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Cherian

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Cherian is a Syrian Christian surname of West Asian (Hebrew-Aramaic) origin, presumed to be a derivative of Zecharya (Zacharias or Zechariah) and a variant of Zacharias popular among Kerala Christians. The final -n is the Malayalam third-person masculine singular suffix.

Contents

In India it is mostly found only as a given name although this trend is changing in the present generations, but in the United States and United Kingdom, Europe and Australia, it is also used as a family name among expatriate families from Kerala.

Origins

The generally accepted explanation is that this name is of Semitic (Hebrew-Aramaic) origin, presumed to be a derivative of Zecharya (Zacharias or Zechariah) and a variant of Zacharias. This is supported by the fact that Kerala was one of the chief centers for spice trading between the West and East and there was a historic Nasrani community with religious, linguistic, cultural and genetic connections to the Semitic and Middle East. The final -n is the Malayalam third-person masculine singular suffix.

There is an alternative hypothesis suggesting an Armeninan origin for the name. This relies on the empirical observation that names ending with ian is highly probable to be an Armenian name. The original candidate Armenian name is Khatcherian which means “follower or son of the Cross”. This theory also takes support from the fact that there have been significant presence of Armenians in India, especially Chennai and Kolkata, who migrated to India to escape persecution from Turkey.

Academicians

  • Cherian George, South East Asia Journalism Researcher and University Professor based in Singapore and Hong Kong.

    • Actors, writers and producers

  • Jayan K. Cherian, an Indian poet filmmaker living in USA

    • Doctors

  • K. M. Cherian (), world-renowned Cardiac surgeon
  • P. V. Cherian (1893 - 1969), an Indian physician, surgeon, politician and Governor (of Maharashtra)
  • Abraham Cherian , First Paediatric Urologist of Indian origin at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London

    • Engineers and scientists

  • Lal Cherian Jose - Director of Reliability Engineering Department in Maaden Phosphates at Saudi Arabian Mining Company.

    • Politicians

  • Accamma Cherian (1909-1982), Indian freedom-fighter
  • Tara Cherian (1913 - 2000), an Indian social activist and politician, the first woman mayor of Madras city
  • Cherian Philip (born 1953), a politician in Kerala, consultant for Kairali TV and former chairman of KTDC

    • Priests and Theologians

    Rev. Fr. Cherian Joseph

    He is a priest of the Malanakara Orthodox Church of India, serving the Diocese of Delhi. He was ordained as a priest by H.G. Dr. Yuhanon Mar Demetrios, the Diocesan Metropolitan on October 5, 2013. He completed his Theology from St. Thomas Orthodox Theological Seminary, Nagpur. He is a member of Mar Gregorios Orthodox Church, Noida.

    Rev M. J Cherian

    He is one among the senior priest of the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church of Malabar, an Indian Christian church tracing back to Thomas the Apostle. He was in active service from 1980 to 2016, and was involved in various missionary works before that. Completed his Theology from Mar Thoma Theological Seminary, Kottayam. He hails from Punalur, a town situated in the Kollam district of the southern Indian state of Kerala. Now residing in Kottarakara, Kerala and a member of Pattamala Mar Thoma Church, Kottarakara.

    Others

    Cherian Varkey Mathew - Venture Capitalist, Founder and Partner at Firebolt Ventures

    Fictional characters

  • Neha Cherian, a character in the novel Five Point Someone, written by Chetan Bhagat

    • References

    Cherian Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA