Indian names are based on a variety of systems and
naming conventions
A naming convention is a convention (generally agreed scheme) for naming things. Conventions differ in their intents, which may include to:
* Allow useful information to be deduced from the names based on regularities. For instance, in Manhatta ...
, which vary from region to region. Names are also influenced by religion and
caste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
and may come from
epics
The Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) is a set of software tools and applications used to develop and implement distributed control systems to operate devices such as particle accelerators, telescopes and other large sci ...
.
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
's population speaks a
wide variety of languages and nearly every major
religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
in the world has a following in India. This variety makes for subtle, often confusing, differences in names and naming styles. Due to
historical Indian cultural influences, several names across
South
South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...
and
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
are influenced by or adapted from Indian names or words.
In some cases, Indian
birth name
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth r ...
is different from their official name; the birth name starts with a randomly selected name from the
person's horoscope (based on the ''
nakshatra
Nakshatra ( sa, नक्षत्रम्, translit=Nakṣatram) is the term for lunar mansion in Hindu astrology and Indian Astronomy. A nakshatra is one of 27 (sometimes also 28) sectors along the ecliptic. Their names are related to a ...
'' or lunar mansion corresponding to the person's birth).
Many children are given three names, sometimes as a part of religious teaching.
Pronunciation
When written in Latin script, Indian names may use the vowel characters to denote sounds different from conventional American or British English. Although some languages, like Kannada or Tamil may have different vowel sounds, the ones used in most major Indian languages are represented in this table along with typical English transcriptions.
Furthermore, the letters used in English /t/ and /d/ that are used to represent the retroflex stops /ʈ/ and /ɖ/, are also used to represent dental stops /t̪/ and /d̪/ (as in Tenginkai or Rohit), especially when they occur in the onset of a word. As an example, the Indian name 'Dev' would not have its first consonant pronounced as in the American name 'Dave'. Similarly the name 'Tarun' would not have its first consonant sounded as in 'Tom'.
The letter 'h' is used to represent aspirated consonants. So, in the names 'Khare', 'Ghanshyam', 'Kaccha', 'Jhumki', 'Vitthal', 'Ranchodh', 'Thimmayya', 'Uddhav', 'Phaneesh', and 'Bhanu,' the 'h' means the sound before it should be pronounced with a strong outward breath (see
Aspirated consonant
In phonetics, aspiration is the strong burst of breath that accompanies either the release or, in the case of preaspiration, the closure of some obstruents. In English, aspirated consonants are allophones in complementary distribution with the ...
for more on this). These names are more likely to be found in places that speak an Indo-Aryan language like Bhojpuri or Gujarati.
Names by culture
Assamese
Assamese names follow the First name, Middle name, Surname or First name, Surname pattern.
Bengali
Bengali names follow First name, Middle name, Surname pattern, e.g.
Subhas Chandra Bose
Subhas Chandra Bose ( ; 23 January 1897 – 18 August 1945
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*) was an Indian nationalist whose defiance of British authority in India made him a hero among Indians, but his wartime alliances with Nazi Germany and Imperia ...
.
Bengali Brahmin
The Bengali Brahmins are Hindu Brahmins who traditionally reside in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, currently comprising the Indian state of West Bengal and the country of Bangladesh.
The Bengali Brahmins, along with Baidyas and ...
surnames include
Acharya
In Indian religions and society, an ''acharya'' (Sanskrit: आचार्य, IAST: ; Pali: ''ācariya'') is a preceptor and expert instructor in matters such as religion, or any other subject. An acharya is a highly learned person with a tit ...
,
Banerjee
Banerjee or Bandyopadhyay is a surname of Brahmins originating from the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent and from Bangladesh.
Lineage and ancestry
Banerjees are from the ancient Shandilya Gotra, which means all Banerjees are descended fr ...
,
Bagchi Bagchi is an Indian surname.Bagchi is a Bengali Brahmin Surname , Shandilya Gotro , Barendra Brahmin Notable people with the surname include:
* Jatindramohan Bagchi (1878–1948), Bengali poet
* Subroto Bagchi (born 1957), Indian entrepreneur
* Tan ...
,
Bhaduri Bhaduri is an Indian Hindu family name found among Bengali Brahmins. Notable people with the surname include:
*Abhijit Bhaduri, Indian author, columnist and management consultant
*Chapal Bhaduri, Indian actor
*Nrisingha Prasad Bhaduri, Indian hist ...
,
Bhattacharjee
Bhattacharya, Bhattacharyya, and Bhattacharjee are three common spellings of a Bengali Brahmin and surname. In Bengal, Bhattacharjees, together with Banerjees, Chatterjees, Gangulys and Mukherjees, form the Kulin Brahmins.
Notable persons with ...
,
Chakraborty
Chakraborty is a surname of Bengali Hindus of India and Bangladesh, the surname is used by people of the Bengali Brahmin community.
Notable persons with this surname
Male
*Ajay Chakraborty (born 1943), Indian politician
*Ajoy Chakrabarty (born 1 ...
,
Chatterjee,
Ganguly,
Goswami
Goswami is an Indian surname. The Sanskrit compound Goswami may mean "lord of the senses" or lord of the Vedas (Go means Vedas). It is also pronounced as Gosains, Gossain, Gosain, Gosavi and Gossains.
