G20 dinner invitation fuels rumours of a name change for India

India's Prime Minister has sparked questions about whether the nation could be headed for an official name change after 'India' was replaced with a Sanskrit word on G20 Summit invitations.

The invitations, which were sent out on Tuesday, refer to the country's President Droupadi Murmu as the "President of Bharat" rather than the "President of India".

The nation is hosting the annual G20 summit in New Delhi on September 9 and 10, which groups the world's 19 wealthiest countries plus the European Union.

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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will join other world leaders such as US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron at the summit.

The host nation is officially known by the names India and Bharat under its constitution, however, India is more commonly used domestically and internationally.

Bharat is an ancient Sanskrit word that historians believe dates back to early Hindu texts.

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The country is also known as Hindustan in different forms of popular culture and in literature.

Officials in Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party have supported the name change, arguing the word India was introduced by the British, who ruled India for about 200 years until the country gained independence in 1947.

However, some have accused the government of pursuing a nationalist agenda aimed at forming an ethnic Hindu state out of a constitutionally secular India.

Others have encouraged the continued use of the country's two official names.

Local media outlets have cited sources that say the government might discuss a name change at a special parliament session later this month.