State (pop., 2001 prelim.: 82,878,796), northeastern India.
Bordered by Nepal and West Bengal , Jharkhand , and Uttar Pradesh states, it occupies 38,301 sq mi (99,200 sq km); its capital is Patna . Its limits are nearly the same as those of the ancient kingdoms of Videha and Magadha, for which records date back to с 600 BC. In AD 320 the area came under the Gupta empire, whose capital was at Pataliputra (Patna). Overcome by the Muslims с 1200, Bihar was annexed to Delhi с 1497. Taken by the British in 1765, it was made part of Bengal . The area was the scene of revolts against the British in the mid-19th century and of Mohandas K. Gandhi 's nonviolent movement in 1917. Bihar was made a province of British India in 1936; it became a state after India's independence in 1947. It is one of India's least urbanized states, and most of its population engages in agriculture. In 2000 the new state of Jharkhand was created from Bihar's southern provinces.