Notable people with the surname or title Gosw ...
,
Ghoshal,
Lahiri Lahiri is an Indian surname belonging to Bengali Brahmins. Notable people with this surname include:
* Anirban Lahiri (born 1987), Indian golfer
* Anya Lahiri (born 1982), British model
* Bappi Lahiri (1952-2022), Indian music director
* Dulal Lah ...
,
Maitra :''Maitra is also a synonym for Mettā, a Buddhist philosophy''
Maitra, alternatively spelled Moitra or Maitreya, is a Bengali Hindu family name found among the Bengali Brahmins of the Varendra clan. It is one of the oldest surnames of Bengal, com ...
,
Mukherjee
Mukherjee, Mukerjee, Mookerjee, Mukerji, Mukherji, Mukhujje or Mookherjee is a Kulin Brahmin surname of the Hindu Religion, common among residents of the Indian state of West Bengal. The traditional Bengali version is ''Mukhopaddhae'', which is s ...
,
Sanyal Sanyal is a Bengali Hindu surname, common among residents of the Indian state of West Bengal.
Sanyals are considered as Brahmins.
Notable people
* B. C. Sanyal, artist
* Chandan Roy Sanyal, actor
* Gautam Sanyal, secretary to Chief Minister of We ...
, etc. A Brahmin name is often the name of the clan or gotra, but can be an honorific, such as ''
Chakraborty
Chakraborty is a surname of Bengali Hindus of India and Bangladesh, the surname is used by people of the Bengali Brahmin community.
Notable persons with this surname
Male
*Ajay Chakraborty (born 1943), Indian politician
*Ajoy Chakrabarty (born 1 ...
'' or ''
Bhattacharya''.
Common
Baidya
Baidya or Vaidya is a Hindu community located in Bengal. Baidyas, a caste (''jāti'') of Ayurvedic physicians, have long had pre-eminence in society alongside Brahmins and Kayasthas. In the colonial era, the Bhadraloks were drawn primarily, b ...
surnames are ''
Sengupta,
Dasgupta __NOTOC__
Dasgupta (pronounced ) is a common Bengali last name or surname in West Bengal and Bangladesh. The surname is found among the members of the Baidya caste.
Baidya or Vaidya is a Hindu community of Bengal. A caste/''jāti'' of Ayurvedic ...
, Duttagupta,
Gupta
Gupta () is a common surname or last name of Indian origin. It is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means 'guardian' or 'protector'. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, the surname ''Gupta'' was adopted by se ...
, Das-Sharma, Sen-Sharma'', etc.
Bengali Kayastha
A Bengali Kayastha is a Bengali Hindu who is a member of the Kayastha community. The historical caste occupation of Kayasthas throughout India has been that of scribes, administrators, ministers and record-keepers; the Kayasthas in Bengal, along ...
surnames include ''
Basu, Bose,
Dutta
Dutta, also spelled Dutt or Datta, is a Hindu family name found primarily among Bengali Kayasthas,Assamese Kayasthas and also among Suvarna Baniks, Gandhabaniks in India. The name is also found among certain North Indian Brahmin communities g ...
,
Ghosh
Ghosh (or Ghose) is an Indian and Bangladeshi surname found among Bengali Hindus.
Ghoshes mostly belong to Kayastha caste in Bengal. The Bengali Kayasthas evolved as a caste from a category of officials or scribes, between the 5th/6th century AD ...
, Choudhury,
Guha,
Mitra
''Mitra'' ( Proto-Indo-Iranian: ''*mitrás'') is the name of an Indo-Iranian divinity from which the names and some characteristics of Rigvedic Mitrá and Avestan Mithra derive.
The names (and occasionally also some characteristics) of these t ...
,
Singh
Singh (Help:IPA, IPA: ) is a title, middle name or surname that means "lion" in various South Asian and Southeast Asian communities. Traditionally used by the Hindu Kshatriya community, it eventually became a common surname adopted by different ...
/
Sinha
Sinha is a Sanskrit term which originates in the Indian subcontinent and is common in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan, covering South Asia. It comes from a Sanskrit word meaning " lion" or "brave person".
Usage
subcontinent
In Indi ...
,
Pal
Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...
,
De/Dey/Deb/Dev, Palit, Chanda/Chandra,
Das, Dam, Kar, Nandi, Nag, Som'' etc.
Odia
Odia names follow the First name, Middle name, Surname or First name, Surname pattern.
Odia surnames come from caste based on human occupation. For example, the common surnames Kar, Mohapatra and Dash (as opposed to Das) are Brahmin surnames. Similarly, Misra/Mishra, Nanda, Rath, Shatapathi, Panigrahi, Tripathi etc. are all Brahmin surnames. Das and Sahu are Karan, others are Samant Singh, Sundaraya, Jagdev, Baliarsingh, Harichandan, Manraj, Mardraj, Senapati, Srichandan, Pratihari, Chhotray, Patasani, Parida, Samal, Nayak, Muduli etc.
Goan
Konkani people
The Konkan people ( Konkani) Konkanis
The Konkan people (Konkani language, Konkani) Konkanis
The Konkan people (Konkani language, Konkani) Konkanis
The Konkan people (Konkani language, Konkani) Konkanis
The Konkan p ...
inhabiting Goa, and also Konkan regions of Karnataka and Maharashtra, use First name, Middle name, Village name/Surname pattern. Generally, the first name is followed by the father's name, though this is now mostly observed by Hindus, who are traditionally patriarchal.
