Singh

Singh (IPA: /ˈsɪŋ/ SING) is a title, middle name or surname that means "lion" in various South Asian and Southeast Asian communities. Traditionally used by the Hindu Kshatriya community,[1] it was later mandated in the late 17th century by Guru Gobind Singh (born Gobind Das) for all male Sikhs as well, in part as a rejection of caste-based prejudice[2] and to emulate Rajput naming conventions.[3][4][5][6] As a surname or a middle name, it is now found throughout the world across communities and religious groups, becoming more of a generic, caste neutral, decorative name.[7][8][9]

For a list of people with the surname, see List of people with surname Singh.

Rajput ruler Rana Sangram Singh (1482-1528).
Creation of the Khalsa by Sikh Guru Gobind Singh, 1699 CE.
Prime Minister of Nepal and Commander-in-Chief of the Nepalese Army, Mukhtiyar Mathabar Singh Thapa, (1843-1845) of the Chhetri Thapa dynasty.
Maharaja Lakshmeshwar Singh of Raj Darbhanga in Bihar, published in Graphic Magazine, December 1888.

Etymology and variations

The word "Singh" is derived from the Sanskrit word सिंह (IAST: siṃha) meaning "lion", and is used in the sense "hero" or "eminent person".[10]

Several variants of the word are found in other languages:

  • In Urdu, it is written as سِنگھ with the same pronunciation as Hindi. Variations include Simha and Sinha in Bihar.[11]

History
Coin of the Western Kshatrapa ruler Rudrasimha I (178 to 197 CE) who used "Simha" as suffix.

Originally, the Sanskrit word for lion, variously transliterated as Simha or Singh was used as a title by Kshatriya warriors in northern parts of India. The earliest recorded examples of the names ending with "Simha" are the names of the two sons of the Western Satraps ruler Rudraraman in the second century CE. Jayasimha, the first ruler of the Chalukya dynasty to bear the title Simha, ruled around 500 CE. The Vengi branch of the Chalukyas continued using Simha as the last name till the eleventh century. The Rajputs started using Singh in preference to the classical epithet of "Varman". Among the Rajputs, the use of the word Simha came into vogue among the Paramaras of Malwa in 10th century CE, among the Guhilots and the Kachwahas of Narwar in the 12th century CE, and the Rathores of Marwar after the 17th century.[12]

By the sixteenth century, "Singh" had become a popular surname among Rajputs.[13] It was adopted by the Sikhs in 1699, as per the instructions of Guru Gobind Singh. Singh is used by all baptized male Sikhs, regardless of their geographical or cultural binding; the women use Kaur.[14][15]

In the 18th century, several groups started using the title "Singh". These included the Brahmins, the Kayasthas and the Baniyas of what are now Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. In the 19th century, even the Bengal court peons of the lower castes adopted the title "Singh".[12] Bhumihars, who originally used Brahmin surnames, also started affixing Singh to their names.[16] In Bihar and Jharkhand, the surname came to be associated with power and authority, and was adopted by people of multiple castes, including Brahmin zamindars.[17] Citing Kshatriya status, Ahirs (Yadavs), Kumawat,[18]Kushwaha (Koeri) and Kurmis also use 'Singh' as part of their names.[19] Many Muslim Shins also used the surname "Sing".[20] Some Jains had also adopted "Singh" in addition to various Hindu castes.[21]

People belonging to several other castes and communities have also used Singh as a title, middle name or a surname; these include non-Sikh Punjabis, Gurjar (e.g. Nain Singh Nagar), Brahmins (e.g.Lakshmeshwar Singh), Marathas (e.g. Pratap Singh Rao Gaekwad) and Hindu Jats, (e.g. Bhim Singh Rana), Sikh Jats,(e.g. Maharaja Ranjit Singh), Kushwaha (Maurya), (e.g. Babu Singh Kushwaha), the Bhil people (an Adivasi ethnic group),[22] Koeris,[23] Dusadh,[23] Charans, Kumawat[18] and Rajpurohits. The surname 'Singh' is used by many caste groups in Bihar.[24] The name is also found among the Indian diaspora.

