Desai

Desai (देसाई) (pronounced [d̪eːsaːiː]) is an administrative, princely or honorary title and surname.[1]

Etymology

The word is derived from the Sanskrit deśa (country) and svāmī (lord).[2]

Desai as a title

Desai was a title given to feudal lords, brahmins, revenue collectors, and others who were granted a village or group of villages, in North Karnataka, Gujarat, and Maharashtra. The title Desai should not be associated with a particular religion or caste. The "Desai" title was given by the Deccan sultanates, Mughal emperors, and by Maratha emperors.[3]

• In Gujarat, Desai is honoured to Rabaris, Anavil Brahmin and Patidars caste people. The title was also given to feudal lords and revenue collectors[4]
• In Maharashtra, the title desai is conferred to leaders of villages. Most of them are either Deshastha Brahmins[5] or Marathas.[6]

Desai, or a loftier compound, was a rare title for rulers of a few princely states, notably:

• Desai Shri in Patdi (the former Viramgam State), in Eastern Kathiawar, where Desai was also the name of the ruling family, which belongs to the Desai clan of Kadwa Patidar.
• Raja Sar Desai in the Maratha Savantvadi State from 1627 until the adoption of "Raja Bahadur" in 1763.

Desai as a surname

Desai as a surname is used by Rabari Community in North Gujarat, Deshastha Brahmin,[7] Anavil Brahmin,[8] Maratha, Patidar and Lingayat communities of Maharashtra, Karnataka[9] and Gujarat.

Individual people

Notable individuals with the surname Desai include:

Public officers

• Gopaldas Ambaidas Desai – politician; former Prince of Dhasa
• Kantilal Thakoredas Desai – second Chief Justice of Gujarat
• Kevit Desai - Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education state department for Vocational and Technical Training, Kenya
• Krishna Desai – CPI politician
• Morarji Desai – Prime Minister of India (1977–79)
• Mahadev Desai – Secretary to Mahatma Gandhi
• S. T. Desai – first Chief Justice of Gujarat

Arts, sciences and business

• Anita Desai – author; mother of author Kiran Desai
• Bhairavi Desai – American labor union leader
• Bindu Desai – actress
• C. D. Desai – banker and philatelist
• Dhhyey Desai - Accredited teacher
• Ebrahim Desai – Islamic scholar
• Kiran Desai – author; 2006 Man Booker Prize winner
• Kishwar Desai – author
• Manmohan Desai – director
• Mavjibhai Desai – vice chairman of Banas Dairy
• Meghnad Desai, Baron Desai – economist
• Mihir A. Desai - American economist and professor at Harvard Business School and Harvard Law School
• Nitin Chandrakant Desai – art director
• Padma Desai – American economist and professor at Columbia University
• Ramanlal Desai - Gujarati writer
• Ranjit Desai – Marathi writer
• Salil Desai –aAuthor
• Sapan Desai – American physician; publisher and discredited researcher
• Umedram Lalbhai Desai – physician

Culture & Sports

• Anoop Desai – American singer
• Gunwant Desai – Indian cricketer
• K. R. Desai - Cricketer; philanthropist; educator
• Prachi Desai – Actress
• Ramakant Desai – cricketer; India's first fast bowler
• Rashami Desai – actress
• Ravish Desai – actor
• Renu Desai –actress
• Satyaki "Sattu" Desai – environmental officer
• Subhash Desai – Shiv Sena leader
• Tina Desai – actress
• Giulia Desai – Aerospace Engineer

See also

• Maratha titles
• Indian honorifics
• Indian feudalism

References

1. Also, "Mahr. deśāī; in W. and S. India a native official in charge of a district, often held hereditarily; a petty chief." Henry Yule, Hobson-Jobson: A Glossary of Colloquial Anglo-Indian Words and Phrases, pp. 292, 306.
2. https://www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=desai
3. Raj Kumar (2003). Essays on Modern India. Discovery Publishing House. p. 73.
4. Laura Spinney. Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How it Changed the World. Random House. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
5. Syed Siraj ul Hassan (1989). The Castes and Tribes of H.E.H. the Nizam's Dominions, Volume 1. Asian Educational Services. p. 111.
6. V. D. Divekar (1993). South India in 1857 War of Independence. Lokmanya Tilak Smarak Trust. p. 148.
7. Kumar Suresh Singh (2004). People of India: Maharashtra, Part 1. Popular Prakashan. p. 478.
8. Rashmi H. Desai. Indian immigrants in Britain,. Oxford University Press. p. 11. Retrieved 13 June 2008.
9. Studies in Indian place names, Volume 4. Geetha Book House. 1984. p. 125. These surnames are reminiscent of the Maratha rule over Karnataka. Thus we have surnames like Desai, Deshmukh, Deshpande, Inamdar, Jagirdar, Kulkarni, Patil, etc. These families held different posts under the Maratha administration.