Karnataka is one of the four southern statess of India. Bangalore is its capital. Other major cities include Mysore, Mangalore, Hubli-Dharwad and Belgaum.

The predominant language of this area is Kannada, which is its official language. Other languages include Kodava Takk, Tulu and Konkani, as well as the languages of the surrounding states: Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, and to some extent Malayalam.

It has Goa to its northwest, Maharashtra to its north, Andhra Pradesh to its east, Tamil Nadu to its east and southeast, and Kerala to its southwest. The western border is the shore of the Arabian Sea.

The state has three principal physical zones;

  • The coastal strip, between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea, which is lowland, with moderate to high rainfall levels.
  • The Western Ghats, a mountain range inland from the Arabian Sea, rising to about 900m average height, and with moderate to high rainfall levels.
  • The Deccan Plateau, comprising the main inland region of the state, which is drier and verging on the semi-arid.

The districts of Karnataka are: