400 Best Indian Last Names with Meanings for 2025

Did you know that your last name can reveal not just your heritage but also a fascinating story about your ancestors? In the vibrant tapestry of Indian culture, surnames carry significant meanings that often reflect geographical origins, professions, and family history. This article dives into 400 Indian last names, unraveling their meanings and cultural significance as we approach 2025. By the end, you’ll not only enhance your knowledge of these names but also gain insight into the rich traditions they represent.

Table of Contents

Common Indian Last Names

Sharma – Refers to “joy” or “comfort,” often used by Brahmins.
Verma – Means “protection” or “armor,” common among Kshatriyas.
Patel – Derived from “Patlik,” meaning village head or landowner.
Reddy – Denotes a village head or leader, popular in Andhra Pradesh.
Iyer – Tamil Brahmin surname, meaning “priest” or “teacher.”
Gupta – Means “protected” or “secret,” linked with traders and merchants.
Joshi – Derived from “Jyotishi,” meaning astrologer.
Mishra – Means “mixed” or “learned,” a Brahmin surname.
Chowdhury – Means “holder of four” (lands), a landowner title.
Naidu – Telugu surname meaning “leader” or “chief.”

North Indian Last Names

Pandey – Derived from “Pandit,” meaning scholar.
Tiwari – Means “three times learned” or well-versed in three Vedas.
Tripathi – Means “knower of the three Vedas.”
Chaturvedi – Refers to one who mastered the four Vedas.
Singh – Means “lion,” commonly used by Rajputs and Sikhs.
Bhardwaj – Derived from the sage Bharadwaj.
Kapoor – Punjabi surname from “Kapura,” a clan name.
Malhotra – Derived from “Mehrotra,” meaning protector of the region.
Khanna – Punjabi Khatri surname, means “seed” or “grain.”
Mehra – Refers to “chief” or “master.”

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South Indian Last Names

Menon – Kerala surname meaning “account keeper.”
Nair – Means “leader” or “warrior,” common in Kerala.
Pillai – Tamil/Malayali surname, means “child” or “royal offspring.”
Chettiar – Refers to a wealthy merchant community in Tamil Nadu.
Shetty – Derived from “Setti,” meaning trader or businessman.
Mudaliar – Tamil title meaning “first” or “chief.”
Konidela – Prominent Telugu family surname.
Kurup – Kerala surname meaning “teacher” or “preceptor.”
Gowda – Karnataka surname meaning “lord” or “landlord.”
Iyengar – Tamil Vaishnavite Brahmin surname.

East Indian Last Names

Chatterjee – Bengali Brahmin surname derived from Chattopadhyaya.
Mukherjee – Derived from Mukhopadhyaya, meaning teacher/priest.
Banerjee – Derived from Bandopadhyaya, meaning revered teacher.
Bhattacharya – Means “teacher” or “preceptor.”
Ghosh – Derived from “Gopa,” meaning cowherd or protector.
Dutta – Means “given” or “gift of God.”
Sengupta – Refers to Gupta lineage, associated with warriors.
Ray – Means “king” or “royal.”
Paul – Derived from “Pala,” meaning protector.
Bose – Derived from Vasu, meaning wealth or radiance.

West Indian Last Names

Deshmukh – Title for head of a district, Maharashtrian origin.
Deshpande – Means “district accountant.”
Kulkarni – Means “village clerk or record keeper.”
Joshi – Astrologer, also common in Maharashtra.
Pawar – Means “keeper” or “protector.”
Thackeray – Anglo-Indian surname adapted in Maharashtra.
Patil – Village headman in Maharashtra.
Shinde – Derived from “Sindhu,” meaning river.
Gaikwad – Means “cow protector,” a Maratha clan name.
Jadhav – Means “descendant of Yadav.”

Sikh Last Names

Gill – Refers to a clan of agriculturists.
Dhillon – Clan name, means “brave warrior.”
Bajwa – Means “hawk” or “falcon.”
Sandhu – Refers to descendants of the Sandhu clan.
Grewal – Clan name meaning “strong or brave.”
Sidhu – Refers to the Sidhu Jat clan.
Pannu – Derived from a Punjabi Jat clan.
Brar – Refers to a powerful Punjabi clan.
Mann – Derived from a warrior Jat clan.
Chahal – Name of a Jat Sikh clan.