Usage

"Singh" is generally used as a surname or as a middle name/title (e.g. Mahendra Singh Dhoni). When used as a middle name, it is generally followed by the caste, clan or family name. Rajputs may have "Singh" as a middle name or last name (e.g. Manish Singh Parmar).[25] Numerous Yadavs also use this as their middle name (e.g. Mulayam Singh Yadav). To stop the practice of caste system in Sikhism, some Sikhs append "Khalsa" to Singh (e.g. Harinder Singh Khalsa). Some Sikhs and Rajputs add the names of their native villages instead (e.g. Harcharan Singh Longowal, after Longowal, Pratap Singh Khachariyawas after Khachariyawas).[26]

Originally, a common practice among the Rajput men was to have "Singh" as their last name, while Rajput women had the last name 'Kanwar'. However, now, many Rajput women have Singh in their name (e.g. Prashanti Singh) as well.[27]

Outside South Asia

A section of around a million adherents of Sikhism that live abroad in Western countries only keep Singh or Kaur as their last name. This has caused legal problems in immigration procedures, especially in Canada. For a decade, the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi stated in letters to its Sikh clients that "the names Kaur and Singh do not qualify for the purpose of immigration to Canada", requiring people with these surnames to adopt new ones. The ban was denounced by the Sikh community, after which the Citizenship and Immigration Canada announced it was dropping the policy, calling the whole issue a misunderstanding based on a "poorly worded" letter.[28]

