Shajapur is named after the Mughal emperor shahjahan, who stopped there in 1640. Prior to that the town was known as Kankdikheda. The original name was Shahjahanpur, which was later shortened to Shajapur. In the 18th century the town became part of the dominion of the Maratha leader Sindhia, founder of the state of Gwalior, and was the headquarters of a district of Gwalior state until Indian independence in 1947. After Independence, Shajapur and its district became part of Madhya Bharat state, which was merged into Madhya Pradesh on 1 November 1956
