Pillai or Pillay is a surname found among the

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

and Tamil-speaking people of India and Sri Lanka.

Origin

According to epigraphic records, Pillai is an ancient title that was used as a suffix that goes back to the Tamil Sangam Era and was given to junior members of the royal family. Originally a title meaning "royal child", it came to be given to administrators of temples; often holding large estates on behalf of the latter.Mark de Lannoy,Kulasekhara Perumals of Travancore, Page 202 Early English records also address these hereditary ruling chiefs as the princes of Kerala ranking below the monarch. The most well known are the Pillais of the Eight Noble Houses, the Ettuveettil Pillamar of

Travancore The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...

Tamil inscriptions This is a list of archaeological artefacts and epigraphs which have Tamil inscriptions. Of the approximately 100,000 inscriptions found by the Archaeological Survey of India (2005 report) in India, about 60,000 were in Tamil Nadu ...

define the direct meaning of Pillai as "Child of King" (prince), denoting nobility. The title occur both as a single name or as a suffix to the name. This title has been in traditional use by the communities such as the

Nairs The Nair , also known as Nayar, are a group of Indian Hindu castes, described by anthropologist Kathleen Gough as "not a unitary group but a named category of castes". The Nair include several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom histo ...

and the Vellalars also some

Brahmins Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests ( purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

People

Notable people with this surname or its variants include: *

Ashan Pillai Ashan Pillai ( born 1 December 1969 in Colombo, Sri Lanka) is a British violist. He was educated as a music and academic scholar at Merchant Taylors School, London and then at the Royal Academy of Music, London, the University of Southern Cal ...

(born in Sri Lanka, 1969), British violist and academic * A. R. Pillai (1879–1938), Indian freedom fighter *

Anton Sebastianpillai Anton Sebastianpillai Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, FRCP (23 January 1945 – 4 April 2020), was a British historian, author (writing as Anton Sebastian) and consultant geriatrician, of Sri Lankan Tamil People, Tamil origin. Biogr ...

(1944/5–2020), author and consultant geriatrician *

Ananda Ranga Pillai M. R. Ry. Ananda Ranga Pillai ( ta, ஆனந்தரங்கம் பிள்ளை; 30 March 1709 – 16 January 1761) (often pronounced as ''Ānañtarañkam Pillai'') was a '' dubash'' in the service of the French East India Company. He ...

(1709–1761),

dubash Interpreting is a translational activity in which one produces a first and final target-language output on the basis of a one-time exposure to an expression in a source language. The most common two modes of interpreting are simultaneous interp ...

in the service of

French East India Company The French East India Company (french: Compagnie française pour le commerce des Indes orientales) was a colonial commercial enterprise, founded on 1 September 1664 to compete with the English (later British) and Dutch trading companies in th ...

* Ariranga Pillay (born 1945), former Chief Justice and briefly Acting President of Mauritius * Arumuka Navalar, born as Kandarpillai Arumugapillai, a Sri Lankan Hindu reformer * Bastiampillai Anthonipillai Thomas (1886–1964), Sri Lankan Tamil priest and founder of Rosarians Order * Bastiampillai Deogupillai (1917–2003), Sri Lankan Tamil Roman Catholic bishop *

B. Ravi Pillai B. Ravi Pillai (born 2 September 1953) is a Dubai-based Indian billionaire businessman. He is the founder and chairman of the RP Group. As of September 2021, his net worth is estimated at US$2.5 billion. Early life Ravi Pillai was born on 2 ...

(born 1953), Indian entrepreneur * C. W. Thamotharampillai (1832–1901), publisher of ancient Tamil texts * Candice Pillay (born 1981), singer and songwriter * Changampuzha Krishna Pillai, Malayalam poet * Chempakaraman Pillai (1891–1934), freedom fighter from Travancore of Tamil descent * Chinna Migapillai, 17th century

feudal lord An overlord in the English feudal system was a lord of a manor who had subinfeudated a particular manor, estate or fee, to a tenant. The tenant thenceforth owed to the overlord one of a variety of services, usually military service or se ...

and rebel leader from the Jaffna Kingdom * Devasahayam Pillai (1712–1752), Indian court official, controversial convert to Christianity *

Dhanraj Pillay Dhanraj Pillay (born 16 July 1968) is a retired Indian field hockey player and former captain of the Indian national team. He also looks after the Air India Sports Promotion Board as a Joint Secretary based in Mumbai. For the last 5 years, Dha ...

