Shenoy

Shenoy is a surname from coastal Karnataka and Goa in India.[1] It is found among Hindus of the Goud Saraswat Brahmin community following Smartha Sampradaya of Kavale Matha or Madhva Sampradaya of either Gokarna Matha or Kashi Matha.[2]

"Shenai" redirects here. For the instrument, see Shehnai.

Some Brahmin Christian families of South Canara have reverted to their pre-conversion surnames like Shenoy.[3]

Etymology
श्रेणीपति > शेणीव्वई > शेणय

There are two theories about the origin of Shenoy or Shenvi.

  1. The Sanskrit word Shrenipati, meaning the leader of the guild, which got converted as Shennivayi in Apabhraṃśa, and later as Shenai or Shenvi in old Konkani.
  2. It is from the Sanskrit word for 96, ṣaṇṇavati (षण्णवति). The significance of the word 96 among Konkanis is that 96 villages formed the core region of Goa. It is said that 96 clans / families of Saraswat Brahmins arrived in Gomantak and settled in one village each[4]. 66 villages were in Sashti region (66 in Sanskrit is ṣaṭ ṣaṣṭi - षट् षष्टि. Sashti became Salcette during the Portuguese rule) and 30 villages were in Tiswadi region.

Background and origins
Plaque outside a commercial establishment, Goa, India

The Shenoys were generally involved in administration of the city. The word 'Shenoy' itself means a writer.[3] GSBs were administrators of the temples. The word 'Shenoy' is also interchangeable with its counterpart 'Shanbhag'

The Saraswats migrated from Goa during the Muslim and Christian conquests during 1600, and carried their surname with them. Thus the word 'शणै' is transliterated in Latin script as Shenoy in Karnataka and as Xennai, Shenoi, Shenai, Shenvi or even Sinai in Goa.[3] Xennoi is less commonly used in the erstwhile Portuguese Goa and Damaon, but nowadays it has given way to Xennai today.[5]

It was common in Goa for Shenoys and other Saraswats to add the name of their ancestral village or title after Shenoy to denote their origin.[6]

Notable people

The following is a list of notable people with the surname 'Shenoy', 'Shanbhag'.

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References
  1. "Shenoy Name Meaning", Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, 2013
  2. Pandtit Alahar Vijay, Pronology – The Dynamic Name Science, Chennai: Sura Books, ISBN 8174787356
  3. Angelus Francis Xavier Maffei (2003), A Konkani Grammar, Mangalore: Asian Educational Services, ISBN 9788120600874, OCLC 14242653
  4. https://gsbsabhamumbai.org/i-am-a-gsb/
  5. ManoharRai SarDessai (2000), A History of Konkani Literature (From 1500 to 1992), Pune: Sahitya Akademi, p. 24, ISBN 8172016646
  6. Pius Fidelis Pinto (1999), History of Christians in coastal Karnataka, 1500–1763 A.D., Mangalore: Samanvaya Prakashan

Further reading
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