We all know that Revanth Reddy, the Chief Minister of Telangana, has been promoting the name Future City, but the media is still writing about “Fourth City,” the first nomenclature that was announced.
It is true that, considering the Hyderabad–Secunderabad–Cyberabad tri-city pattern, building a new city would naturally lead to the name “Fourth City.”
However, that name was immediately objected to by some officers, citing superstitious reasons observed in certain Asian countries.
They believe that some nations that may invest in Telangana could hesitate because the word “four” is considered a bad omen in their cultures.
In several Asian cultures, especially Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese, the number four is considered unlucky because its pronunciation resembles the word for “death", in their language.
This belief, known as tetraphobia, influences naming practices for cities, buildings, and streets.
For example, many East Asian hotels and hospitals avoid having a “4th floor,” instead labeling it 3A or skipping it entirely; the same applies to numbers like 14 or 24 that are generally replaced with 13A and 23A respectively.
Because of this superstition, naming a new urban development “Fourth City” can evoke negative sentiment among potential investors or visitors from these cultures.
Even if a city is technically the fourth major hub in a region, officials may hesitate to use that name.
This is why Telangana’s new planned city is being promoted as “Future City” rather than “Fourth City.” But local media has no concern of it and they keep mentioning 'Fourth City'.