u/Cool_Support746

While Nagara (ನಗರ) is the commonly used word for city in modern kannada, but in Old Kannada, the word was PoLalu (ಪೊಳಲು).

PoLalu comes from poLe (ಪೊಳೆ), meaning river (in both Old and Modern Kannada). This is because cities were traditionally built near rivers.

Example: The ancient name of Pattadakallu was Kisuvolal (ಕಿಸುವೊಳಲ್).

Kisu (red) + poLal (city) = "The Red City" (referring to the area's red sandstone).