(born 1968), Indian hockey player * G. P. Pillai (1864–1903), barrister, established the first English newspaper in South India * G. Parameswaran Pillai (1890–1963), Dewan of Travancore *

Gerald Pillay Gerald John Pillay (born 21 December 1953) is a South African theologian and ecclesiastical historian. He was Vice Chancellor and Rector of Liverpool Hope University in England from 2003 until the end of 2022. Early life and education Pillay wa ...

(born 1953), South African theologian and

ecclesiastical historian __NOTOC__ Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritua ...

, Vice Chancellor and Rector of

Liverpool Hope University , mottoeng=Hope to all who need it , established=1844 – Saint Katharine's College (as Warrington Training College)1856 – Notre Dame College (as Our Lady's Training College)1964 – Christ's College1979 – Liverpool Institute of Higher Edu ...

. * Gooty Kesava Pillai (1860–1933), Indian journalist and freedom-fighter. Delegate from Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh at the first session of the Indian National Congress. *

Jerry Pillay Jerry Pillay is a Reformed pastor, member of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa, professor of theology at the University of Pretoria where he heads the Department of History and Ecclesiology and is Dean of the Faculty of Theology ...

(born 1965), South African Reformed pastor, theologian and General Secretary of the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most ju ...

. * K. C. Pillai (1900–1970), Bishop-at-large of the

Indian Orthodox Church The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church (MOSC) also known as the Indian Orthodox Church (IOC) or simply as the Malankara Church, is an autocephalous Oriental Orthodox church headquartered in Devalokam, near Kottayam, India. The church serves ...

, Antiochean Succession,

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

(Madras), India * K. Appavu Pillai (1911–1973), Indian politician * K. C. Sreedharan Pillai (1920–1985), Indian mathematician * K. Perumal Pillai, Indian politician * K. Thamboosamy Pillay (1850–1902), a prominent member of the Tamil community in British Malaya *

Kavimani Desigavinayagam Pillai Kavimani Desigavinayagam Pillai (27 July 1876 – 26 September 1954) was a Tamil language, Tamil poet born to Sivadhanu Pillai and Aadhilakshmi. He was born in the southern district of Tamil Nadu in Kanniyakumari district in a village called Th ...

(1876–1954), Indian freedom fighter, poet * L. D. Swamikannu Pillai (1865–1925), Indian astronomer, Speaker of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

Assembly *

M. M. Pareed Pillay Manadath Mohammed Pillay Pareed Pillay is an Indian judge, jurist and lawyer who served as the 15th Kerala High Court, Chief Justice of Kerala. He was also appointed the first Chairman of the Kerala State Human Rights Commission in 1998 by the G ...

, former Chief Justice of Kerala *

M. P. Narayana Pillai Malikathazhathu Pulluvazhy Narayana Pillai ( ml, എം.പി. നാരായണപിള്ള) (22 November 1939 – 19 May 1998), affectionately known as Nanappan among his friends, was a journalist and writer of Malayalam literature. Know ...

(1939–1998), Malayalam writer * M. K. Mackar Pillay (1880–1966), Indian industrialist and politician *

Manonmaniam Sundaram Pillai Manonmaniyam P. Sundaranar (4 April 1855 – 26 April 1897) was an Indian scholar, noted for the famous Tamil drama '' Manonmaniyam''. as well as the state song of Tamil Nadu Tamil Thai Valthu. Career Sundaram showed his respect for Harvey, ...

(1855–1897), eminent writer in Tamil literature; his poem " Niraarum Kadal Udutha" is the official Tamil Anthem * Maraimalai Adigal (Nagai Vedachalam Pillai, 1876–1950), eminent Tamil orator and writer, started Pure Tamil movement Tanittamil Iyakkam *

Marimutthu Pillai Marimutha Pillai (1712 – 1787 CE) was a composer of Carnatic music and, along with Arunachala Kavi and Muthu Thandavar, was one of the pioneering Tamil Trinity The Tamil Trinity (also known as the Tamil Moovar) commonly refers to the th ...

(1712–1787), musician * Maruthanayagam Pillai (1725–1764), Indian soldier and administrator also known as Muhammed Yusuf Khan *

Murali Pillai K. Muralidharan Pillai ( ta, முரளி பிள்ளை; born 30 October 1967), better known as Murali Pillai, is a Singaporean politician and lawyer. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parlia ...

, Singaporean politician of Indian descent * Nadakkal Parameswaran Pillai (born 1931), leader of Indian Coffee House movement * Naraina Pillai, social entrepreneur and businessman *

Navanethem Pillay Navanethem "Navi" Pillay (born 23 September 1941) is a South African jurist who served as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2008 to 2014. A South African of Indian Tamil origin, she was the first non-white woman judge o ...