Muslim Indian Last Names

Khan – Means “chief” or “ruler,” widely used among Muslims.
Ansari – Refers to “supporters,” companions of Prophet Muhammad.
Syed – Descendants of Prophet Muhammad.
Qureshi – Refers to Quraish tribe of Arabia.
Sheikh – Means elder, scholar, or chief.
Farooqui – Descendant of Caliph Umar Farooq.
Hashmi – Descendant of Prophet Muhammad’s clan, Banu Hashim.
Mirza – Means “prince” or “commander.”
Nadwi – Refers to Nadwa seminary in India.
Abbasi – Descendants of Abbas, uncle of Prophet Muhammad.

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Rajput Last Names

Rathore – Means “sun warrior.”
Chauhan – Refers to ancient Rajput dynasty.
Sisodia – Rajput clan from Rajasthan.
Solanki – Rajput dynasty name.
Gohil – Rajput clan name.
Bhati – Derived from a warrior clan in Rajasthan.
Tomar – Ancient Rajput warrior clan.
Bundela – From Bundelkhand, warrior clan.
Kachwaha – Rajput royal lineage from Jaipur.
Tanwar – Refers to Rajput warrior community.

Tribal & Indigenous Indian Last Names

Munda – Tribal surname from Jharkhand, means “head” or “chief.”
Soren – Santhal tribal surname.
Hemrom – Tribal surname meaning “lion.”
Kujur – Means “leader” among Oraon tribes.
Toppo – Tribal surname meaning “strong.”
Tudu – Santhal surname, means “wise one.”
Baski – Tribal surname meaning “teacher.”
Kisku – Santhal surname meaning “chief.”
Hansda – Means “swan,” tribal surname.
Murmu – Santhal surname, means “protector.”

Royal & Historical Last Names

Nizam – Means “order” or “administrator,” linked to Hyderabad rulers.
Tipu – From Tipu Sultan, Mysore ruler.
Maratha – Refers to Maratha warrior community.
Chalukya – Ancient royal dynasty name.
Maurya – Famous ancient Indian dynasty.
Gupta – Refers to the Gupta Empire rulers.
Pallava – Ancient South Indian dynasty.
Chola – Tamil dynasty known for valor.
Pandya – Ancient Tamil dynasty.
Mughal – Linked to the Mughal emperors of India.

Tamil Last Names

Anandan – Means “blissful” or “happy one.”
Arumugam – Refers to Lord Murugan with six faces.
Balasubramanian – Means “young Subramanian (Murugan).”
Chidambaram – Derived from the temple town in Tamil Nadu.
Devanathan – Means “Lord of the Devas (gods).”
Ganesan – Devotee of Lord Ganesha.
Jayaraman – Means “victory of Lord Rama.”
Kalyanasundaram – Refers to Lord Shiva in his divine form.
Lakshmanan – Derived from Lakshmana, brother of Lord Rama.
Raghavan – Refers to descendants of Lord Rama (Raghu lineage).

Telugu Last Names

Annamalai – Refers to “holy hill” in Tamil/Telugu culture.
Chalasani – Prominent Telugu family name.
Gundla – Means “stone” or “rock.”
Kancherla – Telugu Brahmin surname.
Lavu – Popular surname in Andhra Pradesh.
Mandadi – Means “from Mandadi village.”
Nallapati – Means “black or dark village.”
Polisetty – Means “wealthy trader.”
Sabbella – Telugu last name meaning “prosperous.”
Velagapudi – Means “from Velagapudi region.”

Kannada Last Names

Adiga – Refers to “cooker” or “priest.”
Hegde – Title meaning “chief” or “headman.”
Kulkarni – Village accountant in Karnataka.
Poojary – Means “priest.”
Shetty – Trader or businessman.
Rao – Means “prince” or “lord.”
Desai – Means “chief of the village.”
Pai – Konkani surname meaning “nobleman.”
Bhat – Means “priest” or “scholar.”
Gokhale – Refers to people from the Gokhale region.

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Kerala Last Names

Acharya – Means “teacher” or “guru.”
Kurian – Syrian Christian surname derived from “Kuriakose.”
Varghese – Derived from “George.”
Mathew – Christian surname from “Matthew.”
Koshy – Derived from “Joseph.”
Cherian – Derived from “Syrian Christian family.”
Thomas – From disciple St. Thomas.
Philipose – Derived from “Philip.”
Scaria – Christian surname meaning “bright.”
Eapen – Short for “Euphanios.”

