Banerjee or Bandyopadhyay is a surname of

Brahmins Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru o ...

originating from the

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

region of the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

and from

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

Lineage and ancestry

Banerjees are from the ancient

Shandilya Shandilya (IAST: Śāṇḍilya) is a Brahmin gotra, named after the Rishi Shandilya, specifying that individuals of the gotra have Shandilya as one of their patrilineal ancestors. Shandilya Rishi and was the progenitor of the Śāṇḍilya go ...

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 ...

, which means all Banerjees are descended from

Kannauj Kannauj ( Hindustani pronunciation: ənːɔːd͡ʒ is a city, administrative headquarters and a municipal board or Nagar Palika Parishad in Kannauj district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city's name is a corrupted form of the class ...

from the ancient sage

as per the Puranas. Together with

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 ...

s, Chatterjees,

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 ...

s and Gangulys, Banerjees form the

Kulin Brahmins Kulin Brahmins are the Bengali Brahmins belonging to Hindu religion. They trace their ancestry to five families of Kannauj who migrated to Bengal. History In the 11th century AD, after the decline of the Pala dynasty, a Hindu king, Adi Sura brou ...

History

Notable people

Notable people with the surname Banerjee, Bandopadhyay, or variations, include: *

Alapan Bandyopadhyay Alapan Bandyopadhyay (born 17 May 1961) is an ex-Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and former Chief Secretary of State for the Government of West Bengal. He is Chief Advisor for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee since 1 June 2021. He to ...

, IAS Officer *

Anjan Bandyopadhyay Anjan Bandyopadhyay or Anjan Banerjee (24 August 1965 – 16 May 2021) was an Indian Bengali journalist who worked for various news and media channels such as ''Anandabazar Patrika'', ''ETV Bangla'', ''Akash Bangla'', ''Zee 24 Ghanta'', ''TV9 Ba ...

, journalist *

Abhijit Banerjee Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee (; born 21 February 1961) is an Indian-American economist who is currently the Ford Foundation International Professor of Economics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Banerjee shared the 2019 Nobel Memorial Priz ...

, Nobel laureate economist *

Albion Rajkumar Banerjee Sir Albion Rajkumar Banerjee (10 October 1871 – 25 February 1950) was an Indian civil servant and administrator who served as the Diwan of Cochin from 1907 to 1914, 21st Diwan of Mysore from 1922 to 1926, and as Prime Minister of Kashmir fr ...

Ambica Banerjee Ambica Banerjee (28 August 1928 – 25 April 2013) was a member of the 15th Lok Sabha. He was elected as a Trinamool Congress candidate from Howrah (Lok Sabha constituency). Banerjee was born in 1928 to Shri Anilmohon Banerjee and Shyama Devi i ...

Audrish Banerjee Audrish Banerjee (born 26 February 1975) is an Indian former cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman and right-arm offbreak bowler who played for Bengal. He was born in Belurmath. Banerjee represented Bengal Under-19s during the Cooch Behar ...

* Bhanu Banerjee, actor and freedom activist *

Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay () (12 September 1894 – 1 November 1950) was an Indian writer in the Bengali language. His best known works are the autobiographical novel, ''Pather Panchali'' (''Song of the Little Road''), ''Aparajito (Undefeate ...

* Bidisha Bandyopadhyay, writer, broadcaster *

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (born Chitralekha Banerjee, 1956) is an Indian-born American author, poet, and the Betty and Gene McDavid Professor of Writing at the University of Houston Creative Writing Program. Her short story collection, ''Arrang ...

Dibakar Banerjee Dibakar Banerjee (born 21 June 1969) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer and advertisement-filmmaker known for his work in Hindi films. Banerjee started his career in advertising, being a feature filmmaker, he still continues t ...

, film director *

Dola Banerjee Dola Banerjee ( bn, দোলা ব্যানার্জি; born 2 June 1980) is an Indian sportswoman who competes in archery. Early life Dola Banerjee is daughter of Ashok Banerjee and Kalpana Banerjee. She was born in Baranagar near Ko ...

Gooroodas Banerjee Sir Gooroodas Banerjee (also Gurudas or Gurudas Bandyopadhyay, bn, স্যার গুরুদাস ব্যানার্জী; 26 January 1844 – 2 December 1918) was a Bengali Indian judge of the Calcutta High Court. In 1890, he als ...

