Region of origin India | Language(s) of origin Sanskrit | |
Meaning toponymic; literally "Head of the guild" |
Shenoy is a common surname from coastal Karnataka in India. It is found among Hindus of the Goud Saraswat Brahmin and Rajapur Saraswat Brahmin community.
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Etymology
The original word is Shrenipati or the leader of the guild, which got converted as Shennivayi in Apabhraṃśa, and later as Shenai or Shenvi in old Konkani.
Background and origins
The Shenoys were generally involved in administration of the city. The word "Shenoy" itself means a writer. GSBs were administrators of the temples. The word "Shenoy" is also interchangeable with its Sanskrit counterpart Shanbhag or Shanbhogue which means clerk.
The Saraswats migrated from Goa during the Muslim and Christian conquests during 1600, and carried their surname with them. Thus the word 'शणै' is transliterated in Latin script as Shenoy in Karnataka and as Xennai, Shenoi, Shenai or even Sinai in Goa. "Xennoi" was used in the erstwhile Portuguese territory of Goa but has given way to "Xennai" today.
It was common in Goa for Shenoys and other Saraswats to add the name of their ancestral village or title after Shenoy to denote their origin.
The surname continues to be used by the Konkani Roman Catholics of Goa and Canara, who were descendants of the Shenoys. They may use their Catholic surnames along with their Saraswat surname (e.g. Pereira-Shenoy)
Notable people
The following is a list of notable people with last name Shenoy.