Historically, the name of Kaithal is obtained from 'Kapisthala' which means monkeys. Earlier, it was called Kapisthal means ‘Abode of Kapi’. Kapi was the name of the Lord Hanuman. It is the birth place of Lord Hanuman. The district has a temple namely Anjani Tila, dedicated to the mother of the Lord Hanuman ‘Anjani’. The region was founded by the King Yudhisthir of Mahabharata. Kaithal’s history is as old as the era of the Mahabharata. Hieun Tsang and Fa Hien also visited the region. It was a prominent literacy centre during the period of Chenghiz Khan. Razia Sultana ruled over the area from 1236 to 1240. Earlier, the region was under the control of Nadir Shah in 1938. After the year 1939, it became a part of the Delhi Sultanate. The district is fortunate enough to have a marvelous fort built by Akbar during his period of reign. It became a municipality in the year 1867. Then it was ruled by the ‘Bhai’ dynasty for a long period. The fort of the Bhais is still extant, and their title Bhai became common with the primary Sikh rulers. Even the natives of Kaithal participated actively in freedom struggle in 1857. Finally, the place of Kaithal was emerged as a separate district in the map of Haryana on 1st November, 1989.

There are a number of famous persons from the district who belong to different fields. Balwant Singh Sagwal (Ballu) was a prominent Indian volleyball player. He died in 2010. Manoj Kumar was born on 10th December, 1986. He is an Indian boxer. He won a gold medal in the light welter weight division at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Kumar is currently supported by the Olympic Gold quest. He was rewarded by the Arjuna Award in 2014.

Geographically, the district has a total 2,317 sq. km. area and occupies the rank 7th in State and 478th in India on the bases of this size. It lies at the 29°80'N latitude, 76°38'E longitude and 220 m altitude. In the year 2021, there was a total 2.54% forest area of total geographical area. The climate of the district is very much similar to the climate of the other districts of north India. Most of its rainfall occurs in the monsoon season. The actual rainfall in the district was 759.2 mm in the year of 2021-22.

Administrative wise, the district is divided into 3 sub-districts, 4 towns and 269 villages. Hindi is its official language. In the state of Haryana with an allotted district code of 73 the district of Kaithal came into existence on 1st November, 1989 with its administrative headquarters located at Kaithal which is situated at a distance of 129 kms from the State Capital.

Demographically, according to the 2011 census, the district has a total number of 2,00,221 households with a total of 10,74,304 comprising 5,71,003 are males and 5,03,301 are females which causing it to rank 13th in the State and 423rd in India. The density of population of the district is 464 persons per sq. km. The sex ratio is pegged at 881 females for every 1000 males while the child ratio stands at 828 females per 1000 males. The schedule caste population of the district is recorded as 2,47,513 including 1,31,486 are males and 1,16,027 are females. As per 2011 census the percentage of the major religions practiced by the people of this region is Hindu with 90.71%. According to 2011 census the principal languages in the district are Hindi and Punjabi with 89.37% and 10.43%. In the year 2020 the number of live births in the district was 19,085 out of which 9,960 were males and 9,124 were females. In the same year the number of deaths in the district was 8,594 out of which 5,304 were males and 3,288 were females. The population growth rate during the period 2001 to 2011 was 13.55% including 11.85% were males and 15.54% were females.

Economically, the district is dependent on agriculture primarily. The GDDP or Gross District Domestic Product during the period 2005-06 was Rs. 3,25,666 lakh at Current Price was Rs. 2,37,985 lakh at Constant Price during the period 1999-2000. The NDDP or Net District Domestic Product during the period 2005-06 was Rs. 3,04,945 lakh at Current Price and Rs. 2,23,293 at Constant Price during the period 1999-2000. The Per Capita Income or NDDP, at factor cost during the period 2011-12 was Rs. 69,360 lakh at Current Price during the period 2004-2005.

Education wise, according to the 2011 census, the literacy rate is 69.15% including 77.98% are males and 59.24 are females. The total literate population of the district is 6,46,529 comprising 3,85,782 are males and 2,60,747 are females. The district has several educational institutes including schools and colleges.

Several famous political personalities belong to the district. Ishwar Singh was born on 10th April, 1950 in Kaithal. He belongs to the Indian Congress in Haryana state of India. He served as a member of Rajya Sabha from Haryana during 2008-2014.

The district has a number of famous historical and religious places to visit. These places are Brick Temples, Dargah of Baba Shah Kamal Kadri, Gyarah Rudri Temple, Phelgu Tank, Temples of Saraswati, Kapil Muni and Baba Narayan Das, Tomb of Razia Sultan, Ancient Baoli, Forts and Palaces of Bhais, Palace. In the year 2020-2021, there were total 6,329 domestic tourists who visited the above places. Gurudwara Neem Sahib is situated at the Dogra gate. It was established in the memory of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji. Gurdwara Manji Sahib is situated in Sethan Mohalla, Kaithal. It is also dedicated to the Ninth Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur. Gyarah Rudri Temple is the temple with divine eleven Rudra. These Rudras were placed before 5000s years ago. The temple has wonderful art, architecture, beautiful scriptures and large area. It also has a big statue of hanuman. Badi Devi Mandir is one of the oldest temples in kaithal. Sanatan Dharam mandir and vridh Asharam is situated in at quality Chowk. This is also one of the oldest temples of the city. It has a beautiful and large statue of ‘kali mata’. Nav graha and Shani mandir and Nav devi temple are also situated here. Tomb of Sheikh is situated in Kaithal city near Railway line. According to the myth, it was established in the 16th century by Hazrat Shah Sikandar. The meaning of the words 'Sheikh' and Tayyab' is 'Fakir' (saint) and 'pure'. Tomb of Razia Sultana is the sign of regime of Razia Sultana, the first woman ruler.