See also

References
  1. Hanks, Patrick (2013). Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press. p. 354. ISBN 9780199771691.
  2. James Minahan (2012). Ethnic Groups of South Asia and the Pacific An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 289. ISBN 9781598846591. The use of the two names by baptized Sikhs was originally intended to end the prejudice created by names pertaining to the various Hindu castes
  3. Atwal, Priya (15 January 2021). Royals and Rebels: The Rise and Fall of the Sikh Empire. Oxford University. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-19-756693-0. Singh was a common name utilised by Rajputs, the Hindu ruling or warrior caste.
  4. Singh, Pashaura (2014-03-01). "An Overview of Sikh History". In Singh, Pashaura; Fenech, Louis E. (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies. OUP Oxford. p. 23. ISBN 978-0-19-969930-8. The male members were given the surname Singh (lion) and female members were given the surname Kaur (princess), with the intention of creating a parallel system of aristocratic titles in relation to the Rajput hill chiefs of the surronding areas of Anandpur.
  5. Jakobsh, Doris (2004). "What's in a Name: Circumscribing Sikh Female Nomenclature". In Singh, Pashaura; Barrier, Norman Gerald (eds.). Sikhism and History. Oxford University Press. p. 176. ISBN 978-0-19-566708-0. As the term 'Singh' meaning 'lion' was adopted from the Rajputs, so too was the name 'Kaur'
  6. Shackle, Christopher (2004-01-14). "Sikhism". In Hardy, Friedhelm; Houlden, Leslie (eds.). The World's Religions. Routledge. p. 722. ISBN 978-1-136-85185-8. The code of conduct (rahit) expected of all initiates of the Khalsa, as laid down by Guru Gobind Singh and subsequently eloborated, emphasises both the equality of its members and the martial spirit expected of them by awarding the Rajput titles of Singh ('lion') to men and Kaur ('princess') to women, irrespective of caste origin.
  7. Adhikari, Krishna P.; Sapkota, Bhimsen (2018-06-09). "Fiji Nepals: Reviving Connections Lost for Over a Century". In Gellner, David N.; Hausner., Sondra L. (eds.). Global Nepalis: Religion, Culture, and Community in a New and Old Diaspora. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-909337-3. In the process of forming a casteless society, many first generation Nepalis (and Indians) changed their surnames to Singh, which is a neutral and now common surname.
  8. Deshpande, Ashwini (2011-08-03). "Theories of Discrimination and Caste". The Grammar of Caste: Economic Discrimination in Contemporary India. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-908846-1. Some individuals often drop their surnames and use generic names such as Kumar, Lal, Singh, or Chowdhary that are not jati specific.
  9. Kumar Suresh Singh (1996). Communities, segments, synonyms, surnames and titles. Anthropological Survey of India. p. 32. ISBN 9780195633573. Going by the usage, Singh is more a title than a surname, cutting across communities and religious groups.
  10. Patrick Hanks, ed. (2003). Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, USA. p. 354. ISBN 978-0-19-508137-4.
  11. Vanita, Ruth (2005). Gandhi's tiger and Sita's smile: essays on gender, sexuality and culture. New Delhi: Yoda Press. p. 37. ISBN 978-81-902272-5-4. OCLC 70008421.
  12. Qanungo, Kalika Ranjan (1960). Studies in Rajput History. Delhi: S. Chand. pp. 138–140. OCLC 1326190.
  13. Prakash Chander (1 January 2003). India: Past & Present. APH Publishing. p. 120. ISBN 978-81-7648-455-8. Retrieved 11 January 2013. In those days, "Singh" as a surname was very popular among a famous warrior caste of north India, the Rajputs. Some of the first Sikhs were also Rajputs.
  14. A History of the Sikh People (1469-1988) by Dr. Gopal Singh ISBN 81-7023-139-6
  15. Catherine B. Asher; Cynthia Talbot (2006). India Before Europe. Cambridge University Press. p. 269. ISBN 9780521809047.
  16. Virendra Prakash Singh (1992). Community And Caste In Tradition. Commonwealth. p. 113. ISBN 9788171692422.
  17. Pranava K Chaudhary (2009-02-21). "Using surnames to conceal identity". The Times of India. Retrieved 2013-01-18.
  18. Baitade, G. b (1916). Amchi Jata.
  19. Bhavan's Journal, Volume 12, Issues 1-16. 1965. p. 123.
  20. Schmidt, Ruth Laila (2008). A Grammar of the Shina Language of Indus Kohistan. Harrassowitz. p. 11. ISBN 9783447056762.
  21. Frankel, Francine R. (1990). Dominance and State Power in Modern India. Vol. 2. Oxford University Press. p. 17. The surname, Singh, for example, was appropriated over a period of several centuries of acculturation by different Hindu castes, including lower castes as well as followers of Jainism.
  22. Gupta, Sanjukta Das (2012). Narratives from the Margins: Aspects of Adivasi History in India. Primus Books. p. 134. ISBN 978938060710-8.
  23. V.S. Upadhyay; G. Pandey, eds. (1993). History of Anthropological Thought. India: Concept Publishing Company. p. 436. ISBN 9788170224921. Similarly, Koyeris, a backward caste, claim themselves as Kushwaha Kshatriya and Dusadh, another scheduled caste, claim themselves as Gahlout Kshatriya. Some of their members use titles like ' Singh ' and ' Thakur.
  24. Singh, Santosh (2015). Ruled or Misruled: Story and Destiny of Bihar. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9789385436420. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  25. Khushwant Singh, A History of the Sikhs, Volume I
  26. B. V. Bhanu Contributors Kumar Suresh Singh, B. V. Mehta, Anthropological Survey of India (2004). People of India: Maharashtra, Part 3. Popular Prakashan. p. 1846. ISBN 9788179911020. {{cite book}}: |author= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  27. Kolff, Dirk H.A., The Rajput of Ancient and Medieval North India: A Warrior-Ascetic; Folk, Faith and Feudalism, edited by NK Singh and Rajendra Joshi, Institute of Rajasthan Studies, Jaipur, India. Rawat Publications, Jaipur and New Delhi. ISBN 81-7033-273-7
  28. San Grewal (2007-07-26). "'Singh' ban denounced". Toronto Star.
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