Das (

translation Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

: "devotes of God" is a common last name in

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...

, among adherents of

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

and

Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...

, as well as those who converted to Islam or

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

. It is a derived from the Sanskrit word

Dasa ''Dasa'' ( sa, दास, Dāsa) is a Sanskrit word found in ancient Indian texts such as the ''Rigveda'' and ''Arthasastra''. It usually means "enemy" or "servant" but ''dasa'', or ''das'', also means a " servant of God", "devotee," " votary" or ...

(Sanskrit: दास) meaning servant, "devotee", or "votary". "Das" may be inferred to be one who has surrendered to God. Nowdays it is used in upnaam (Surname) of Vaishnav. In

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

and

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . I ...

, the surname "Das" is used by the Kayasthas, Mahishya,

Dhobi Dhobi known in some places as Dhoba or Rajaka, Madivala is a group of community in India and the greater Indian subcontinent whose traditional occupations are washing and ironing, Cultivator, agricultural workers. They are a large community, ...

and Patni communities. In

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...

the Kaibarta, the Patni, the Koch-Rajbanshi and other schedule caste communities also use Das as their surname. In

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

, the 'Das' surname is used by the

Gopal Gopal may refer to: * Gopal (caste), a social community of Odisha in India * Gopal (Krishna), the infant/child form of Lord Krishna * Gopal Bansa, ancient Kingdom in Nepal * The Gopalas, an early Gaudiya Vaishnava institution * Gandhian Organisatio ...

and

Karan Karan may refer to: People * Karan (given name), an Indian given name * Karan (caste), an Indian caste * Karan Kayastha, a community of Kayastha in Bihar, India * Karan (surname) Places * Karan, Iran (disambiguation), a name for various vi ...

castes, also 'Dash' is used by the

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 ...

. Similarly, 'Das' is also a common surname among

Bengali Kayastha A Bengali Kayastha is a Bengali Hindu who is a member of the Kayastha community. The historical caste occupation of Kayasthas throughout India has been that of scribes, administrators, ministers and record-keepers; the Kayasthas in Bengal, along ...

apart from other Bengali communities. In the

Punjab region Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, they generally belong to the

Brahmin 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 (gur ...

caste.

Notable people

* Abhishek Das, Indian football player * Ajit Das, Indian actor * Amil Kumar Das, Indian astronomer * Arjun Das, Indian actor * Atulananda Das, Indian botanist * Bhagavan Das, Indian Theosophist * Bhagavan Das, an American yogi * Bhai Dyal Das, Sikh martyr * Bhai Mati Das, Sikh martyr * Bhai Sati Das, Sikh martyr * Bibhusita Das, Indian marine engineer *

Bina Das Bina Das (24 August 1911—1986) was an Indian revolutionary and nationalist from West Bengal. Biography Early life and education Das was the daughter of a Brahmo teacher, Beni Madhab Das and a social worker, Sarala Devi. Her elder sister ...

, Indian revolutionary and nationalist * Bishnu Charan Das, Indian politician * Brojen Das, Bangladeshi swimmer *

Chittaranjan Das Chittaranjan Das (5 November 1870 – 16 June 1925), popularly called ''Deshbandhu'' (Friend of the Nation), was an Indian freedom fighter, political activist and lawyer during the Indian independence movement and founder-leader of the Swara ...

, a Bengali lawyer and a major figure in the Indian independence movement * Dinesh Das, a Bengali poet * Durga Mohan Das, religious leader and social reformer *

Gardhab Das Gardhab Das created by cartoonist brothers Neelabh Banerjee and Jayanto Banerjee was a comic section run in the Indian youth magazine Target (magazine), Target. The main character Gardhab Das had a donkey face and was always depicted wearing a kur ...

, fictional character * Gobindachandra Das, a Bengali poet and writer *

Gopabandhu Das Gopabandhu Das (1877–1928), popularly known as ''Utkalamani'' (''Jewel of Utkal'' or Odisha), was a social worker, reformer, political activist, journalist, poet and essayist. Early life Gopabandhu Das was born on 9 October 1877 in Suando ...