, High Court judge *

Gurudas Bandyopadhyay Sir Gooroodas Banerjee (also Gurudas or Gurudas Bandyopadhyay, bn, স্যার গুরুদাস ব্যানার্জী; 26 January 1844 – 2 December 1918) was a Bengali Indian judge of the Calcutta High Court. In 1890, he a ...

, Actor *

Gopeshwar Banerjee Gopeshwar Banerjee or Gopeshwar Bandopadhyay (1880–1963) was an Indian classical singer and musicologist, belonging to Bishnupur gharana of Hindustani music, which originated in Bishnupur in West Bengal. He was known for his khyal and dhrupad ...

Haradhan Bandopadhyay Haradhan Bandopadhyay (6 November 1926 – 5 January 2013) was a Bengali Indian male actor of television and films. He made his debut in the 1948 Bengali film ''Devdut'', directed by Atanu Bandopadhyay. He worked with some of the most prominent ...

, actor * Ishwar Chandra Bandyopadhyay *

Jenni Banerjee Jenni Pauliina Banerjee (born 17 January 1981 in Ylöjärvi, Finland) is a Finnish actress with Indian ancestry. She has appeared in movies such as '' Pahat pojat'' (2003), ''Joensuun Elli'' (2004) and ''Lieksa!'' (2007). Her maternal grandfather ...

, actress *

Kali Banerjee Kali Banerjee (20 November 1920 – 5 July 1993) was an Indian actor, who worked in the 1950s–1970s in Bengali cinema. He is best known for his work with film directors like Satyajit Ray in ''Parash Pathar'' (1958) and Ritwik Ghatak in ''Na ...

, actor *

Kali Charan Banerjee Kali Charan Banerjee (1847–1907), spelt also as Kalicharan Banerji or K.C. Banerjea or K.C. Banurji, was a Bengali convert to Christianity through the Free Church of Scotland, the founder of ''Calcutta Christo Samaj'', a Calcutta lawyer, and ...

* Kalyan Banerjee *

Kanika Bandyopadhyay Kanika Banerjee (12 October 1924 – 5 April 2000) was an Bengali Rabindra Sangeet singer. Biography Early life Born on 12 October 1924 at Sonamukhi in Bankura district, Kanika joined Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan in West Bengal, In ...

(1924–2000), singer *

Kanu Banerjee Kanu Banerjee (Kanu Bandyopadhyay) (20 June 1905 – 27 January 1983) was an Indian actor and director of Bengali cinema and theatre.Soumitra Das and Dalia Mukherje (5 August 2012)"The matter-of-fact actor of many parts"Kolkata, India: '' ...

(1905–1985), actor (Pather Panchali) *

Karuna Banerjee Karuna Banerjee ( bn, করুণা ব্যানার্জী) (25 December 1919 – 13 November 2001) was a Bengali actress best known for her role in Satyajit Ray's ''The Apu Trilogy'' (1955–1959) as the long suffering mother, Sarbaja ...

(1919–2001), actress (Pather Panchali) *

Krishna Mohan Banerjee Krishna Mohan Banerjee (24 May 1813 – 11 May 1885) was a 19th-century Indian thinker who attempted to rethink Hindu philosophy, religion and ethics in response to the stimulus of Christian ideas. He himself became a Christian, and was t ...

Kaushik Banerjee Kaushik Banerjee ( bn, কৌশিক ব্যানার্জী) is an Indian actor who is known for his work in Bengali cinema. He has appeared in more than a 100 films throughout his career of four decades. Born to the ace actor Harad ...

, actor *

Mamata Banerjee Mamata Banerjee (; born 5 January 1955) is an Indian politician who is serving as the eighth and current List of chief ministers of West Bengal, chief minister of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal since 20 ...

Manik Bandopadhyay Manik Bandyopadhyay lias Banerjee(; 19 May 1908 – 3 December 1956) is an Indian Litterateur regarded as one of the major figures of 20th century Bengali literature. During a lifespan of 48 years and 28 years of literary career, battling with ...

, writer, novelist *

Nikhil Banerjee Pandit Nikhil Ranjan Banerjee (14 October 1931 – 27 January 1986) was an Indian classical sitarist of the Maihar Gharana. Along with Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan, he emerged as one of the leading exponents of the sitar. He ...

, composer, musician *

Nyra Banerjee Madhuurima Banerjee (born 14 May 1987), also known by her stage name Nyra Banerjee, is an Indian actress who appears predominantly in Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam and Kannada language films. Following appearances in various television serials, she ...

