SYLHET, a British district of India, in the province of Assam, lying between 25° 12' and 23° 59' N. lat. and 91° and 92° 38' E. long., with an area of 5381 square miles. It is bounded on the N. by the Kliási and Jaintia Hills district, on the E. by Cachar, on the S. by the state of Hill Tipperah and the district of Tipperah, and on the W. by the district of Maimansinh. Sylhet consists of the lower valley of the Surma or Barak river, and for the most part is a uniform level, broken only by scattered clusters of sandy hillocks called tilas, and intersected by a network of rivers and drainage channels. In the south eight low ranges of hills, spurs of the Tipperah Mountains, run out into the plain, the highest range being about 1500 feet above sea-level. There is also a small detached group in the centre of the district called the Ita Hills. Entering the district from Cachar, the Surma bifurcates into two branches: the main branch flows beneath the hills bordering the north-east part, while the minor branch, the Kusiára, flows in a south-westerly direction across the district; they again unite on the south-western boundary and fall into the Meghna under the name of Dhaleswari. Both branches are navigable by large boats and support a busy traffic. The wild animals of the district comprise elephants, tigers, buffaloes, bison, and several varieties of deer. The climate of Sylhet is extremely damp and the rainfall is heavy, reaching an annual average of over 150 inches; the rainy season generally lasts from April to October. In 1881 the population was returned at 1,969,009, of whom 999,785 were males and 969,224 females. Hindus numbered 949,353, Mohammedans 1,015,531, and hill tribes 3708. The only places with a population exceeding 5000 are Sylhet town (14,407) and ...