British India

American  

noun

1. a part of India, comprising 17 provinces, that prior to 1947 was subject to British law: now divided among India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.

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British India British  

noun

1. the 17 provinces of India formerly governed by the British under the British sovereign: ceased to exist in 1947 when the independent states of India and Pakistan were created

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Example Sentences

West Bengal's history of migration dates back to the partition of British India in 1947.

From Barron's • May 29, 2026

Radcliffe had been given six weeks to trace that gash through the map of British India.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

Born in Calcutta in British India in 1935, Sir Mark spent much of his life in the country.

From BBC • Jan. 26, 2026

The first census of British India was conducted in 1871-72, 14 years after the shamefully bloody Sepoy Mutiny, and counted some 200 million Indian subjects.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025

HARDWAR, or Hurdwar, an ancient town of British India, and Hindu place of pilgrimage, in the Saharanpur district of the United Provinces, on the right bank of the Ganges, 17 m.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 8 "Haller, Albrecht" to "Harmonium" by Various