Vaidya (
Sanskrit: ), or vaid is a
Sanskrit word meaning "traditional practitioner of
Ayurveda", an indigenous Indian system of
alternative medicine
Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of medicine despite lacking biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or evidence from clinical trials. Complementary medicine (CM), complementary and alt ...
. Senior practitioners or teachers were called ''Vaidyarāja'' ("physician-king") as a mark of respect. Some practitioners who had complete knowledge of the texts and were excellent at their practices were known as ''Pranaacharya''. Some royal families in India had a personal ''vaidya'' in attendance and these people were referred to as ''
Rāja Vaidya'' ("the king's physician").
In Maharashtra, like many other last names, the last name "Vaidya" is linked to the profession that the family followed.
Vaidya as a surname
As a last name in Maharashtra, Vaidya is usually found in several communities like the
Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu Chitpawan
The Chitpavan Brahmin or Konkanastha Brahmin is a Hindu Maharashtrian Brahmin community inhabiting Konkan, the coastal region of the state of Maharashtra. Initially working as messengers and spies in the late seventeenth century, the community ...
as well as
Sonar(goldsmith, an educationally backward caste).
Notables
*
Lakshman Jagannath Vaidya
*
Narayan Jagannath Vaidya
*
Chintaman Vinayak Vaidya
*
Bhai Vaidya
*
Arun Shridhar Vaidya
*
Jalabala Vaidya
*
Omi Vaidya
*
Kaajal Oza Vaidya
*
Rahul Vaidya
*
Prahalad Chunnilal Vaidya
*
Rajaram Vaidya Rajaram or Raja Ram is one of the Indian names:
* Several Chhatrapatis, leaders of the Maratha Empire in India
** Rajaram I (1670–1700), younger son of Maratha ruler Chhatrapati Shivaji, ruled 1689–1700
** Rajaram II of Satara, putative grand ...
*
Harish Rajaram Vaidya
Harish may refer to: Aadhar Card dekhna hai
Places
* Harish, Israel, a town in Israel
* Arish, Iran (also known as Harish), a village in South Khorasan Province, Iran
*Arasht, Zanjan (also known as Harish), a village in Zanjan Province, Iran
Peop ...
*
Santosh Harish Rajaram Vaidya
*
Tejas Harish Rajaram Vaidya
See also
*
Vaid (surname)
References
{{Reflist
Surnames
Indian surnames
Linguistic history of India
Indian words and phrases
Traditional healthcare occupations
Titles in India
Men's social titles
Cultural history of India
Ayurveda