Desai (

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

: देसाई) () is an Indian administrative, princely or honorary title and

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

Etymology

The word is derived from the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

''deśa'' (country) and ''svāmī'' (lord).

Desai as a title

Desai was a title given to

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a wa ...

lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or ar ...

s, and others who were granted a village or group of villages in

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 ...

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

and North Karnataka. The title Desai should not be associated with a particular religion or caste, though a Desai would use the title of Rao or Rai or Raje as a suffix to his name denoting he is a king of those villages, The "Desai" title was given by

Maratha emperors The Maratha rulers, belonging to the various dynasties, from the early 17th century to the early 18th century, built and ruled the Maratha Empire on the Indian subcontinent. It was established by the Chhatrapati (the Maratha emperor) in 1670s. S ...

Mughal emperors The Mughal emperors ( fa, , Pādishāhān) were the supreme heads of state of the Mughal Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Mughal rulers styled t ...

and by the

Deccan sultanates The Deccan sultanates were five Islamic late-medieval Indian kingdoms—on the Deccan Plateau between the Krishna River and the Vindhya Range—that were ruled by Muslim dynasties: namely Ahmadnagar, Berar, Bidar, Bijapur, and Golconda. Th ...

. * In Maharashtra, the title ''Desai'' is conferred to feudal lords and village council members. Most of them are either

Deshastha Brahmin Deshastha Brahmin is a Hindu Brahmin subcaste mainly from the Indian state of Maharashtra and northern area of the state of Karnataka. Other than these states, according to authors K. S. Singh, Gregory Naik and Pran Nath Chopra, Deshastha Br ...

Maratha The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...

Dhangar Dhangar is a herding caste of people found in the Indian states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. They are referred as Gavli in southern Maharashtra, Goa and northern Karnataka, Golla in Andhra Pradesh and Karnat ...

Saraswat Brahmin The Saraswat Brahmins are Hindu Brahmins, who are spread over widely separated regions spanning from Kashmir in North India to Konkan in West India to Kanara (coastal region of Karnataka) and Kerala in South India. The word ''Saraswat'' is deriv ...

s and Karhade Brahmins. * Desai's were the rulers of

Kudal Kudal is a census town in Sindhudurg district, Maharashtra, India. It is situated on River Karli in southwest Maharashtara. Kudal is the fourth largest town in Sindhudurg after Sawantwadi, Malvan and Kankavli. As of 2011, the population is 16,0 ...

( Sindhudurg) in

. *In Gujarat, ''Desai'' is honoured to Anavil Brahmin, Khedaval Brahimins, Vaishnav Vanik and Patidars caste people. The title was also given to feudal lords and revenue collectors Desai, or a loftier compound, was a rare title for rulers of a few

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj, British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, ...

s, notably: * Raja Sar Desai in the Maratha

Savantvadi State Savantvadi State, also spelt Sawantwadi ruled by the Sawant Bhonsale dynasty was one of the non-salute Maratha princely states during the British Raj. It was the only state belonging to the Kolaba Agency under the Bombay Presidency, which became ...

from 1627 until the adoption of "Raja Bahadur" in 1763. *Desai Shri in

Patdi Patdi is a town and former princely state on the Saurashtra (region), Saurashtra peninsula in Gujarat, western India. History Patdi used to be an estate in ''prant'' of Eastern Kathiawar. Ruling Desai Patel Shris * .... - .... Bha ...

(the former Viramgam State), in Eastern Kathiawar, where Desai was also the name of the ruling family, which belongs to the Desai clan of Kadwa Patidar.

Desai as a surname

Desai as a surname is used by

, Karhade Brahmin, Anavil Brahmin, Khedaval Brahmin,

Rabari The Rabari people (also known as Desai, Rabari, Raika, and Dewasi people) are an ethnic group from the Rajasthan also found in Gujarat Kutch region. Origin Myth The Rabari myth of origin is kshatriya that Shiva put them on earth to tend to the c ...

, Leva Patel,

Patidar Patidar (Gujarati language, Gujarati: ) is an Indian landlord and agrarian Caste system in India, caste found mostly in Gujarat but also in at least 22 other states of India. The community comprises at multiple subcastes, most prominently the L ...

, Bania and

Lingayat Lingayatism or Veera Saivism is a Hindu denomination based on Shaivism. Initially known as ''Veerashaivas'', since the 12th-century adherents of this faith are known as ''Lingayats''. The terms ''Lingayatism'' and '' Veerashaivism'' have been ...

communities of

and

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

Individual people

Notable individuals with the surname Desai include: ; Public officers *

Gopaldas Ambaidas Desai Gopaldas Ambaidas Desai (1887–1951) also called Darbar Gopaldas Desai was a prince who ascended the throne of the State of Dhasa in Saurashtra and a noted Gandhian political and social activist. He is remembered as the first prince in India ...

