Home > Terms > English, UK (UE) > Jaipur

Jaipur (Rajasthani: जैपर , Hindi: जयपुर Urdu: جئے پور), also popularly known as the 'Pink City', is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of 3.1 million.

Jaipur is one of the finest planned cities of India, located in the semi-desert lands of Rajasthan. The city which once had been the capital of the royalty now is the capital city of Rajasthan. The very structure of Jaipur resembles the taste of the Rajputs and the Royal families. At present, Jaipur is a major business centre with all requisites of a metropolitan city.

Jaipur has some big and famous areas in India like Mansarovar, Vaishali Nagar, Sanganer, Jhotwara, Amba-Bari, Raja Park etc.

The city is remarkable among pre-modern Indian cities for the width and regularity of its streets which are laid out into six sectors separated by broad streets 34 m (111 ft) wide. The urban quarters are further divided by networks of gridded streets. Five quarters wrap around the east, south, and west sides of a central palace quarter, with a sixth quarter immediately to the east. The Palace quarter encloses a sprawling palace complex, (Hawa Mahal), formal gardens, and a small lake. Nahargarh Fort, which was the residence of the King Sawai Jai Singh II, crowns the hill in the northwest corner of the old city. The observatory, Jantar Mantar, is one of the World Heritage Sites. Jaipur is a popular tourist destination in Rajasthan and India.

In 1876 Jaipur was coloured in terracotta pink to welcome Prince Albert, and thus the name "Pink City" was attached with the city.