Gujarati Last Names

Amin – Means “trustworthy” or “honest.”
Bhatt – Means “scholar” or “priest.”
Choksi – Refers to “assayer” or “jeweler.”
Dalal – Means “broker” or “trader.”
Desai – Village headman title.
Gandhi – Means “perfume seller.”
Joshi – Refers to astrologer or priest.
Modi – Refers to a grocer or shopkeeper.
Parikh – Means “inspector” or “examiner.”
Trivedi – Knower of three Vedas.

Maharashtrian Last Names

Apte – Means “priestly” or “noble family.”
Barve – Derived from a place in Maharashtra.
Bhide – Teacher or scholar.
Deshmukh – Village head title.
Godse – Refers to the Gokhale family lineage.
Kelkar – Refers to people from the Kel village.
Paranjape – Refers to one who lives near a riverbank.
Phadke – Means “commander” or “leader.”
Savarkar – Refers to the family from the Savar region.
Tilak – Means “mark” or “auspicious symbol.”

Kashmiri Last Names

Bhat – Scholar or priest.
Koul – Means “learned man.”
Pandit – Refers to scholar or Brahmin.
Dar – Title for landowner.
Raina – Derived from “Rajanya,” meaning royal.
Zutshi – Kashmiri Pandit surname meaning “scholar.”
Handoo – Derived from region name in Kashmir.
Mattoo – Prominent Kashmiri Pandit family name.
Tikoo – Refers to priestly clan.
Bamzai – Refers to a Kashmiri village name.

Christian Indian Last Names

Fernandes – Portuguese-origin surname, meaning “son of Fernando.”
D’Souza – Portuguese surname meaning “from the Sousa region.”
Rodrigues – Means “son of Rodrigo.”
Lobo – Means “wolf.”
Pereira – Means “pear tree.”
Fonseca – Means “dry spring.”
Carvalho – Means “oak tree.”
Menezes – Derived from a Portuguese noble family.
Gonsalves – Means “son of Gonzalo.”
Almeida – Means “famous land.”

Parsi & Zoroastrian Last Names

Tata – Famous Parsi surname, means “father.”
Wadia – Means “prosperous.”
Sethna – Means “leader” or “chief.”
Engineer – Anglicized surname referring to the profession.
Mehta – Means “accountant” or “chief.”
Mistry – Means “craftsman” or “builder.”
Patell – Village headman in Gujarati.
Shroff – Means “moneychanger” or “banker.”
Irani – Refers to Persian migrants from Iran.
Poonawalla – Refers to people from Pune.

Royal Rajput Clans (Extended)

Deora – Rajput clan meaning “divine protector.”
Jadeja – Rajput dynasty name meaning “descendant of Jada.”
Pundir – Warrior clan name.
Chandel – Rajput dynasty from Bundelkhand.
Hada – Rajput clan name meaning “brave.”
Nehra – Rajput warrior lineage.
Panwar – Rajput clan name.
Rawat – Title meaning “chief” or “lord.”
Sen – Refers to “army commander.”
Singhania – Business clan name derived from “lion.”

Tribal & Indigenous (Extended)

Majhi – Means “boatman” or “leader.”
Bedia – Tribal surname, means “hunter.”
Oraon – Refers to the Oraon tribe.
Khakha – Tribal surname meaning “strong one.”
Lakra – Tribal surname meaning “tiger.”
Ekka – Means “one” or “first.”
Barla – Means “warrior.”
Kerketta – Refers to warrior clan among Oraon.
Tigga – Means “tiger-like.”
Xaxa – Popular tribal surname in Chhattisgarh.

Jain Last Names

Shah – Means “merchant” or “king.”
Oswal – Jain community surname.
Lunia – Derived from trading families.
Bagadia – Merchant clan surname.
Bhandari – Refers to treasurer or manager.
Chandaria – Derived from “Chand,” meaning moon.
Gadiya – Refers to Jain trading community.
Kataria – Jain surname meaning “from Kataria region.”
Sanghvi – Refers to Jain religious leader.
Tapadia – Derived from Jain ascetic traditions.