– politician; former Prince of

Dhasa Dhasa is a small city and railway junction in Botad District of Gujarat. Dhasa with Major Population Of Koli And Nadoda Rajput. Dhasa Known As Home Of BJP Party Almost 30 Years BJP Ruled Dhasa With Village Chief Kalubhai Dayabhai Pavra And Also Ta ...

Babubhai Desai Babubhai Desai is a Member of Legislative assembly and a Best MLA Award Winner of Gujarat (India) from Maktupur, Mehsana (Gujarat) Kankrej constituency in Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of ...

- Ex MLA of

kankrej The Kankrej (Hindi: कंकरेज) is an Indian breed of zebuine cattle. It originates from the arid region of the Rann of Kutch in the state of Gujarat, and in neighbouring Rajasthan. Under the name Kankaraj, it is also present in Tharpar ...

Kantilal Thakoredas Desai Kantilal Thakoredas Desai (1 May 1903 - 29 January 1977) was the second Chief Justice at the High Court of Gujarat whose term in office was from January 1961 till May 1963. Career Desai studied at Bombay. He enrolled as an Advocate at the Hig ...

– second Chief Justice of

* Kevit Desai - Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education state department for Vocational and Technical Training,

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Krishna Desai Krishna Desai (died 5 June 1970) was a member of the Communist Party of India (CPI). He was a Member of Legislative Assembly of Maharashtra who represented the working-class Mumbai constituency of Parel, then a communist stronghold. Desai was m ...

– CPI politician * Morarji Desai – Prime Minister of India (1977–79) *

Mahadev Desai Mahadev Haribhai Desai (1 January 1892 – 15 August 1942) was an Indian independence activist, scholar and writer best remembered as Mahatma Gandhi's personal secretary. He has variously been described as "Gandhi's Boswell, a Plato to G ...

– Secretary to

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

S. T. Desai Sunderlal Trikamlal Desai (26 January 1901 – 12 April 1992) was the 1st Chief Justice of Gujarat, serving from 1 May 1960 until his retirement on 25 January 1961. He later practiced as senior counsel in the Supreme Court of India till 1988. I ...

– first Chief Justice of Gujarat *

Haridas Viharidas Desai Haridas Viharidas Desai (1840–1895) was Diwan of Junagadh state from 1883 onwards. He was a pious man and a brilliant administrator who in a decade made the most important reforms in every department of the Junagadh state. He built the 12,00 ...

- Diwan of Junagadh state (1883–95) * Bhimsen Venkatrao Desai - Politician; Member of the 7th and 8th Lok Sabha representing the Raichur constituency of Karnataka List of members of the 7th Lok Sabha#Karnataka * Shamburaj Shivajirao Desai- State Minister Of Home Affairs, Maharashtra, Currently Serving His 4th Term As MLA in Maharashtra Assembly ;Arts, sciences and business * Anita Desai – Author; mother of author

Kiran Desai Kiran Desai (born 3 September 1971) is an Indian author. Her novel ''The Inheritance of Loss'' won the 2006 Man Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Fiction Award. In January 2015, The Economic Times listed her as one of 20 "most ...

Bhairavi Desai Bhairavi Desai (pronounced BY-ra-vee They-SIGH) is a founding member of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, a Trade union, union representing approximately 15,000 taxi drivers in New York City. She is known as a progressivism, progressive social a ...

– American

labor union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

leader * Bindu Desai – Actress * C. D. Desai – Banker and philatelist *

Ebrahim Desai Ebrahim Desai (16 January 1963 – 15 July 2021) was a South African Muslim scholar and jurist who established the Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah, the Askimam fatawa portal and served as the senior professor of hadith at Madrasah In'aamiyyah. He was a ...

– Islamic scholar *

– Author; 2006

Man Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

winner *

Kishwar Desai Kishwar Desai (''née'' Rosha) (born 1 December 1956) is an Indian author and columnist. Her first novel, ''Witness the Night'', won the Costa Book Award in 2010 for Best First Novel and has been translated into over 25 languages. It was also sh ...

– Author *

Manmohan Desai Manmohan Desai (26 February 1937 – 1 March 1994) was an Indian film producer and director. He was one of the most successful filmmaker of the 70s and 80s. Desai is now considered one of most influential film director of Bollywood and a pionee ...

– Director * Mavjibhai Desai – Vice Chairman of

Banas Dairy Banas Dairy ( gu, બનાસ ડેરી) (Banaskantha District Cooperative Milk Federation, Palanpur) is a division of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation which is under the ownership of Ministry of Cooperation, Government of Gu ...