(born 1941), South African judge,

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, commonly known as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) or the United Nations Human Rights Office, is a department of the Secretariat of the United Nati ...

Nisha Pillai Nisha Pillai is an Indian journalist based in London. She is a main news anchor for BBC World News. Early life Pillai was born in Kolkata, India, and grew up in Mumbai. When she was 14, her family moved to London, England. She attended a girls ...

, Indian-born journalist and BBC news anchor * P. Govinda Pillai (1926–2012), Communist Party of India leader *

P. K. Narayana Pillai P. K. Narayana Pillai (21 March 1879 – 10 February 1936), better identified as Sahitya Panchanan P. K. Narayana Pillai, was an Indian literary critic, essayist, scholar, grammarian and poet of Malayalam language. One of the pioneers of literar ...

, scholar of Sanskrit and Malayalam literature *

Palani Subramaniam Pillai Pazhani Subramania Pillai (1909–1962) was a well known Carnatic music percussionist. He, along with his contemporaries Palghat Mani Iyer and Ramanathapuram C. S. Murugabhoopathy, are revered as the "Holy Trinity of Mridanga". He was adept i ...

(1908–1962), Carnatic music percussionist * Paravoor T. K. Narayana Pillai (1890–1971), Indian freedom fighter * Pattom A. Thanu Pillai (1885–1970), Second Chief Minister of unified Kerala, Communist leader * Periyapillai, 16th century king of the Jaffna Kingdom * Pradani Muthirulappa Pillai, 18th-century minister of

Ramnad Ramanathapuram (), also known as Ramnad, is a town and a municipality in Ramanathapuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Ramanathapuram district and the second largest town (by population) in ...

during the reign of Muthuramalinga Sethupathy * Prem Nath Pillai (born 1982),

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

-based filmmaker and editor * R. Balakrishna Pillai (1935–2021), State minister in

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

* Rajmohan Pillai (born 1964), Indian businessman * Rhea Pillai, Indian model * Simone Ashwini Pillai, British Actress of Tamil native * *

Sreekanteswaram Padmanabha Pillai Sreekanteswaram G. Padmanabha Pillai (1865–1946), popularly known as ''Sreekanteswaram'', was a lexicographer and scholar best known for his Malayalam dictionary ''Sabdatharavali''. Life Padmanabha Pillai was born on 1865Kathakali, the Art o ...

(1864–1946), lexicographer *

Subbayya Sivasankaranarayana Pillai Subbayya Sivasankaranarayana Pillai (5 April 1901 – 31 August 1950) was an Indian mathematician specialising in number theory. His contribution to Waring's problem was described in 1950 by K. S. Chandrasekharan as "almost certainly his best ...

(1901–1950), Indian mathematician *

Swadeshabhimani Ramakrishna Pillai K. Ramakrishna Pillai (1878–1916) was an Indian nationalist writer, journalist, editor, and political activist. He edited '' Swadeshabhimani'' (The Patriot), the newspaper which became a potent weapon against the rule of the British and th ...

(1878–1916), journalist and political activist. Translated Karl Marx's biography into Malayalam * T. S. Ramasamy Pillai (1918–2006), Freedom-fighter, politician and former Member of the Legislative Assembly (India) *

Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai (17 April 1912 – 10 April 1999), popularly known as Thakazhi after his place of birth, was an Indian novelist and short story writer of Malayalam literature. He wrote over 30 novels and novellas and over 7 shor ...

(1912–1999), Malayalam author * Trevin Callistus Bastiampillai (born 1985),

Sri Lankan Canadian Sri Lankan Canadians refers to people from Sri Lanka who have arrived and settled in Canada. Among these immigration, immigrants include members from the Sinhalese people, Sinhalese, Tamil people, Tamil, Sri Lankan Moors, Moor, Sri Lankan Malays, ...

cricketer * Vella Pillay (1923-2004), South African economist and political activist * V. N. Rajasekharan Pillai (born 1949), current Vice Chancellor of Indira Gandhi National Open University (

IGNOU Indira Gandhi National Open University, known as IGNOU, is a Central University located at Maidan Garhi, New Delhi, India. Named after former Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi, the university was established in 1985 with a budget of 20& ...

) * V. O. Chidambaram Pillai (1872–1936), Indian freedom fighter, popularly known as V.O.C. and as Kappalottiya Tamilan * Venkatarama Ramalingam Pillai (Namakkal Kavignar Ramalingam Pillai, 1888–1972), poet and freedom fighter

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pillai (surname) Indian surnames