kingdom · Indian princely states
Koch Kingdom
Origins
After the Bengal Sultanate destroyed the Kamata Kingdom around 1498, Biswa Singha, a leader of the Koch people, united the local chiefs and founded a new state around 1515, centred on the Cooch Behar area. He adopted Hindu kingship and Brahmin rituals.
Rule and society
Under Nara Narayan (r. 1540–1587) and his brother and general Chilarai, the Koch defeated the Ahom kingdom and, according to later chronicles, forced tribute from the Kachari kingdom, Jaintia, Manipur and Tripura. Nara Narayan rebuilt the Kamakhya temple and patronised the Vaishnava saint Sankardev and Assamese and Sanskrit literature.
Decline and legacy
In 1581 Nara Narayan divided the kingdom with his nephew Raghudev, creating Koch Bihar in the west and Koch Hajo in the east. Koch Bihar continued as Cooch Behar State; Koch Hajo was later absorbed by the Mughals and the Ahoms.
Lineage
On the connections map
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- Koch Hajo split from Koch Kingdom1581 CE
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Koch Kingdom. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/koch-kingdom
- MLA
- “Koch Kingdom.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/koch-kingdom. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Koch Kingdom.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/koch-kingdom.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Koch Kingdom’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/koch-kingdom (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