Mangalore was named after the deity Mangaladevi, the presiding deity of the Mangaladevi Temple or a synonym of Tara Bhagvati of the Vajrayana Buddhist sect.
According to local legend, a princess named Parimala or Premaladevi from Malabar renounced her kingdom and became a disciple of Matsyendranath, the founder of the Nath tradition.
Having converted Premaladevi to the Nath sect, Matsyendranath renamed her Mangaladevi.
She arrived in the area with Matsyendranath but had to settle near Bolar in Mangalore because she fell ill on the way.
When she died, the Mangaladevi temple at Bolar was consecrated in her honour by the local people.
The city got its name from the temple.

One of the earliest references to the city's name was made in 715 CE by the Pandyan King Chettian, who called the city Mangalapuram.
The city and the coastal region were part of the Pandyan Kingdom.
According to K.V. Ramesh, President of the Place Names Society of India, Mangaluru was first used in 1345 CE during the Vijayanagar rule.
Many shilashasanas (stones) of the Vijayanagar period refer the city as Mangalapura.
Before that, during the Alupa dynasty period, it was referred to as Mangalapura (Mangala means 'auspicious').
in Kannada language, the city is known as Mangaluru, a reference to Mangaladevi (the suffix uru means town or city).
During British rule from 1799, the anglicised version Mangalore became the official appellation.
According to historian George M. Moraes, however, the word Mangalore is the Portuguese corruption of Mangaluru.
The city's name appears on maps from as early as the 1652 Sanson Map of India.

Mangalore's diverse communities have different names for the city in their languages.
In Tulu, the region's primary spoken language, the city is called Kudla, meaning junction because it is situated at the confluence of the Netravati and Gurupura rivers.
In Konkani, Mangalore is referred to as Kodiyal, while in Malayalam, Mangalore is called Mangalapuram and the Beary name for the city is Maikala.
Mangalore was officially renamed to "Mangaluru" by the Karnataka government on 1 November 2014.
Mangalore was named after the deity Mangaladevi, the presiding deity of the Mangaladevi Temple or a synonym of Tara Bhagvati of the Vajrayana Buddhist sect. According to local legend, a princess named Parimala or Premaladevi from Malabar renounced her kingdom and became a disciple of Matsyendranath, the founder of the Nath tradition. Having converted Premaladevi to the Nath sect, Matsyendranath renamed her Mangaladevi. She arrived in the area with Matsyendranath but had to settle near Bolar in Mangalore because she fell ill on the way. When she died, the Mangaladevi temple at Bolar was consecrated in her honour by the local people. The city got its name from the temple.
One of the earliest references to the city's name was made in 715 CE by the Pandyan King Chettian, who called the city Mangalapuram. The city and the coastal region were part of the Pandyan Kingdom. According to K.V. Ramesh, President of the Place Names Society of India, Mangaluru was first used in 1345 CE during the Vijayanagar rule. Many shilashasanas (stones) of the Vijayanagar period refer the city as Mangalapura. Before that, during the Alupa dynasty period, it was referred to as Mangalapura (Mangala means 'auspicious'). in Kannada language, the city is known as Mangaluru, a reference to Mangaladevi (the suffix uru means town or city). During British rule from 1799, the anglicised version Mangalore became the official appellation. According to historian George M. Moraes, however, the word Mangalore is the Portuguese corruption of Mangaluru. The city's name appears on maps from as early as the 1652 Sanson Map of India.
Mangalore's diverse communities have different names for the city in their languages. In Tulu, the region's primary spoken language, the city is called Kudla, meaning junction because it is situated at the confluence of the Netravati and Gurupura rivers. In Konkani, Mangalore is referred to as Kodiyal, while in Malayalam, Mangalore is called Mangalapuram and the Beary name for the city is Maikala. Mangalore was officially renamed to "Mangaluru" by the Karnataka government on 1 November 2014.
Mangalore