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The district is named after the capital of the former princely State of Dungarpur. Dungar means a hill or a mountain and pur means a town, thus Dungarpur means a "Hill-Town'. Rawal Veer Singh Dev took over this part of the state from the Bhil Chieftain Dungaria and laid the foundation of the city as well as of the Old Palace on 14 Oct., 1282 A.D.

The district is wild and rugged being situated in the foothills of the Aravalis. The terrain though fairly open in the south and east is interspersed with stony slopes covered with low jungle of cactus, jujube trees and salar (Boswellia Servata, gum producing tree). A variety of shrubs and trees which require neither a deep soil normoisture also grow in the area. In the north and the east the country is rugged and wild but towards the south west border the harsh featuresgradually become softer.

The eastern part of the Gujarat region, slopes down towards the basin of the Mahi river and consists of a plain and a level cultivated area. Two rivers, the Mahi & the Som, flow through the area. The former separates the district from Banswara and the latter forms the natural boundary between this district and Udaipur. The cultivated area is mostly confined to the valley and low ground between the hills where the soil is alluvial.

Dungarpur is famous for its particular style of architecture. The palaces of the Dungarpur princes and the residence of the noble ones are adorned by stone jharokhas and a new style of jharokhas which was developed by Maharawal Shiv Singh reign (1730-1785 A.D.). The gold and silversmiths of Dungarpur and Banswara are well known for lacquer painted toys and picture framing.

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