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Painted gateway of India: a decorated temple elephant, brass bells under a carved arch, a golden gopuram and the Hawa Mahal
Surnames of India

What's in your surname?

Across India a surname hides a story of a trade, a village, an animal, a clan, a colour. Decode names from six communities and trace where yours comes from.

🎮 Guess the meaning 🌏 Guess the region 🧵 Common threads
Exploring🪔 Marathi surnames

🎮 Guess the meaning

Match each surname to its true meaning 10 quick rounds from the community you're exploring.

Round 1 / 10Score: 0
What does this surname mean?

🌏 Guess the region

See a surname and its meaning, then guess which community it comes from across all six.

Round 1 / 10Score: 0
Which community is this surname from?

🧵 Common threads

Surnames from different regions that share the same meaning pick a theme to see who's connected.

🗺️ Surnames across India

Tap a pin on the map, or pick a community from the list below.

➕ Suggest a surname

Missing a surname, or a whole community you'd like to see? Tell us and we'll research it and add it to the archive.

Open the suggestion form ↗

Opens a short Google Form in a new tab. No sign-in needed.