Alavi (surname)
The surname Alavi (often spelled as Alvi and can be also seen spelled as Alaoui or Alawi) (Arabic: علوي) signifies ancestry from Hazrat Ali ibn Abi Talib (Arabic: علي بن أﺑﻲ طالب), the fourth Caliph of Sunni Islam and the first Imam in Shia Islam. Ali was the cousin and son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad and titled Amir al-Mu'minin (Arabic: أمیر المؤمنین) (Commander of the Faithful) by his followers.
Distribution
The Alavi family can be found in the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia,North America, and South Asia. Alavis are scattered in Pakistani cities of Khushab, Chakwal, Mianwali, Rawalpindi, and Attock and also in Bahawalnagar and Gilgit-Baltistan in addition to Northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh with main concentrations in Kakori near Lucknow and around 10 families of alavi's are present in HASWA in FATEHPUR district
The Alavi of Kakori
The Alavi of Kakori are sometimes referred to as Moulvizadigan (Moulvis) or Makhdoomzadigan (Makhdooms), indicating whether they are descendants of Mullah Abu Bakr Jami Alavi, who settled in Kakori in 1461 or descendants of Qari Amir Saifuddin Alavi, who settled in Kakori in 1512. The spelling of (Arabic: علوي) varied greatly. Although, the Alavi spelling is most prevalent in Iran and Indian sub-Continent, but Alvi, Alawi, and Alwi spellings are frequently found in India and some Middle Eastern Countries.They form part of the Kakori Shaikh community.
Nowadays, there is a debate, whether, Alvis are in Schedule Class or in General class of Indian Constitution. Because, the original Alvis are the descendents of Hazrat Ali(R.A), should be in General category, but, in India Alvis are registered as beggers by Muslim Jogis in Backwards or Schedule Class section.
Notable people with the surname Alvi
- Abass Alavi, is Professor of Radiology and Neurology
- Abrar Alvi, was an Indian film writer, director and actor
- Ameer Faisal Alvi Awan, was the first General Officer Commanding of the elite Special Service Group of Pakistan Army
- Arif Alvi, is a Pakistani politician
- Bozorg Alavi, was an influential Iranian writer, novelist, and political intellectual
- Hakim ‘Alavi, was a royal Persian physician of the 18th century
- Hasan Jamil Alvi, is a former Pakistani cricketer
- Moniza Alvi, is a Pakistani-British poet and writer
- Rashid Alvi, a politician from Indian National Congress party is presently a Member of the Parliament of India
- Sajida Alvi, is a female academic of Pakistani origin in Canada
- Sattar Alvi, is a Pakistan Air Force's vetern fighter pilot and retired Air Commodore of Pakistan Air Force
- Shamsur Rehman Alvi, is a journalist with Hindustan Times
- Suroosh Alvi, is a Pakistani Canadian journalist and film-maker
- Mohammad Alavi, is an Iranian nuclear engineer
- Mohammad Alavi Gorgani, is a leading scholar in Najaf, Iraq
- Mohammad Alvi, is an Iranian footballer
- Yousef Alavi, is a mathematician who specializes in combinatorics and graph theory
- Alavi Bohra
- Qazi Mohammad Obaidullah Alvi is senior journalist based in Islamabad, working with Daily Jang Rawalpindi.
References
Mohammad Azhar Alvi
External links
- http://www.palikanon.com/english/pali_names/aa/aalavii.htm Alavi in Buddhist Dictionary of Pali Proper Names.
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