Jani is a

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 ...

. The Indian surname meaning 'learned' (from Sanskrit jnana, 'knowledge') is found among Brahmins in the western state of Gujarat, and is a

Gotra In Hindu culture, the term gotra (Sanskrit: गोत्र) is considered to be equivalent to lineage. It broadly refers to people who are descendants in an unbroken male line from a common male ancestor or patriline. Generally, the gotra fo ...

and surname among

Jats The Jat people ((), ()) are a traditionally agricultural community in Northern India and Pakistan. Originally pastoralists in the lower Indus river-valley of Sindh, Jats migrated north into the Punjab region in late medieval times, and subse ...

and Bishnois in the Western Rajasthan Gyani, an honorific title from

Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...

also meaning learned, is from the same root

Linguistic Roots of Jani

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 ...

root ज्ञा- jñā- shares its origins with Slavic znati, the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

word know, along with the Greek γνώ- (seen in γνῶσις gnosis) and Lithuanian žinoti. On the contrary, its opposite is represented by अज्ञान ajñāna, which translates to " ignorance."

People with the name

Arts and entertainment

Agha Jani Kashmiri Syed Wajid Hussain Rizvi (Urdu: , born 16 October 1908 – 27 March 1998), better known by his film screen name, Agha Jani Kashmiri (Urdu: ), was an Indian screenwriter, former actor and Urdu poet. He worked in Bollywood films, as a writer for ...

, was an Indian screenwriter, former actor and Urdu poet *

Ayaz Jani Ayaz Hussain Jani ( sd, اياز جاني),(4 October 1967 – 6 June 2016) was a Sindhi-language poet. He died at the age of 49. See also * Jani (disambiguation) References 1967 births 2016 deaths Pakistani poets Sindhi-language ...

, was a Sindhi-language poet *

Chirag Jani (actor) Chirag Jani is an Indian actor who has appeared in Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati and Hindi language films. He made his acting debut in the Hindi serial ''Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke'', along with Vaishnavi Mahant, directed by Rajesh Babbar and produced b ...

, an Indian film Actor *

Jyotish Jani Jyotish Jagannath Jani (born 9 November 1928 – 2005) was a Gujarati novelist, poet and short story writer from Gujarat, India. Life Jyotish Jani was born on 9 November 1928 at Peej village (now in Kheda district, Gujarat). He studied in Surat a ...

, novelist, poet and short story writer from Gujarat, India * Kamiya Jani, an Indian YouTuber, entrepreneur, and social media influencer *

Nirmal Jani Nirmal Jani is an Indian cinematographer working in the Bollywood film industry based in Mumbai. He debuted as cinematographer in filming the 1991 film ''Patthar Ke Phool'' under director Anant Balani and starring Salman Khan. Filmography * ...

, Indian cinematographer * Purnamasi Jani, poet, social activist from India

Business and law

Reshma Saujani Reshma Saujani (born November 18, 1975) is an American lawyer, politician, civil servant, and the founder of the nonprofit organization Girls Who Code, which aims to increase the number of women in computer science and close the gender employment ...

, American lawyer * Tushar Jani, business entrepreneur, investor, philanthropist

Politics and government

* Alauddin Jani, governor of Bengal during the time of Mamluk dynasty * Babajani Durrani, an Indian politician * Jagadish Jani, Indian politician *

Masud Jani Masud Jani ( fa, , bn, মাসুদ জানী) was the Governor of Bengal during 1247-1251 CE. Life Masud was the son of a previous Bengali governor Alauddin Jani. Masud Jani was appointed Governor of Bengal after the death of the rebel ...

, the Governor of Bengal, 1247–1251 CE *

Surjit Kumar Jyani Surjit Kumar Jyani is an Indian politician and who served as health Minister in the Punjab Government. He has also served as Minister for Forest & Wildlife & Labour.

, an Indian astrophysicist *

Shyam Sunder Jyani Shyam Sunder Jyani (born 1979) is an Indian environmentalist and academic, best known for afforestation efforts in the Indian state of Rajasthan. He is presently an associate professor of sociology at Dungar College, Bikaner. Biography He origi ...

, Indian environmentalist and academic

Sports

Chirag Jani Chirag Sureshbhai Jani (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian cricketer who plays for Saurashtra in domestic cricket. He is a right-hand batsman and right-arm medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation *Medium bomber, a ...

, an Indian cricketer *

Neel Jani Neel Jani (born 8 December 1983) is a Swiss professional Porsche factory driver. His father is from India and his mother is German Swiss. He achieved his greatest success winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2016 after first joining Porsche's LMP1 ...

, Swiss professional Porsche factory driver. His father is from India and his mother is German Swiss. * Réka Luca Jani, a Hungarian female tennis player

References

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