Sapkota
| Language(s) | Nepali |
|---|---|
| Origin | |
| Derivation | Sap (Snake) Kota (Poke) |
| Meaning | Snake Poker (The Fearless) |
Sapkota (Nepali: सापकोटा) is a surname of people belonging to the top Brahmin caste in Nepal. They are of Indo-European origin and are scattered all around the world. They usually have dark iris and hair, with cream colored skin complexion (due to the presence of allele A gene) that ranges from cool to warm depending upon the tan, but only if they are real Brahmin ie. the offspring of Sapkota Brahmin dad and a Brahmin mom with some other surname. [1]
Etymology
The literal meaning of Sapkota is "The one who pokes a snake" or simply "The fearless".
History and origin
Sapkotas are said to be one of the decendents of sage Kaudinya, so they can also be referred to as one of Kaudinya's clan (gotra). Sage Kaudinya was the master of Vedas and the only scholar who correctly predicted the birth and enlightenment of Gautama Buddha (the founder of Buddhism) long before Buddha was born. He was the greatest brahmin scholar in Kapilvastu, Lumbini, Nepal (the birthplace of Lord Buddha). [2]
When Siddhartha Gautama became Gautama Buddha at age 29 after renouncing his kingdom exactly how Kaudinya predicted, he became Buddha's first student to become enlightened and attended nirvana just like Buddha himself. Lord Buddha acknowledged Kaudinya's enlightenment by remarking "Annasi vata bho Kodanno" meaning "You have realized, Kaudinya".
Demographics
Among the Sapkotas who are in the U.S or Europe, most of them are involved in business, technology, or are in medical field. [3][4] Those residing in the capital Kathmandu or other region of Nepal are mostly in educational sector while it is also not uncommon to see Sapkotas in government or politics. [5][6]
Characteristics
Sapkota is a Brahmin caste, and all Brahmins share a similar look. The looks are even more similar if they are of the same Surname. Almost all Sapkotas have prominent nose and deep eyes. Experienced people will find out if someone is a Sapkota Brahmin just by looking at their face. For novices, it might be a little difficult.
Variations
As per ancient Brahmin rules, if someone's dad is a Sapkota Brahmin and mom is of some other caste like Kshatriya or Newar, the child loses his caste as a Brahmin and must put a middle name Bahadur or change his surname to Chhetri/Kahatriya as he/she loses his caste as a Brahmin in such case.
However, middle name "Prasad" or no middle name at all means that the person is a real Sapkota brahmin.
Notable people with the Sapkota surname
- Agni Sapkota (born 1960), Nepalese politician spokesperson of Unified CPN (Maoist)
- Bidur Prasad Sapkota, Nepalese politician belonging to the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist−Leninist)
- Dilip Sapkota, Nepalese politician, belonging to the Nepali Congress
- Bhakta Bahadur Sapkota, Nepalese runner
- Mahananda Sapkota, Nepalese poet
References
- ^ https://www.popsci.com/article/science/how-gene-fair-skin-spread-across-india#page-3
- ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20061004075400/http://www.sgi-usa.org/buddhism/dictionary/define?tid=803
- ^ https://sph.umd.edu/people/amy-r-sapkota
- ^ https://sph.umd.edu/people/amir-sapkota
- ^ https://health.usnews.com/doctors/bishnu-sapkota-757920
- ^ https://www.anglia.ac.uk/people/raju-sapkota
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