Dalavayi also spelled Dalwai, Dalavay and Dalvoy was meaning title of Chief in Commander or Commander in the military in South Indian dynasty. In

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

, Hyder Ali and his eldest son Tipu Sultan were appointed to this position. The word Dalavayi is a Prakrit or vernacular form of the Sanskrit word (which literally means: leader or chief of the team or wing). In western India, especially

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

and Goa the descendants of Dalavayis still use the title ''Dalvi'' ( Devanagari: दळवी) as surname, which is modern form of the Prakrit word Dalavayi.{{cite book, last1=Bloch, first1=J., title=Formation of the Marathi Language, date=1970, publisher=Motilal Banarasidas Publishers, isbn=9788120823228, page=161

References

Heads of government Titles in India People of the Kingdom of Mysore Military personnel from Karnataka