Tetsuya Takagi, Takashi Oguchi, Masumi Zaiki, Jun Matsumoto
Chikei/Transactions, Japanese Geomorphological Union, 26(4) 405-422, Oct, 2005
Rapid geomorphological changes mainly due to fluvial processes have been uccurring in Bangladesh despite its very flat topography. This observation reflects its location in the downstream areas of the two large rivers: Ganges and Brahmaputra, with their upstream areas being subjected to abundant rainfall. Fluvial systems in Bangladesh are quite complex, because the meandering Ganges and the braided Brahmaputra merges in the center of the country, and southern plains are prone to tide-related processes. Despite such interesting geomorphological settings, detailed scientific studies on landforms and sediments in Bangladesh have only been activated since the 1990s, because of political chaos in the earlier decades and a limited number of researchers within the country. It is necessary to extend recent studies to better understand the geomorphology of the country. This paper reviews the history and contents of geomorphological and geological studies for Bangladesh, to facilitate future progress of relevant research. Although this paper intends to cover a wide range of topics, special attention is directed toward fluvial geomorphology in relation to frequent large floods, which significantly affect people's life in Bangladesh.