Wani/Vani (or Wanie, Wyne, Wain) is a surname of a caste found throughout India and Pakistan, especially in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab (Pakistan) and Maharashtra. Both Wain (pronounced like wine with a nasal 'n') and Wani/Vani are acceptable pronunciations. Historians agree that the Wani/Wain belong to the merchant caste of

Baniya __NOTOC__ The Bania (also spelled Baniya, Banija, Banya, Vaniya, Vani, Vania and Vanya) is a Vaishya community mainly found in Indian states of Gujarat, and Rajasthan, but they are also found in Madhya Pradesh. Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh ...

, and were originally Kashmiri Hindus. Even among those Wani/Wain who converted from

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

to Islam, the profession of these people remained primarily in

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

and

commerce Commerce is the large-scale organized system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions directly and indirectly related to the exchange (buying and selling) of goods and services among two or more parties within local, regional, nation ...

. Taareekh Hassan has mentioned that Wani Muslims became one of the highest castes among

Sheikhs Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...

(Wani also use Khwaja as their prefix). Wains are divided into several sub-castes such as Kesar-Wani (those who sell saffron), Tal-Wain (those who sell oil), Pui-Wani, Baand-Wani, Bas-Wani, Tarangar-Wani, Kakar-Wani, and Par-Wani. Because of the adoption of different trades by members of the tribe, various branches of the tribe have come into existence. In the 1931 census about 72,311 people were identified with ''Wani'' caste. Some Wanis have migrated from the Kashmir Valley to

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

region, as well as

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

and

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

.pages 259 to 260 of vol.1 of Tawaareekh Aqwaam e Kashmir by Muhammad Deen Fauq, written in 1934 A.D. ; Published by Nigarshat, 24 Muzang Road, Lahore, Pakistan, in 2003 A.D

People with the surname

Ashfaq Majeed Wani Ashfaq Majeed Wani (5 September 1966 – 30 March 1990) was the first Commander in Chief of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front, a militant Kashmiri-separatist group in Jammu and Kashmir, India. He was killed by Indian Paramilitary Forces in 19 ...

(1966–1990), Separatist militant *

Burhan Wani Burhan Wani (19 September 1994 – 8 July 2016) was a commander of Hizbul Mujahideen, an Islamist militant organization and insurgent group of the Kashmir conflict. He had become a popular figure amongst the local Kashmiri populace, having d ...

(1994–2016), Kashmiri militant *

Jagannath Wani Jagannath Wani (10 September 1934–5 May 2017) was an Indo-Canadian statistician and philanthropist. A Professor Emeritus of Statistics and Actuarial Science at the University of Calgary, his philanthropic work in Canada has focused on men ...

(1934–2017), Indo-Canadian statistician and philanthropist *

Nazir Ahmad Wani Lance Naik Nazir Ahmad Wani, AC, SM & Bar was an Indian soldier in the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry of the Indian Army. He was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra, India's highest peacetime military decoration, in January 2019. He wa ...

(died 2018), Indian soldier * Mansukh Wani (died 2020), Indian-American scientist *

Rangnath Wani Rangnath Wani ( mr, रंगनाथ वाणी) is an Indian politician and member of the Shiv Sena. He was elected to Maharashtra Legislative Assembly for three consecutive terms from 1999 to 2014 from the Vaijapur Vidhan Sabha const ...

, Indian politician and member of the Shiv Sena * Mohan R. Wani (born 1965), Indian biologist and immunologist

References

{{Reflist Kashmiri-language surnames Sanskrit-language names Pakistani names Surnames Bania communities Indian surnames Hindu surnames Kashmiri tribes Kashmiri Hindus Kashmiri Muslims Vaishya community

People with the surname

See also

References