Village names were used only after the arrival of the Portuguese, when the people migrated from their ancestral villages. A suffix ''kar'' or ''hailing from'' was attached to the village name.
Many of the originally Hindu residents were converted to Catholicism by the Portuguese. Almost all of the Konkani Catholics have Portuguese surnames like ''Rodrigues, Fernandes, Pereira and D'Souza''.
Catholic families belonging to the
Roman Catholic Brahmin
Roman Catholic Brahmin (IAST ''Bamonns'' in Romi Konkani, ''ಬಾಮಣು'' in Canara Konkani& ''Kupari'' in Bombay East Indian dialects) is a caste among the Goan, Bombay East Indian and Mangalorean Catholics who are patrilineal descendants ...
(Bamonn) caste use
lusophonised versions of Hindu surnames like ''Prabhu, Bhat, etc''.
Gujarati
Gujarati
Gujarati may refer to:
* something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India
* Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat
* Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them
* Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...
family names follow Last name, First name, Father's first name. The last name is commonly a caste name. For example:
Modi Narendra Damodardas - ''Narendra'' is his first name, ''Damodardas'' is his father's name and ''Modi'' is his last name, which is the same as that used by his ancestors. Upon marriage, the wife takes on the husband's first and last names as middle and last names respectively. For example, if Jessica Amber Smith married Vadgama Sanjay Bharat her name would become Jessica Vadgama Bharat.
Northern
Northern naming patterns follow a standard pattern - First name, Middle name, Surname. Many times the middle name will be appended onto the first name, or not exist at all. Sometimes middle name would even be father's first name. The surname is most commonly a caste name however, there are some caste-neutral surnames like
Kumar
A coin, around 200 BCE, of the Yaudheyas with depiction of Kumāra Karttikeya">Yaudheyas.html" ;"title="BCE, of the Yaudheyas">BCE, of the Yaudheyas with depiction of Kumāra Karttikeya
Kumar (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: wikt:कुमा ...
. For example:
Manohar Lal Khattar
Manohar Lal Khattar (born 05 May 1954) is an Indian politician serving as the 10th and current chief minister of Haryana. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a former RSS pracharak. He represents Karnal constituency in Haryan ...
(Manohar is his first name, Lal is a middle name and Khattar is a caste surname). Many women, especially in rural areas, take on the surname ''Devi'' (meaning Goddess) or ''Kumari'' (princess) when they are married (ex.
Phoolan Devi
Phoolan Devi (1963–2001), popularly known as the Bandit Queen, was an Mallah woman who grew up in poverty in a village in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Her family was in a land dispute which caused many problems in her youth and after b ...
, known as Phoolan Mallah before marriage). Muslims in North India use
Islamic naming conventions.
Kannada
Kannada
Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
names vary by region as follows.
North Karnataka
North Karnataka is a geographical region in Deccan plateau from elevation that constitutes the region of the Karnataka state in India and the region consists of 13 districts. It is drained by the Krishna River and its tributaries the Bhi ...
follows the First name - Father's first name - Surname order. This system is also found in other parts of Karnataka.
Surnames are drawn from the name of the place, food items, dresses, temples, type of people, platforms, cities and profession and so on.
Surnames are drawn from many other sources.
''Katti'' as a suffix is used for soldiers while ''Karadis'' is related to local folk art. Surnames according to trade or what they traditionally farm include ''Vastrad'' (piece of cloth), ''Kubasad'' (blouse), ''Menasinkai'' (chili), ''Ullagaddi'' (onion), ''Limbekai'', ''Ballolli'' (garlic), ''Tenginkai'' (coconut), ''Byali'' (pulse) and ''Akki'' (rice). Surnames based on house include ''Doddamani'' (big house), ''Hadimani'' (house next to the road), ''Kattimani'' (house with a platform in its front), ''Bevinmarad'' (person having a big
neem
''Azadirachta indica'', commonly known as neem, nimtree or Indian lilac, is a tree in the mahogany family Meliaceae. It is one of two species in the genus ''Azadirachta'', and is native to the Indian subcontinent and most of the countries in Afr ...
tree near his house) and ''Hunasimarad'' (person having a big
tamarind
Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a Legume, leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic taxon, monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs ...
tree near his house). A carpenter will have ''Badigar'' as a surname while ''Mirjankar'', ''Belagavi'', ''Hublikar'' and ''Jamkhandi'' are surnames drawn from places. ''Angadi'' (shop), ''Amavasya'' (new moon day), ''Kage'' (crow), ''Bandi'' (bullock cart), ''Kuri'' (sheep), ''Kudari'' (horse), ''Toppige'' (cap), ''Beegadkai'' (key), ''Pyati'' (market), ''Hanagi'' (comb) and ''Rotti'' (bread) are some other surnames.