, Indian television actress and assistant director. *

Pradip Kumar Banerjee Pradip Kumar Banerjee (23 June 1936 – 20 March 2020) was an Indian professional footballer who played as a striker for the India national football team. He also captained the national team and later on became the coach of the national ...

* Prith Banerjee *

Pooja Banerjee Pooja Banerjee (born 8 November 1991) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi television. She began her television career as a contestant in ''MTV Roadies'' and subsequently starred as Tejal Majumdar in her first lead show, ''Ek Doosre Se Ka ...

, television actress *

Puja Banerjee Puja Banerjee (born 6 February 1987), sometimes credited as Pooja Bose, is an Indian actress who appears predominantly in Bengali films and Hindi television. She is well known for playing Vrinda in the show '' Tujh Sang Preet Lagai Sajna'', whi ...

, film and television actress *

Rachana Banerjee Rachna Banerjee (born Jhumjhum Rakesh Banerjee; 2 October 1974) also known as Rachana, is an Indian actress, entrepreneur and television presenter. She is known for her works in Bengali and Odia film industries and has also appeared in severa ...

, actor * Raghab Bandyopadhyay, prose writer * Rahul Banerjee, archer * R D Banerji, The discoverer of Mohenjo-daro, the principal site of the Indus Valley Civilisation *

Rina Banerjee Rina Banerjee (born 1963) is an Indian Americans, Indian-American artist and sculptor."Bio"
Rinabanerjee.com, Retrieved onl ...

* Ruprekha Banerjee * San Banarje, film director, producer, photographer *

Sanjay Banerjee Sanjay Banerjee is an American engineer at the University of Texas at Austin, director of Microelectronics Research Center, and director of the Southwest Academy of Nanoelectronics (SWAN) — one of three such centers in the United States funded b ...

, Indian engineer * Shakuntala Banerjee (born 1973), German journalist *

Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay (30 March 1899 – 22 September 1970) was an Indian Bengali-language writer. He was actively involved with Bengali cinema as well as Bollywood. The creator of the Bengali detective Byomkesh Bakshi, Sharadindu compos ...

Sarnath Banerjee Sarnath Banerjee (born 1972) is an Indian graphic novelist, artist, filmmaker and co-founder of the comics publishing house, Phantomville. Biography Banerjee was born in Calcutta and lives and works in Delhi, India. He studied image and commu ...

Somen Banerjee Somen "Steve" Banerjee ( bn, সোমেন বন্দোপাধ্যায়; October 8, 1946 – October 23, 1994) was an Indian entrepreneur, and the founder of Chippendales. Biography Somen Banerjee was born in Bombay (now Mumbai), I ...

Surendranath Banerjee Sir Surendranath Banerjee often known as Rashtraguru ( bn, Rāṣṭraguru, Teacher of the Nation; 10 November 18486 August 1925) was Indian nationalist leader during the British Rule. He founded a nationalist organization called the Indian Nati ...

, first Indian to qualify Indian Civil Service Examination * Sushmita Banerjee, writer *

Victor Banerjee Victor Banerjee is an Indian actor who appears in English, Hindi, Bengali and Assamese language films. He has worked for directors such as Roman Polanski, James Ivory, Sir David Lean, Jerry London, Ronald Neame, Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Shya ...

, actor both in Tollywood, Bollywood and Hollywood *

Vikram Banerjee Vikram Banerjee (born 20 March 1984 in Bradford, Yorkshire) is an English cricketer. He is a left-handed batsman and a left-arm slow bowler. Background Banerjee studied at King Edward's School, Birmingham and Downing College, Cambridge. Pro ...

Gargi Banerji Gargi Banerjee (born 20 July 1961 in Calcutta, India) is a former Test and One Day International cricketer who represented India. She made her international debut at the age of 16 at the Eden Gardens in a World Cup match against England and pla ...

, cricketer * Sara Banerji, writer *

Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee Womesh Chandra Bannerjee (or Umesh Chandra Banerjee by current English orthography of Bengali names; 29 December 1844 – 21 July 1906) was an Indian barrister. He was a co-founder and the first president of Indian National Congress. Born on 1 ...

, first president of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

References

{{surname Brahmin communities Social groups of West Bengal Indian surnames Hindu surnames Bengali Hindu surnames Kulin Brahmin surnames