A town near Rajagaha, (according to Buddhaghosa) one league away. The Buddha is mentioned as having several times stayed there during his residence in Pavarika's mango grove,... According to Kevatta Sutta , in Buddha's time Nalanda was already an influential and prosperous town, thickly populated though it was not till later that it became the centre of learning for which it afterwards became famous.

Houien Thsang gives several explanations of name Nalanda, One is that it was named after the Naga who lived in tank in the middle of the mango-grove. Another-and accepted by him- is that the Bodhisatta once had his capital here and gave "alms without intermission," hence the name.

Nalanda is, in the northern books, given the name of Sariputta's birthplace(Nalaka). Nalanda is identified with the modern Baragaon.

G. P. Malalasekera, Dictionary of Pali Proper Names, Vol- 2, N-H,Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt. Ltd. ( First Indian reprint Delhi 2007), pp.56-57)

... the first founder of Nalanda Vihar was Ashoka, the developers of the place of learning were 500 Acharyas, Mudgaragomin and his brother, the next enlarger was Rahulbhadra and the greatest expander was Nagarjuna....

... The University of Nalanda was, as it were, a circle from which Buddhist philosophy and teaching diffused itself over Southern and Eastern Asia...

(Memories of the archeological Survey of India - No. 66- Nalanda and its Epigraphic Material, Hirananda Sastri, Published by The Director General Archeological Survey of India, New Delhi, Original edition 1942, Reprint 1999, pp 6 & 20 )