When a boy stoops down to plant rice seedlings in Mahasthan, he can be sure that boys have performed the same act in the same field for at least 3,000 years. When a honey collector bows to the goddess Bonbibi before entering the Sundarban wetlands, he stands in a millennia-long tradition. And when Bangladeshis see floodwater submerging their homes, they know that for tens of thousands of years their forebears have had the same experience.

In this old land many things have a long history. Bangladesh may be a young state, but its social arrangements result from a lengthy and turbulent past. In this book we have taken a bird's-eye view, sketching the contours but leaving out most details. The idea was to explain contemporary Bangladesh by showing its historical roots. Some of these reach back to an ancient past. Ever since humans settled in this region, making a living in a flood-prone tropical delta has been a constant challenge. Even today, man's technological prowess is dwarfed by the awesome power of nature to grant abundance or wreak havoc. Another constant factor has been the Bengal delta's openness. Ideas, peoples and goods have met and mingled at this major crossroads since time immemorial, leaving innumerable cultural, economic and genetic traces and creating a distinct regional culture. It is from such mingling and cross-fertilisation that modern Bangladeshi identities have gradually emerged – never monolithic, often conflicted and in perpetual flux.