In coastal Karnataka, the surnames are different in different regions. Surnames like Hegde and Hebbar belong to the Brahmin community, while other titles like ''Ballal'', ''Shetty'', and ''Rai'' are mostly used by the landed
Bunt Bunt may refer to:
* Bunt (community), an elite social group from Karnataka, India
* Bunt (baseball), a batting technique in baseball
* Bunt (sail), a part of a ship's sail
* Bunt Island, island in Antarctica
* The Bunt, nickname of the Bunting ...
community. Names in coastal Karnata has both systems Village name, Father's name, Personal name, Surname and Personal name, Father's name, Surname
Names in
South Karnataka
South Karnataka (officially known as Kannada Nadu) generally refers to the southern part of Karnataka state, excluding the coastal areas. It generally corresponds to former Mysore state. Kannada dialect of South Karnataka is slightly different ...
follow village name, father's name, personal name, surname. For example, take
H. D. Kumaraswamy
Haradanahalli Deve Gowda Kumaraswamy, (born 16 December 1959) known among followers as Kumaranna (''Kumar, the elder brother''), is an Indian politician and businessman who served as the 18th Chief Minister of Karnataka from 23 May 2018 to 23 J ...
. H refers to
Haradanahalli
Haradanahalli is a village in the Holenarasipur Taluk of Hassan District in the state of Karnataka, India. Haradanahalli is home town of 11th Prime Minister of India, H. D. Deve Gowda who was born on 18 May 1933 in Haradanahalli village.
N ...
(his native village), D refers to Devegowda (
his father's name) and his first name is Kumaraswamy. Another example is B A Narasimharaju B refers to
Belur
Belur may refer to:
Places
* Belur, Karnataka, a town in Karnataka, India
** Belur temple (Chennakeshava temple), Belur
* Belur, Tamil Nadu, a town in Salem district, Tamil Nadu, India
* Belur, West Bengal, a neighbourhood of Howrah, India
** Be ...
(his native town), A refers to Anantharama Iyengar (his fathers name) and his first name Narasimharaju. For married women, it is husband's name, first name or the opposite (ex.
Sumalatha Ambareesh, where
Ambareesh
Malavalli Huchchegowda Amarnath (29 May 1952 – 24 November 2018), known by his screen name Ambareesh, was an Indian actor, media personality, politician from the state of Karnataka. Alongside Rajkumar and Vishnuvardhan, he is counted in ...
is her husband's name).
In South Karnataka, caste names are not common except among the higher castes.
Kannada Brahmins
Kannada Brahmins are Kannada-speaking Brahmins, primarily living in Karnataka, although a few of them have settled in other states like, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. They belong to one of the three main sects: Smartism, Sadh Va ...
have surnames like ''Rao'', ''Murthy'', ''Poojari'', ''Bhat''. The title ''Gowda'' was a title given to any village headman, irrespective of caste, and was written as an appendage to the person's name. For example
Siddaramaiah
Siddaramaiah (born 3 August 1947), also referred to by his nickname Siddu, Siddaramaiah served as Chief Minister of Karnataka from 13 May 2013 to 17 May 2018 and currently serving as the leader of the opposition in Karnataka Legislative Assembl ...
's father belonged to the
Kuruba
Kuruba is a Hindu caste native to the Indian state of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. They are the third-largest caste group in Karnataka. Traditionally, they were agriculturalists and cattle farmers. The origins of kuruba i ...
community but was called Siddarame Gowda. Nowadays it is mostly used as a
Vokkaliga
Vokkaliga (also transliterated as Vokkaligar, Vakkaliga, Wakkaliga, Okkaligar, Okkiliyan) is a community, or a group of closely-related castes, from the Indian state of Karnataka. They are also present in the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu.
As ...
surname. Most people in South Karnataka, irrespective of caste, do not use caste surnames.
Kashmiri
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to:
* People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir
* Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley
* Kashmiri language, their language
People with the name
* Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...
names often have the following format: first name, middle name (optional), family name. (For example:
Jawahar Lal Nehru
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat—
*
*
*
* and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...
)
Nicknames often replace family names. Hence, some family names like Razdan and Nehru may very well be derived originally from the Kaul family tree.
Malayali
Malayali surname includes Nair, Menon, Pillai, Nambootri, Panikkar and Kurup.
Malayali
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian peoples, Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. ...
s follow similar customs to Tamils and people in South Karnataka of village name, father's name, personal name. Muslims also follow this system, though their first names follow the Islamic system.
Members of the Menon, Nair and related communities often use their mother's house name or directly add their caste name. For example,
Kannoth Karunakaran, ''Karunakaran'' is his given name and ''Kannoth'' is his mother's house name,
P. K. Vasudevan Nair
Padayatt Kesavapillai Vasudevan Nair (2 March 1926 – 12 July 2005), popularly known as PKV, was the 9th Chief Minister of Kerala and a senior leader of the Communist Party of India (CPI). He was elected to the Lok Sabha four times, in 1957, ...
, ''Vasudevan'' is his given name and ''Nair'' is his caste surname. Most of the Malayalis write name as given name, father's name, father's father's name / house name/ village name followed by surname/caste title. For instance, Shreelakshmi Dhanapalan Sadhu Kunjpilla; where Shreelakshmi is first name, Dhanapalan is middle name/father's name, Sadhu is grandfather's name and Kujnpilla is surname/ caste title. It might also be written as Shreelakshmi Dhanapalan S K.