, Indian Freedom Fighter, Reformer, Journalist and educationist from Odisha * Gurcharan Das, Punjabi Hindu columnist for ''The Times of India'' *

Guru Amar Das Guru Amar Das (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਅਮਰ ਦਾਸ, pronunciation: ; 5 May 1479 – 1 September 1574), sometimes spelled as Guru Amardas, was the third of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism and became Sikh Guru on 26 March 1552 at age 73. Befo ...

, the third of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism * Guru Ram Das, the fourth of the Sikh gurus * Hima Das, Assamese sprinter * Jagannath Prasad Das, researcher in psychometrics and author of the ( PASS theory of intelligence) * Jatin Das, Indian painter from Odisha *

Jatindra Nath Das Jatindra Nath Das ( bn, যতীন্দ্রনাথ দাস; 27 October 1904 – 13 September 1929), better known as Jatin Das, was an Indian independence activist and revolutionary who worked to make India independent from the Brit ...

, Freedom fighter *

Jibanananda Das Jibanananda Das () (17 February 1899 – 22 October 1954) was an Indian poet, writer, novelist and essayist in the Bengali language. Popularly called "Rupashi Banglar Kabi'' ('Poet of Beautiful Bengal'), Das is the most read poet after Rabindr ...

, a Bengali poet *

K. S. R. Das Konda Subbarama Das (5 January 1936 – 8 June 2012) or Doss was an Indian film director and film editor. He directed films in many South Indian language films, primarily Telugu and Kannada films. Career He was born on 5 January 1936. He work ...

, Indian film director *

Kamala Das Kamala Surayya (born Kamala; 31 March 1934 – 31 May 2009), popularly known by her one-time pen name Madhavikutty and married name Kamala Das, was an Indian poet in English as well as an author in Malayalam from Kerala, India. Her popularity ...

, Indian poet and author * Khagen Das, Indian politician *

Liton Das Litton Kumer Das ( Bengali: লিটন কুমার দাস; born 16 February 1994) is a Bangladeshi cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a test wicket-keeper. He made his international debut for Bangladesh in June 2015. He has scor ...

, Bangladeshi Cricketer * Madhusudan Das, Odia Lawyer and Indian nationalist of the 19th century. * Maharaja Bhagwant Das, King of Jaipur(1527-1589) * Manoj Das, English and Odia writer * Mohini Mohan Das, Indian politician, writer and activist from West Bengal. * Monica Das, Indian feminist economist *

Namit Das Namit Das (born 10 July 1984) is an Indian film, television, and theatre actor. He has acted in several television commercials. He belongs to a family of musicians and singers; his father is reputed ghazal singer Chandan Dass. His maternal grand ...

is an Indian film and theatre actor. * Nandita Das, Indian film actress/director from Odisha *

Nobin Chandra Das Nobin Chandra Das (1845–1925) was a Bengali confectioner, entrepreneur, businessman and Bengali cultural icon in the second half of 19th and early 20th century. Widely known as the creator of the iconic Bengali sweetmeat "Rosogolla", a popula ...

, Entrepreneur and Inventor of Bengali Rosogolla *

Parichay Das Parichay Das (born ''Ravindra Nath Srivastava''), is an Indian writer, essayist, poet and editor of contemporary Bhojpuri poetry. He is Professor and Head, Department of Hindi, Nava Nalanda Mahavihara Deemed University. He writes in Bhojpuri and ...

, path-breaker Bhojpuri- Hindi poet, essayist, critic * Prosenjit Das, Indian cricketer * Radha Charan Das, Former Vice-Chancellor of Berhampur University *

Raja Bhagwant Das Raja Bhagwant Das (1527 – 4 December 1589) was the 23rd Kacchwaha ruler of Amber. His sister, Mariam-uz-Zamani, was the chief consort of Emperor Akbar and mother of his successor, Emperor Jahangir. His son, Man Singh I, one of the Navaratna ...