Buddhist Last Names

Ambedkar – Derived from “Ambada,” Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s family name.
Bodhi – Refers to enlightenment.
Arya – Means noble or enlightened.
Nagarkar – Means “from the city.”
Kamble – Means “blanket maker.”
Jadhav – Buddhist surname, linked to Maratha lineage.
Gaikwad – Cowherd lineage, adopted by Buddhists.
Nalanda – Refers to Buddhist learning center.
Sangharaj – Refers to head of the Sangha.
Dharmadhikari – Means protector of dharma.

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Tribal North Eastern Last Names

Ao – Naga tribe surname.
Zeliang – Naga surname meaning warrior.
Konyak – Refers to Naga warrior tribe.
Angami – Naga surname meaning “hill people.”
Mizo – Refers to Mizo tribe.
Lalnunmawia – Mizo surname meaning “gifted by God.”
Haokip – Kuki tribe surname.
Paite – Refers to Paite tribe of Manipur.
Sema – Naga tribe surname.
Jamatia – Tripuri surname meaning “warrior clan.”

Sanskritic & Scholarly Last Names

Agnihotri – Means “keeper of sacred fire.”
Vashishtha – Derived from sage Vashishtha.
Garg – Descendants of sage Garg.
Kaushik – Derived from sage Vishwamitra.
Parashar – From sage Parashara.
Kashyap – From sage Kashyapa.
Dixit – Means “one who performed sacred rituals.”
Upadhyay – Means “teacher” or “guru.”
Achyuta – Means “indestructible,” linked to Vishnu.
Bhargava – Descendant of sage Bhrigu.

Profession Based Last Names

Sonar – Refers to goldsmith.
Lohar – Means blacksmith.
Kumbhar – Means potter.
Nayak – Means leader or head.
Bhandari – Means treasurer.
Darzi – Means tailor.
Kahar – Means palanquin bearer.
Mochi – Refers to cobbler.
Rajput – Means “son of a king.”
Patwari – Refers to village record keeper.

Modern & Adapted Last Names

Kapoor – Business and Bollywood lineage.
Khurrana – Punjabi surname adapted in Bollywood.
Bachchan – Literary surname adopted by poet Harivansh Rai.
Roshan – Means “bright,” a Bollywood family name.
Kumar – Means “prince” or “son.”
Sinha – Means “lion” or “brave.”
Roy – Means “king.”
Das – Means “servant of God.”
Nair – Refers to warrior caste of Kerala.
Sen – Bengali surname meaning “army chief.”

Tribal Gond & Bhil Last Names

Uikey – Gond tribal surname.
Netam – Gond surname meaning “leader.”
Pusam – Gond surname meaning “protector.”
Dhurve – Means “sage Durva lineage.”
Kawle – Gond surname meaning “tiger.”
Tekam – Means “warrior.”
Saktel – Bhil tribal surname.
Bhilala – Refers to Bhil warrior clan.
Rawte – Tribal surname.
Baria – Means “guardian.”

Muslim (Extended)

Kazmi – Descendant of Imam Musa Kazim.
Naqvi – Descendant of Imam Ali Naqi.
Rizvi – Descendant of Imam Ali Raza.
Baig – Noble or prince.
Chishti – Sufi lineage surname.
Sabri – Descendant of Sufi Sabir.
Nizami – Refers to the Nizamuddin lineage.
Gilani – From Gilan in Iran.
Madni – Refers to city of Medina.
Shah – Nobleman or king.

Anglo Indian Last Names

Brown – Anglo surname from British India.
Smith – Anglo surname meaning blacksmith.
Taylor – Refers to tailor.
Johnson – Means “son of John.”
Williams – Means “son of William.”
George – Derived from “farmer.”
White – Refers to complexion/family.
Black – Refers to dark complexion.
Walker – Means cloth walker or cleaner.
Parker – Refers to park keeper.

Marwari & Rajasthani Last Names

Bhandari – Treasurer or manager.
Khandelwal – From Khandela region.
Agarwal – Refers to trader community of Agra.
Maheshwari – Refers to followers of Lord Mahesh (Shiva).
Jain – Refers to the Jain religion.
Oswal – Jain trader community.
Pareek – Rajasthani Brahmin surname.
Bajaj – Means “cloth merchant.”
Choudhary – Landowner title.
Lodha – Business clan surname.

