|  Unlike
other cities in India, which grew around sacred sites or trading routes,
Mumbai is a city built by the British to serve British mercantile interests.
The city of Bombay was officially renamed Mumbai in January 1996.
The mumbaites believe that this name came from the goddess 'Mumba', worshipped
by the original Koli inhabitants. When the Portuguese arrived they
called the harbour Bombaim, which may have stemmed from 'buan bahia',
meaning 'good bay' in Portuguese, or was a corruption of the original
Koli name. When the islands were donated to the British, they anglicised
Bombaim into Bombay. As the country's busiest port and largest financial
centre, it effectively remains the commercial gateway between India and
the rest of the world. Parsis and Gujaratis dominate the city's
economy. Mumbai is home to the country's largest stock exchange. The Reserve
Bank of India is also located here.
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