Earlier times (until 20th Century) Malayali Christians (Nasranis) were bound by only Christian names and usually used the ''Family or house name – Father’s name – Baptismal name'' naming convention, however nowadays Christians have various naming conventions such as ''Name - Surname - Father's Name'' or ''Name - Father's name'' or ''Name - Surname'' or ''Name - Father's Name - Grandfather's Name''. It can be concluded that Syrian Christian names are Patryonmic. Eg:
Arackaparambil Kurien Antony, better known as A. K. Antony, who is an Indian politician and attorney and was the 23rd Defence Minister of India, here the policitcan's name is Antony while his father's name is Kurien, while his family name is Arackaparambil. During the 20th century some names were created by joining two or more syllables. For example, Abey (AB), Aji (AG), Bibi (BB), Biji (BG), Siby (CB) and so on. Today, several Syrian Christians name their children by Indian names like
Deepak
Deepak (दीपक) is a Hindi word meaning lamp, from the Sanskrit source word for light. The name Deepak symbolizes a bright future. In the twentieth century, it became very popular as a first name for male Hindus. Names like ''Deepa'' (male ...
, Rahul, Neethu,
Asha
Asha (; also arta ; ae, 𐬀𐬴𐬀, translit=aṣ̌a/arta) is a Zoroastrian concept with a complex and highly nuanced range of meaning. It is commonly summarized in accord with its contextual implications of 'truth' and 'right(eousness)', 'ord ...
etc. But by the 21st century more biblical names began to reappear. Thus names like,
Isaac
Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was the ...
,
Joshua
Joshua () or Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' lit. 'Yahweh is salvation') ''Yēšūaʿ''; syr, ܝܫܘܥ ܒܪ ܢܘܢ ''Yəšūʿ bar Nōn''; el, Ἰησοῦς, ar , يُوشَعُ ٱبْنُ نُونٍ '' Yūšaʿ ...
,
David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
,
Saul
Saul (; he, , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Israel. His reign, traditionally placed in the late 11th century BCE, supposedly marked the transition of Israel and Judah from a scattered tri ...
,
Ezekiel
Ezekiel (; he, יְחֶזְקֵאל ''Yəḥezqēʾl'' ; in the Septuagint written in grc-koi, Ἰεζεκιήλ ) is the central protagonist of the Book of Ezekiel in the Hebrew Bible.
In Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Ezekiel is acknow ...
,
Timothy, appeared on the scene.
Marathi
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
*
* ...
people of Hindu religion follow a partially
patronymic
A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor.
Patronymics are still in use, including mandatory use, in many countries worldwide, alt ...
naming system. For example, it is customary to associate the father's name with the given name. In the case of married women, the husband's name is associated with the given name. Therefore, the constituents of a Marathi name as given name /first name, father/husband, family name /surname. For example:
*
Mahadev Govind Ranade
Mahadev Govind Ranade (18 January 1842 – 16 January 1901), popularly referred to as Justice Ranade, was an Indian scholar, social reformer, judge and author. He was one of the founding members of the Indian National Congress party and owned ...
: Here Mahadev is the given name, Govind is his father's given name and Ranade is the surname.
*Sunil Madhav Jadhav: Here Sunil is the given name, Madhav is his father's name and Jadhav is the surname.
* Jyotsna Mukund Khandekar: Here Jyotsna is the given name, Mukund is the husband's given name, and Khandekar is the surname of the husband
Personal names
Marathi Hindus choose given names for their children from a variety of sources. They could be characters from
Hindu mythological epics such as the
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
or
Mahabharat
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
, names of holy rivers such as
Yamuna
The Yamuna (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), also spelt Jumna, is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in List of major rivers of India, India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a ...
and
Godavari
The Godavari ( IAST: ''Godāvarī'' od̪aːʋəɾiː is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakesh ...
, Hindu historical characters from Maratha or Indian history such as
Shivaji
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...
and
Ashoka
Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, ...
, Marathi varkari saints such as
Tukaram
Sant Tukaram Maharaj (Marathi pronunciation: ̪ukaːɾam was a 17th-century Marathi poet, Hindu ''sant'' (saint), popularly known as Tuka, Tukobaraya, Tukoba in Maharashtra. He was a Sant of Varkari sampradaya (Marathi-Vaishnav tradition) - ...
,
Dnyaneshwar
Sant Dnyaneshwar (Marathi pronunciation: ̪ɲaːn̪eʃʋəɾ, also referred to as Jnaneshwar, Jnanadeva, Dnyandev or Mauli or Dnyaneshwar Vitthal Kulkarni (1275–1296), was a 13th-century Indian Marathi saint, poet, philosopher and yogi of ...
,
Janabai
Sant Janābāi was a Marāthi religious poet in the Hindu tradition in India, who was born likely in the seventh or the eighth decade of the 13th century. She died in 1350.
Janabai was born in Gangākhed 1258-1350, Mahārāshtra to a couple with ...
, popular characters from modern Marathi literature, names of fragrant flowers for girls (e.g.
Bakul, Kamal/Kamla for
lotus), senses such as ''Madhura'' for sweetness, precious metals such female name ''Suwarna'' for gold, heavenly bodies such as the Sun and the Moon, ''Vasant'' and ''Sharad'' for spring and autumn respectively, names of film stars (e.g. Amit after
Amitabh Bachchan
Amitabh Bachchan (; born as Amitabh Shrivastav; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor, film producer, television host, occasional playback singer and former politician known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the most succe ...
