The District that forms a part of Allahabad Divison is named after its headquarters town Bela Pratabgarh, commonly know as Pratapgarh. Pratap Singh, a raja of the locality who flourished between 1628-1682, fixed his headquarters at Rampur near old town of Aror. There he built a garh (fort) and called it Pratabgarh after his own name. Subsequently the locality around the fort came to be known as Pratapgarh.

When the district was constituted in 1858 its headquarters was established at Bela which came to be known as Bela Pratapgarh, the name Bela presumably being derived from the temple of Bela Bhawani on the bank of river Sai. The early history of region covered by the present history of Pratpagarh is not with put interest. The region was already inhabited in pre-historic age.