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Family name origins & meanings
- Indian (chiefly Panjab) : Hindu (Khatri) and Sikh name based on the name of a prominent mercantile community in the Panjab. It is from Sanskrit ḳsatriya ‘member of the warrior class’, derived from ḳsatra ‘dominion’, ‘power’. As their name suggests, the Panjabi Khatris claim to be of Kshatriya origin. They have been prominent in civil administration from the time of the Mughal emperors. Several well-known Sikh gurus, including Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion, have come from the Khatri community. The vast majority of the Khatris are, however, Hindus.