) or sportsmen, and after virtues (e.g.,''Vinay'' for modesty). Nicknames such as Dada, Bandu, Balu, Sonya and Pillu for males and Chhabu and Bebi for girls have been popular too.
Surnames
A large number of Maharashtrian surnames are derived by adding the suffix ''kar'' to the village from which the family originally hailed. For example, Junnarkar came from town of
Junnar
Junnar (Marathi pronunciation: ͡ʒunːəɾ is a city in the Pune district of the Indian state of Maharashtra. The city has history dating back to the first millennium. The nearby fort of Shivneri was the birthplace of Maratha king Chatrapa ...
, Waghulkar comes from the town of Waghul. Names like
Kumbhar
Kumhar is a Indian caste system, caste or community in India, Nepal and Pakistan. Kumhar have historically been associated with art of pottery.
Etymology
The Kumhars derive their name from the Sanskrit word ''Kumbhakar'' meaning earthen-pot ...
,
Sutar,
Kulkarni
Kulkarni is a family name native to the Indian state of Maharashtra. The name "Kulkarni" is a combination of two words (''kula'' and ''karni''). ''Kula'' means "family", and ''Karanika'' means "archivist". Historically, Kulkarni was the title g ...
,
Deshpande
Deshpande is a surname native to the Indian states of Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka. The surname can be also found in some parts of Andhra Pradesh. Deshpande surname is found among the Deshastha Brahmins, Gaud Saraswat Brahmins (GSB) and the Chan ...
,
Deshmukh
Deshmukh (IAST:Dēśamukh), is a historical title conferred to the rulers of a . It is used as a surname in certain regions of India, specifically in the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh whose family received it as a ...
,
Patil,
Pawar
Pawar (also spelled as Pavar and Puar) is an Indian surname found among Koli, Maratha or Mahar castes in Maharashtra. Maratha Pawar claim descent from the Parmar clan of Rajput's. In the north region of Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand, the ...
,
Desai
Desai (Hindi: देसाई) () is an Indian administrative, princely or honorary title and surname.
Etymology
The word is derived from the Sanskrit ''deśa'' (country) and ''svāmī'' (lord).
Desai as a title
Desai was a title given to feud ...
, and
Joshi
Joshi is a surname used by the Brahmin (caste) in India and Nepal. Joshi is also sometimes spelled as Jyoshi. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word ''Jyotishi'' meaning "astrologer" or a person who practices ''jyotisha''. ''Jyotisha'' refers ...
denote the family's ancestral trade or professions.
Families of the historical Maratha chiefs use their clan name as their surname. Some of these are
Jadhav
Jadhav is an Indian surname. Notable people with the name include:
* Bharat Jadhav (born 1973), Indian theatre and film producer
* Bhaskar Jadhav, Indian politician
*Dhanaji Jadhav (1650–1708), warrior of the Maratha Empire
*Kedar Jadhav (born 1 ...
,
Bhosale
The Bhonsle (or Bhonsale, Bhosale, Bhosle) are a prominent group within the Maratha clan system of kunbi origin. They claimed descent from the Sisodia Rajputs but were likely Kunbi tiller-plainsmen.
History Earliest members
The earliest ac ...
,
Chavan
Chavan, or Chavhan is a Koli and Maratha clan found largely in Maharashtra, India, and neighbouring states.
Origin
Chavan Maratha claims descent from Chauhan from whom Prithviraj Chauhan last Hindu Emperor of Delhi belongs to. Alternately, t ...
,
Shinde
Shinde (pronunciation: in̪d̪e is a clan of the Maratha clan system of Kunbi (Kurmi) origin; variations of the name include Scindia and ''Sindhia'', '' Sindia''. The ''Shinde'' last name may be also found in the Dalit community.
The Scindia ...
, Shirke,
More
More or Mores may refer to:
Computing
* MORE (application), outline software for Mac OS
* more (command), a shell command
* MORE protocol, a routing protocol
* Missouri Research and Education Network
Music Albums
* ''More!'' (album), by Booka S ...
, Nimbalkar,
Pawar
Pawar (also spelled as Pavar and Puar) is an Indian surname found among Koli, Maratha or Mahar castes in Maharashtra. Maratha Pawar claim descent from the Parmar clan of Rajput's. In the north region of Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand, the ...
, and Ghatge.
Members of the numerically largest
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 ...
Kunbi
Kunbi (alternatively Kanbi , Kurmi ) is a generic term applied to caste system, castes of traditional farmers in Western India. These include the Dhonoje, Ghatole, Hindre, Jadav, Jhare, Khaire, Lewa (Leva Patil), Lonare and Tirole communities ...
cultivator class among Marathi people have also adopted some of the Maratha clan names, whether to indicate allegiance to the Maratha chief they served, or as an attempt at upward mobility.
Punjabi
Sikh
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
names often have the following format: First name, religious name, family name. The religious name is always ''
Singh
Singh (Help:IPA, IPA: ) is a title, middle name or surname that means "lion" in various South Asian and Southeast Asian communities. Traditionally used by the Hindu Kshatriya community, it eventually became a common surname adopted by different ...
'' for males, example "Ravinder Singh Sahota"; and ''
Kaur
Kaur ( pa, ਕੌਰ (Gurmukhi), pa, کور (Shahmukhi) en, crown prince) (sometimes spelled as ''Kour''), is a surname or a part of a personal name primarily used by the Sikh and Hindu women of Punjab region. "Kaur" is also sometimes trans ...