Modern Popular Last Names

Ambani – Means “from the Amban region,” a famous business family.
Adani – Gujarati surname, means “wealthy.”
Mittal – Means “friend” or “companion.”
Birla – Famous industrialist surname.
Goenka – Marwari business family surname.
Damani – Gujarati surname, means “wealthy trader.”
Singhania – Refers to business community.
Munjal – Punjabi surname, Hero family lineage.
Nadar – Tamil business clan surname.
Rastogi – Refers to traders of Rasht.

Odia Last Names

Behera – Means “chief” or “leader.”
Nayak – Leader or warrior.
Samal – Refers to warrior lineage.
Swain – Refers to “companion” or “attendant.”
Sahu – Refers to a moneylender or businessman.
Mohanty – Refers to the priestly caste.
Patnaik – Refers to the village head.
Panigrahi – Refers to one who holds a ritual vessel.
Lenka – Refers to the warrior community.
Pujari – Refers to a temple priest.

Assamese Last Names

Barua – Officer title in the Assam kingdom.
Saikia – Refers to commander of 100 soldiers.
Hazarika – Refers to commander of 1000 soldiers.
Bora – Military title meaning commander.
Kalita – Assamese caste name.
Phukan – Refers to an administrator.
Medhi – Means “chief” or “leader.”
Bhuyan – Refers to landlord or ruler.
Talukdar – Refers to a landholder.
Dasgupta – Refers to the Gupta family in Assam.

Rare & Unique Indian Last Names

Rikhye – Rare Punjabi surname.
Talwar – Means “sword” or “warrior.”
Dogra – Refers to the Dogra clan of Jammu.
Ahluwalia – Means “from Ahlu village.”
Bajracharya – Newar surname meaning “priest of thunderbolt.”
Shantaram – Means “peaceful Rama.”
Manjrekar – Means “from Manjra village.”
Sawant – Title for warrior leader.
Pathak – Means “reader” or “teacher.”
Zaveri – Means “jeweler.”

Spiritual Last Names

Anand – Means “bliss” or “joy.”
Chaitanya – Refers to consciousness.
Haridas – Servant of Lord Hari.
Ramdas – Servant of Lord Rama.
Muralidhar – Refers to Lord Krishna holding a flute.
Vishwakarma – Refers to the divine architect.
Ramakrishna – Refers to Rama and Krishna together.
Nityananda – Means “eternal bliss.”
Shivananda – Means “bliss of Shiva.”
Yogananda – Refers to “bliss through yoga.

Tribal South Indian Last Names

Irula – Refers to the Irula tribe.
Kurumba – South Indian tribal surname.
Toda – Refers to Toda tribe of Nilgiris.
Soliga – Tribal group in Karnataka.
Badaga – Tribal surname meaning “northerner.”
Kani – Tribal surname in Kerala.
Malayar – Tribal community of Tamil Nadu.
Paniya – Refers to an agricultural tribe in Kerala.
Chenchu – Telugu forest-dwelling tribe.
Kota – Refers to the Kota tribe of Nilgiris.

Philosophical & Literary Last Names

Tagore – Derived from “Thakur,” a famous Bengali literary family.
Sahni – Means “companion” or “noble.”
Anant – Means “infinite.”
Bhushan – Means “ornament” or “jewel.”
Prasad – Means “divine gift.”
Chand – Refers to the moon.
Nandan – Means “son” or “delightful.”
Satyam – Refers to truth.
Harishchandra – Refers to the truthful king Harishchandra.
Manohar – Means “beautiful” or “pleasing.”

Tribal & Regional Variants

Bhumij – Means “son of the soil.”
Kolhe – Refers to the Koli tribe in Maharashtra.
Dhangar – Refers to the shepherd community.
Korku – Tribal surname in Madhya Pradesh.
Bhogta – Tribal surname meaning “worshipper.”
Banra – Refers to Munda tribe surname.
Nagpure – Means “from Nagpur.”
Bisen – Rajput clan surname.
Pal – Refers to “protector.”
Singha – Variant of Singh, meaning lion.

Modern Adapted Global Last Names

Malik – Means “king” or “chieftain.”
Chopra – Punjabi surname, means “descendant of warriors.”
Johar – Punjabi surname, means “bravery.”
Khurana – Punjabi Khatri surname.
Oberoi – Refers to warriors or chiefs.
Bedi – Descendant of Veda readers.
Puri – Refers to city dweller.
Mehrotra – Means “protector of the region.”
Sethi – Means “leader” or “lord.”
Bahl – Punjabi surname, means “descendant of noble.”

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