, Rajasthani ruler of

Amber Amber is fossilized tree resin that has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects."Amber" (2004). In ...

* Ram Dass, American spiritual teacher, yoga guru, and author *

Ranjan Das Bikash Ranjan Das ( bn, বিকাশ রঞ্জন দাশ ) is a Bangladeshi cricketer, who played in one Test match for the country in year 2000. Das was born on July 14, 1982 in Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), ...

, Bangladeshi cricketer * Rima Das, Assamese Indian filmmaker *

Sarala Dasa Sarala Dasa (born as Siddheswara Parida) was a 15th-century poet and scholar of Odia literature. Best known for three Odia books — ''Mahabharata'', ''Vilanka Ramayana'' and ''Chandi Purana'' — he was the first scholar to write in Odia and his ...

, 14th-century poet of Odisha *

Sarat Chandra Das Sarat Chandra Dash ( bn, শরৎচন্দ্র দাশ) (18 July 1849 – 5 January 1917) was an Indian scholar of Tibetan language and culture most noted for his two journeys to Tibet in 1879 and in 1881–1882. Biography Born in Chi ...

, Indian scholar of Tibetan language *

Satish Ranjan Das Satish Ranjan Das (1870–1928) was the Advocate-General of Bengal and later the Law Member of the Executive Council of the Viceroy; he was sometime treasurer of the Boy Scouts of Bengal and the Lodge of Good Fellowship, and a prominent memb ...

, legal representative for the Indian government * Seth Govind Das, a member of Indian Parliament *

Shaktikanta Das Shaktikanta Das (born 26 February 1957) is serving as the current & 25th List of Governors of Reserve Bank of India, governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He was earlier a member of the Fifteenth Finance Commission, FifteenthFinance Commi ...

, Governor of R.B.I. * Shiv Sunder Das, Indian Cricketer from Odisha * Shomie Das, schoolmaster *

Shraddha Das Shraddha Das (born 4 March 1987) is an Indian actress and model who predominantly appears in Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi, Bengali, and Kannada language films. She made her acting debut in the 2008 Telugu film Siddu from Sikakulam, and since then h ...

, Indian film actress *

Sudhi Ranjan Das Sudhi Ranjan Das (1 October 1894 – 18 September 1977) was the 5th Chief Justice of India, serving from 1 February 1956 to 30 September 1959. Das also served as chairman of '' The Statesman''. Background and education S.R. Das was born in ...

, 5th Chief Justice of India *

Suhasini Das Suhasini Das, (1915 - 30 May 2009) was an anti-British activist, social worker and politician from Bangladesh. She was a member of the Indian National Congress and an important figure in East Bengal, before, during and after Partition. Biograp ...

, politician from Bangladesh *

Surya Das Surya Das (born Jeffrey Miller in 1950) is an American lama in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. He is a poet, chantmaster, spiritual activist, author of many popular works on Buddhism, meditation teacher and spokesperson for Buddhism in the West. ...

, American religious educator * Tapan Das, Indian actor *

Vasundhara Das Vasundhara Das (born 18 August 1977) is an Indian singer, musician and actress. Vasundhara's films include ''Hey Ram'' (Tamil/Hindi), ''Monsoon Wedding'' (English), ''Citizen (film), Citizen'' (Tamil), ''Ravana Prabhu'' (Malayalam), ''Lankesh ...

, Indian actress and singer *

Veena Das Veena Das, FBA (born 1945) is the Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Anthropology at the Johns Hopkins University. Her areas of theoretical specialisation include the anthropology of violence, social suffering, and the state. Das has received multi ...

, a professor of anthropology *

Vir Das Vir Das (born 31 May 1979) is an Indian comedian, actor and musician. After beginning a career in standup comedy, Das moved to Hindi cinema starring in films like '' Badmaash Company'' (2010), '' Delhi Belly'' (2011), and ''Go Goa Gone'' (2013 ...

, comedian and actor

References

{{surname Indian surnames Assamese-language surnames Bengali Hindu surnames Punjabi tribes

Notable people

See also

References