (10-13thC) and the Veghelas (13-14thC). Under the Chaulukyas (Solankis), Anahilpatan became one of the great cities of medieval India, with an estimated population of around 100,000 — placing it among the largest cities in the world at the time.
Patan has many important archaeological sites including the Old City and Fort, and the Rani ki vav (Queen’s Stepwell).
For related place names see Indian Place names and Gujarat place names.
Rani ki vav, Patan Bernard Gagnon