* Meghnad Desai, Baron Desai –

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

Mihir A. Desai Mihir A. Desai is an Indian-American economist currently the Mizuho Financial Group Professor of Finance at Harvard Business School and Professor at Harvard Law School. He graduated from Brown University with a bachelor's degree of history and ...

- American economist and professor at

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

and

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

Nitin Chandrakant Desai Nitin Chandrakant Desai is a noted Indian art director and production designer of Indian cinema turned film and television producer, most known for his work in Marathi and Hindi Films, World Cultural Festival 2016 at Delhi and films like, ''Hum ...

– Art director *

Padma Desai Padma Desai (born October 12, 1931) is an Indian-American development economist who was born and studied in India before completing a PhD at Harvard in 1960. She is the Gladys and Roland Harriman Professor Emerita of comparative economic systems ...

– American economist and professor at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Ramanlal Desai Ramanlal Vasantlal Desai (12 May 1892 – 20 September 1954) was an Indian Gujarati language writer. He is considered as an important figure of the Gujarati literature as well as Gujarati novel writing. He wrote 27 novels, among which, ''Bharel ...

- Gujarati writer *

Ranjit Desai Ranjit loda Desai (8 April 1928 – 6 March 1992) was an Indian Marathi-language writer from Maharashtra, India. He is best known for his historical novels Swami and Shriman Yogi. He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1964 and the Padma Sh ...

–

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

writer * Salil Desai – Author * Sapan Desai – American physician; publisher and discredited researcher *

Umedram Lalbhai Desai (Rao Sahib) Umedram Lalbhai Desai (1869–1930) was a medical doctor in India during the time of the British Raj. His medical qualifications included LRCP and LRCS (Edinburgh), LM and LFPS (Glasgow) 1894, MD (Brussels) 1895, MB Chb (University Co ...

– Physician ; Culture & Sports *

Anoop Desai Anoop Manoj Desai (born December 20, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter and actor best known for his time as a contestant on the eighth season of ''American Idol''. Desai was the first ever 13th finalist on ''American Idol'' and was the se ...

– American singer * Gunwant Desai – Indian cricketer * K. R. Desai - Cricketer; philanthropist; educator * Prachi Desai – Actress *

Ramakant Desai Ramakant Bhikaji Desai (20 June 1939 in Bombay – 27 April 1998 in Mumbai) was an Indian cricketer who represented India in Test cricket as a fast bowler from 1959 to 1968. Ramakant Desai was an Indian fast bowler, who stood 5 feet 4 inches ta ...

– Cricketer; India's first fast bowler *

Rashami Desai Shivani Desai (born 13 February 1986), professionally known as Rashami Desai, is an Indian television actress. Desai is the recipient of several accolades including two Indian Television Academy Awards and Gold Awards. She has established hers ...

– Actress *

Ravish Desai Ravish Desai (born 22 November 1986) is an Indian actor and model who works in Bollywood movies, Hindi-language TV serials and web series. He is mostly known for his work in TV commercials. Early & Personal life Ravish Desai was born on 22 N ...

– Actor *

Renu Desai Renu Desai is an Indian actress, costume designer, and former model. Personal life Renu Desai's mother tongue is Marathi, but she is also fluent in Telugu. She has a son, born in 2004 with Telugu actor Pawan Kalyan, whom she married on 28 Janu ...

– Actress * Satyaki "Sattu" Desai – Environmental officer *

Sean Desai Sean Desai (born April 21, 1983) is an American football coach who is a Senior defensive assistant for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He is the first NFL coordinator of Indian descent. He previously served as the defe ...

- American football coach; Defensive Coordinator for the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

Subhash Desai Subhash Desai (born 12 July 1942) is an Indian politician and leader of Shiv Sena from Maharashtra. He is a member of Maharashtra Legislative Council. He had represented Goregaon (Vidhan Sabha constituency) in 1990, 2004 and 2009. Desai took ch ...

–

Shiv Sena Shiv Sena ( IAST: ''Śiva Sēnā'') () was a right-wing to far-right Marathi regionalist and Hindu ultranationalist political party in India founded in 1966 by cartoonist Bal Thackeray. Originally emerging from nativist movements in Bom ...

leader *

Tina Desai Tina may refer to: People *Tina (given name), people and fictional characters with the given name ''Tina'' Places *Tina, Iran, a village in Khuzestan Province, Iran *Tina, Tunisia, a town in Sfax Governorate, Tunisia * Tina, Guadalcanal, Solomon ...

– Actress * Rajdeep Sardesai - News Anchor

References

{{surname Indian feudalism Indian surnames Hindu surnames Gujarati-language surnames