'Ramai Deb' of the Chauhan dynasty established his kingdom in 1320 with his capital at 'Patnagarh' in present day's Balangir Dist, and virtually ruled independently. In 15th century AD Narasingh Deva, the twelfth Raja of Patnagarh, ceded to his brother Balram Deva all the jungle country bounded on the North by the river Mahanadi, on the East by the river Tel, on the South by the Ang river, and on the west by the river Jonk.
Balram Deva, who is regarded as the founder of the Sambalpur Raj, installed Samalai, the tutelary goddess of his family. He defeated the rulers of Bamanda, Gangpur, Surguja and Ratanpur.
Many small kingdoms, ruled by local chieftains, existed in ancient times, in what is now called Western Odisha. In the middle of the 10th century, Yayati, a king of the Soma dynasty of South Kosala, whose capital was at Sonpur, acquired control of Utkal and shifted his capital to Yayatinagar in Utkal region.
Tibardeb of the Soma dynasty, whose capital was at Sripur, in Chhattisgarh was the first ruler, who defeated all these chieftains and established a large kingdom in Dakhin Kosal comprising what is present day Chhattisgarh and Western Odisha. There upon he kept Sonpur under a prince of his clan.
During the period of conquest of Kalinga by emperor Ashoka, this area was known as Attabika, i.e.