a district of British India, in the presidency of Bengal, lying between N. Lat. 21. 55., and 22. 48.; E. Long. 88. 6, and 88. 43.; bounded on the N. by the district of Barnet, E. and S. by the Sunderbunds, and W. by the districts of Hoogly and Hidgelee, from which it is separated by the river Hoogly. Length from N. to S. 60 miles, breadth 32, area 1186 square miles. It consists entirely of a plain, slightly elevated above the sea, and traversed by many rivers and streams. The most important of these is the Hoogly, which forms the western boundary of the district for a distance of 78 miles, and is navigable for the largest vessels as far as Calcutta. A branch of this river, flowing S.E., is important as affording a passage at all seasons, even when the direct channel will not admit large ships. Another river in the district is the Poli, which flows eastward from the Salt Lake near Calcutta into the Sunderbunds. The climate is here very hot from March till June, when the thermometer sometimes reaches 112° in the shade. From June till November the rainy season lasts, and the rest of the year enjoys mild and salubrious weather. Palms and various native and foreign fruits are the chief vegetables raised here. A great part of the country is covered with jungle, in which tigers, hyenas, wild boars, buffaloes, and deer abound. There are few horses, but the chief domestic animals are horned cattle, sheep, and goats. The principal articles of trade are coarse cotton and silk, cloth, hemp, cocoanuts, teak and other timber, sugar, molasses, and small quantities of indigo, hides, and rum. Calcutta is locally included in this district, but is under a separate jurisdiction, and the seat of government here is Alipore. The country was granted to the East India Company by the Nabob Jaffier Ally Khan in 1757, and derives its name from its having formerly comprised twenty-four divisions, called in the native language pergunnahs. Pop. 701,128.