'' for females, example "Harmanpreet Kaur Bhullar", "Harleen Kaur Deol" and "Manjeet Kaur Bhullar". Since Sikhism opposes
castes
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
, they do not traditionally use family names. Upon marriage, a Sikh woman will take the family name of the husband.
''Sardar'' for males and ''Sardarni'' for females are sometimes prefixed as titles. A lot of Sikh first names can be used by both sexes.
Tamil
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
names usually follow this pattern: Initial (Village name), Initial (Father's name), First Name, Surname (Example:
M.G. Ramachandran
Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran (17 January 1917 24 December 1987), also popularly known as M.G.R., was an Indian politician, actor, philanthropist, and filmmaker who served as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu from 1977 until his death in 1987 ...
, where the M stands for
Marudhur, and G stands for Gopalan, the father's name. Another example is R. Karthik, where R stands for Ravichandran, the father's name). There is a widespread usage of a
patronym
A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor.
Patronymics are still in use, including mandatory use, in many countries worldwide, alt ...
(use of the father's given name as the last name). This means that the first name of one generation becomes the last name of the next. In many cases, the father's given name appears as an initial and when written in full (for example, on a passport), the initial is expanded as last name. For example, a name like "R. Kumaresh" will be written in full as "or "Kumaresh Ramaiah", and refers to "Kumaresh son of Ramaiah". If Kumaresh then has a son named Vijay, then his name would be "K. Vijay" or "Vijay Kumaresh " as it would be in the West. There is also a general custom for Tamil women, after marriage to adopt their husband's first name as their new initial or new last name instead of their father's. A woman named K. Anitha / Anitha Kumaresh (Anitha daughter of Kumaresh) might change her name after marriage to S. Anitha / Anitha Saravanan (Anitha wife of Saravanan). However, these customs vary from family to family and are normally never carried on over successive generations.
After the
Dravidian movement
The Dravidian movement in British India started with the formation of the Justice Party on 20 November 1916 in Victoria Public Hall in Madras by C. Natesa Mudaliar along with T. M. Nair and P. Theagaraya Chetty as a result of a series of non- ...
, from the 1930s, most Tamils abandoned their surnames, both in India and nations like Singapore, due to the politically propagated belief that they were synonymous with their
caste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
identity, leading to social stigma.
More common among women, making the patronym or husband name the last name is a custom adopted by people migrating to the West, who want to be called by their first names without having to explain Indian naming conventions. However, women frequently adopt their father's or husband's name, and take it for successive generations.
The various Tamil caste names include ''
Paraiyar
Paraiyar, or Parayar or Maraiyar (formerly anglicised as Pariah and Paree), is a caste group found in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and Sri Lanka.
Etymology
Robert Caldwell, a nineteenth-century missionary and grammarian who ...
,
Vishwakarma
Vishvakarma or Vishvakarman ( sa, विश्वकर्मा, Viśvakarmā, all maker) is a craftsman deity and the divine architect of the devas in contemporary Hinduism. In the early texts, the craftsman deity was known as Tvastar and the ...
,
Aachari,
Konar,
Idaiyar,
Reddiar
Reddiar (also spelt as Reddiyar) is a Telugu speaking land owning, merchants , agricultural social group in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry.
Reddiars, Reddy, Reddappa are considered and believed to come from the same origins and they spread across ...
,
Udayar,
Yadhavar,
Iyengar
Iyengar (also spelt Ayyangar or Aiyengar, pronounced ) refers to the name of an ethnoreligious community of Tamil-speaking Hindu Brahmins, whose members follow Sri Vaishnavism and the Visishtadvaita philosophy propounded by Ramanuja. Found mos ...
,
Iyer
Iyers (also spelt as Ayyar, Aiyar, Ayer, or Aiyer) are an ethnoreligious community of Tamil-speaking Brahmin, Hindu Brahmins. Most Iyers are followers of the ''Advaita Vedanta, Advaita'' philosophy propounded by Adi Shankara and adhere to the ...
,
Pillai,
Mudaliar Mudaliar (alternatively spelled: Muthaliar, Mudali, Muthali, or Moodley ) is a Tamil title and surname. As title, it was historically given to high-ranking military officers and their descendants. The surname is most prevalent among Tamils from Tami ...
,
Thevar
The Mukkulathor people, who are also collectively known as Thevar, are a community or group of communities native to the central and southern districts of Tamil Nadu, India. They comprise the Agamudayar, Kallar and Maravar communities that sha ...
,
Nadar
Gaspard-Félix Tournachon (5 April 1820 – 20 March 1910), known by the pseudonym Nadar, was a French photographer, caricaturist, journalist, novelist, balloon (aircraft), balloonist, and proponent of Aircraft#Heavier-than-air – aerodynes, h ...
,
Chettiar
Chettiar (also spelt as Chetti and Chetty)is a title used by many traders, weaving, agricultural and land-owning castes in South India, especially in the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.
They are a subgroup of the Tamil community ...
,
Gounder
Gounder is a title used by various communities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It may refer to communities such as the , Kongu Vellalars , Kurumbas, Tuluva Vellalars, Uralis, Vanniyars, Vettuvars and Vokkaligas.
