Mehta
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
Primary populations found in:
| |
| Languages | |
| Punjabi, Hindi, Gujarati | |
| Religion | |
 Hinduism  Jainism  Sikhism |
Mehta (Punjabi: ਮੈਹਤਾ/ਮਹਿਤਾ, Hindi: मैहता, Gujarati: મહેતા), is a prominent surname found in Punjabi Khatris, Gujarati Vaish, Parsis, Oswal Jains and Mohyal Brahmins. Its origin is from the Sanskrit word mahita meaning 'praised' or 'great'.
Mehtas of Gujarat
In Gujarat, the term Mehta often means ‘teacher’ or ‘accountant’, probably because in colonial times many people with the Mehta surname were educated and took up those jobs.
Some Parsi families which migrated to Western India due to persecution by Muslim rulers in Persia, took Mehta as their surname with the most notable example being Zubin Mehta.
Mehtas are today among the most successful entrepreneurs and industrialists in Gujarat and Mumbai, of which the Mehta Group is an example.
Mehtas of Punjab
The Mehtas are from Multan Distt and surroundings in Pakistan and migrated to the eastern cities of the British Indian territory in August 1947. Being genetically from the same lineage, all their surnames are similar to Khatri, Sindhi and Arora people. However the Mehtas are mostly a land-owning clan among western Punjabis, rather than genetically similar Arora/Khatri clans who are often traders or servicemen. Most of the Mehtas in Punjab and Haryana have origins from Tehsils of Pakistani district Multan and surrounding areas like Bahavalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Muzaffargarg, Vehari, Faislabad and even Balochistan.
Mehta is a surname that is also commonly used by the Mohyal/Mohan [1] sect of the Mohyal Brahmin-Warrior community; or by Saraswat Brahmins in the Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Amritsar districts of Punjab.
In Punjab, approximately 25 miles north of the city of Amritsar, is the town of Mehta Chowk. This is the location of the headquarters of the Damdami Taksal (Punjabi: ਦਮਦਮੀ ਟਕਸਾਲ; [Damadamī ṭakasāl]), a Sikh educational organization in India. It was founded by Guru Gobind Singh in 1706 and until 1736 it was known as Damdama Sahib. Mehta Chowk in Amritsar is often considered to be the location of the highest seat of learning for the Sikhs and is over 300 years old. It is also where the headquarter of the All India Sikh Students Federation is based. [1]
In Haryana, the Mehtas clan is found widespread in districts like Kaithal, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Sirsa, Fatehabad, Hisar comprising big part of urban population. Other districts also have significant numbers of Mehtas. They mix very well with their Arora and Khatri counterparts. However currently the Mehtas are mostly a land-owning clan among western Punjabis, rather than genetically similar Arora/Khatri/Sindhi clans who are often traders or servicemen. Most of the Mehtas in Punjab and Haryana have origins from Tehsils of Pakistani districts Multan and surrounding areas like Bahavalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Muzaffargarg, Vehari, Urara and Faislabad. The family of Shri Guru Nanak Dev ji was also from Mehta clan and used to live near Faislabad. The Mehta clan was a prominent warrior community of north India until the reign of Aurangzeb who didnt let anybody from sindhi origin to work in military and the lineages of the group diverted to trade and agriculture thereafter. But the members of clan is now having very high officials serving in Indian military.
Mehtas of Rajasthan
Some members of the Oswal community also use 'Mehta' as their surname.[2]
Religion and Language
Mehtas mostly belong to either Hinduism or Sikhism or both but there are significant followers of Jainism and some Zoroastrianism. They speak either Rajasthani, Punjabi, Pahari, Haryanvi, Hindi or Gujarati.
Notable Mehtas
Notable individuals with this surname include:
- Kalu Mehta - Father of Shri Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion, His full name was Kalyan Chand Das Bedi, also known informally as Kalu Rai.
- Jay Mehta - Owner of the Mehta Group, husband of actress Juhi Chawla and co-owner of the IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders with Shah Rukh Khan
- Mahendra Mehta - Chief executive of Vedanta Resources. Also known as Mahendar Singh
- Anil Mehta - Film director, cinematographer
- Aditya Mehta - Professional snooker player
- Vipul Mehta- Winner of Indian Idol 6, from Amritsar
- Harshad Mehta - Indian stockbroker, who was later convicted
- Chetan Mehta - A Chartered Accountant in Kolkata
- Bejun Mehta - American countertenor
- Nawaz Sharif - Pakistani Prime Minister, his family name is Sehgal
- Deepa Mehta - Punjabi Canadian film director and screenwriter
- Sargun Mehta - Indian model, comedian, dancer, presenter and actress born in Chandigarh, Punjab India
- Dewang Mehta - NASSCOM Head
- Gulshan Kumar Mehta - Indian lyricist and actor
- Veer Singh Mehta - Indian neurosurgeon
- Veronica Mehta - British Punjabi singer most notably alongside with Rishi Rich
- Zubin Mehta - Indian conductor of Western classical music
- Tyeb Mehta - Indian painter
- Hemant Mehta - American-born Indian author
- Jagat Singh Mehta - Former Foreign Secretary of India
- Madan Lal Mehta - Theoretical Physicist in the field of Random Matrix theory
- Nicky Mehta - singer-songwriter, member of Canadian folk trio The Wailin' Jennys.
- Michael D. Mehta - Ph.D., Canadian-born environmental sociologist and academic
- Pherozeshah Mehta - Indian political leader, activist, and lawyer
- Narsinh Mehta - Gujarati spiritual poet, beloved of Mahatma Gandhi
- Narsinh Mehta - Noted spiritual poet, beloved of Mahatma Gandhi
- Suketu Mehta (born 1963) - Indian-born American writer
- Vikram Bhagvandas Mehta - Indian mathematician
- Zarin Mehta - Executive director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, and Zubin Mehta's brother
- Ashok Mehta- Indian film cinematographer
- Jivraj Narayan Mehta-Gujarat First Chief Minister
- Hansa Jivraj Mehta- Freedom Fighter
- Balwant Rai Mehta- Gujarat Second Chief Minister
- Mehta Kelash Nath Kohli - Former High Court Judge of Balochistan, Pakistan.
References
- Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4
- Mehta Name History Surname Mehta in Ancestry.com