Jhalokati, also spelled Jhalokathi, (Bengali: ঝালকাঠি) is a district in southern Bangladesh.[3] It is located in the Barisal Division and covers an area of 758.06 km2 It is bounded by Barisal district to the north and east, Barguna district and the Bishkhali river in the south, and Pirojpur district to the west. Annual average temperatures: maximum 33.3 °C, minimum 12.1 °C; annual rainfall 2506 mm. The main rivers in this district are the Bishkhali, Dhanshiri, Gabkhan, Sugandha, Jangalia, Bamanda and Bajitpur. "পেয়ারা আর শীতলপাটি, এই নিয়ে ঝালকাঠি" "(Jhalokathi, The land of tasty Guava and Shitolpati)" is the official moto of the district.[4]
Rural communications: Water transport is a major attraction in Jhalokati district. People can travel at a cheap cost by boats and various types of engine boats. Jhalokati is famous for its beautiful rivers and canals. Tourists can find it enjoyable to travel through boats.
According to the 2022 Census of Bangladesh, Jhalokati District had 162,401 households and a population of 661,160. 121,894 (18.44%) were under 10 years of age. The population density was 935 people per km2. Jhalokati district had a literacy rate (age 7 and over) of 83.21%, compared to the national average of 74.80%, and a sex ratio of 1088 females per 1000 males. 27.85% of the population lived in urban areas.[1]
A large majority of the district population is Muslim. It has 2475 mosques, 46 Hindu temples and five Buddhist pagodas. The percentage share of minority Hindus and Christians has seen a decline in absolute numbers since the 1981 census.
Most people of this district speaks Barisali dialect of Bengali which is the dialect of nearby Barisal city.