Etymology
There are number o ...
,
Naicker
The Nayak is a historic Indian title conferred on Sardars, who were governors of feudal states in the Middle Ages. Today it is also a surname. Nayaks are mostly Hindu and few Sikhs, who follow Hinduism and Sikhism respectively.
As a surname
Tod ...
'',
Vanniyar
The Vanniyar, also spelled Vanniya, formerly known as the Palli, are a Dravidian community or ''jāti'' found in the northern part of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. From the 19th century, peasant castes typically classified under Shudra cat ...
etc. The naming is therefore done in the fashion: Sunitha Ram Kumar Pillai. And hence they are known to only use initials besides their name except for when caste names are given more preference by certain families rather than the family name itself.
Telugu
Telugu people
Telugu people ( te, తెలుగువారు, Teluguvāru), or Telugus, or Telugu vaaru, are the largest of the four major Dravidian ethnolinguistic groups in terms of population. Telugus are native to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh ...
have a different naming style from the rest of India. The family name is a
genitive case
In grammar, the genitive case (abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can al ...
, hence stands first, which is followed by personal name.
This practice of placing family name first is also seen in
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
and
Hungarians
Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Urali ...
.
Thus "Family name (surname), Given name" format is contrasted from North India where family name typically appears last or other parts of
South India
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...
where family names are little used. This might cause confusion to varying degree within India and rest of the world.
Occasionally,
caste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
name is also suffixed at the end. For example, Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, where Neelam is the family name, Sanjiva is the given name and Reddy is the caste name.
Occasionally, some Telugu names may follow a slightly different convention where two personal names are given along with a family name. In the name, Amara Vishnu Dev, Amara is the family name and Vishnu Dev are the given names.
Personal names
Telugu people are often named after Hindu gods or goddesses.
Family names
Nearly all Telugus possess family names called "''Inti peru''" (), which are the most unique of all the linguistic groups in India.
Telugu family names are often named after a place. For example, ''Pasupaleti'' after Pasupaleru, ''Kondaveeti'' after
Kondaveedu, ''Kandukuri'' is named after
Kandukur etc. Unlike western names, where family name is well known over personal name, it is contrary among the Telugus, where person is well known by given name, without ever hearing their family name.
Telugu family names are often abbreviated and written, ''e.g''., P. V. Narasimha Rao, D. Ramanaidu, etc. unlike the western names where given name is abbreviated.
Indexing
According to ''
The Chicago Manual of Style
''The Chicago Manual of Style'' (abbreviated in writing as ''CMOS'' or ''CMS'', or sometimes as ''Chicago'') is a style guide for American English published since 1906 by the University of Chicago Press. Its 17 editions have prescribed writi ...
'', Indian names are usually
index
Index (or its plural form indices) may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities
* Index (''A Certain Magical Index''), a character in the light novel series ''A Certain Magical Index''
* The Index, an item on a Halo megastru ...
ed by the family name, with the family name separated from the other names by a comma, but indexing may differ according to the local usage and the preferences of the individual.
[Indexes: A Chapter from The Chicago Manual of Style]
(). Chicago Manual of Style
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
. Retrieved on 23 December 2014. p. 26 (PDF document p. 28/56).
Global
Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003
* ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007
* ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989
* ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015
* Bruno ...
Indian influence in names
See
Indosphere
Indosphere is a term coined by the linguist James Matisoff for areas of Indian linguistic and cultural influence in South Asia and Southeast Asia. It is commonly used in areal linguistics in contrast with Sinosphere.
Influence
The Tibeto-Burma ...
,
Sanskritisation
Sanskritisation (or Sanskritization) is a term in sociology which refers to the process by which castes or tribes placed lower in the caste hierarchy seek 'upward' mobility by emulating the rituals and practices of the dominant castes or upper ...
,
Indianization of Southeast Asia
Dating back to the first century, Indian culture started making its way into the region of Southeast Asia. The expansion of Indian culture into these areas was given the term ''Indianization''. The term was coined by French archaeologist, George ...
as well as
Influence of Indian honorifics in Southeast Asia, influenced the
Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
/
Indonesian
Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to:
* Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia
** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago
** Indonesian ...
,
Thai
Thai or THAI may refer to:
* Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia
** Thai people, the dominant ethnic group of Thailand
** Thai language, a Tai-Kadai language spoken mainly in and around Thailand
*** Thai script
*** Thai (Unicode block ...
, and
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
honorifics.
See also
*
Indian honorifics
Indian honorifics are honorific titles or appendices to names used in the Indian subcontinent, covering formal and informal social, commercial, and religious relationships. These may take the form of prefixes, suffixes or replacements.
Native hon ...
*
Place names in India
Place names in India are usually in Indian languages. Other languages include Portuguese, Dutch, English and Arabic.
Since Indian Independence, several Indian cities have adopted pre-English names, most notably Chennai (formerly Madras), Mumbai ...
*
Surnames by country
Surname conventions and laws vary around the world. This article gives an overview of surnames around the world.
English-speaking countries
Gaelic Surnames
Spanish-speaking countries
Argentina
In Argentina, normally only one family name ...
References
Further reading
*Kaushik, Devendra Kumar (2000)
Cataloguing of Indic Names in AACR-2'. Delhi: Originals.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Indian Name
*
*
Names by culture
Hindu given names