Persaud
Persaud is a Hindu surname originating in the Kayastha Ambashtha[1] community, primarily found in Guyana, Suriname, South Asia, Fiji, South Africa, Mauritius, Trinidad and Tobago, and other parts of the Caribbean. It is derived from the Hindi surname साद which is predominantly transliterated as Prasad in India. Other variant forms include Persad, Persard, Pershard, Prasada, Prashad, Presad, Presaud and Persand.
The surname primarily originated in the Hindi Belt of India, especially in the present-day states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh, and it also originates in the neighboring Terai-Madhesh region of Nepal.[2] Persaud is the most prevalent surname in Guyana with 21,855 [3] Guyanese persons documented to hold the name.
The term Ambashtha refers to a sub-caste of Kayasthas, now found mainly in South-Bihar, who may be connected with the old Ambashtha caste, who were involved in the practice of medicine and surgery.[4] Their origin may have been Western Punjab; the tribe was mentioned in the Mahabharata.[5]
Etymology and history
The name Persaud means "Gracious gift"[6][7] originally deriving from Hindi "Prasad". The name has connection to multiple Asian religions including Hinduism, Sikhism and Islam[8] where "Prasada" is a food that is used in religious offering.
Geographical distribution
Persaud is most popular surname in Guyana [9] where 1 in 35 persons hold the surname,[10] but it is also a growing common name in Canada ranking 862nd and the UK where 1 in 52,000 hold the surname. This is due to a large amount of Guyanese immigration to North America and Europe.[11]
Notable people named Persaud
Persaud
- Anjulie Persaud (b. 1983), an Indo-Guyanese Canadian singer
- Avinash Persaud (b. 1966), an Indo-Bajan businessman
- Bernadette Indira Persaud (b. 1946), Indo-Guyanese painter
- Bishnodat Persaud (1933-2016), a British Indo-Guyanese economist
- Deborah Persaud (b. 1960), an Indo-Guyanese American virologist
- Kriskal Persaud (b. 1974), an Indo-Guyanese chess player
- Lakshmi Persaud (b. 1939), a British Indo-Trinidadian writer
- Mark Persaud (b. 1966), an Indo-Caribbean American businessman and lawyer
- Nikhil Persaud, a British poker player
- Rajendra Persaud (b. 1963), a British Indo-Trinidadian/Indo-Guyanese psychiatrist
- Reepu Daman Persaud, an Indo-Guyanese former agricultural minister of Guyana
- Roxanne Persaud, Indian-African Guyanese American politician
- Shanta Persaud, diabetes researcher and academic
Persad
- Kamla Persad-Bissessar (b. 1952), first woman to be Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago
- Ria Persad (also known as Ria Persad Carlo) (born 1974), a Trinidad and Tobago mathematician, classical musician and model
References
- "Ambastha". http://samsinhablog.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2020-05-03. External link in
|website=
(help) - "Persaud Family History". Ancestry. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
- "Guyana Genealogy Resources & Vital Records". forebears.io. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
- Russell, R.V. The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India, Volume III of IV. Library of Alexandria. ISBN 978-1-46558-303-1.
- Gupta, Chitrarekha (1996). The Kāyasthas: a study in the formation and early history of a caste. K.P. Bagchi & Co. p. 60.
But Bihar was not the original homeland of the Ambashthas. The Ambashthas were a famous tribe from Western Punjab and have been mentioned in the Mahabharata.
- "Prasad Name Meaning & Prasad Family History at Ancestry.co.uk®". www.ancestry.co.uk. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
- "Fatawa - Is it permissible for Muslims to eat Prasad shared by temple custodians in India?". Dar al-Ifta al Misriyyah. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
- "Prasada | Hinduism". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
- "The most popular last name in every country in the world, and what they mean". https://matadornetwork.com. Retrieved 2020-05-03. External link in
|website=
(help) - "Persaud Surname Meaning, Origins & Distribution". forebears.io. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
- "Guyanese Immigrants to Canada | Statistics | Immigration to Canada". Retrieved 2019-05-08.