Tiwari
Tiwari (Sanskrit: तिवारी; Hindi: तिवारी) is a Hindu Brahmin surname found mostly in the northern and central parts of India and Nepal.
About the surname Tiwari
Its other forms are Tewari, Tewary, Tiwary, Tewaree, and Tewarey. It means "versed in three vedas". While Tiwari surname is common in the states Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, Tripathi or Tripathy is used in (in addition to these states) in West Bengal,Odisha, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh . The density of Tiwari (and Tripathi) is more among Saryupareen Brahmins, Kanyakubja Brahmins, Bhumihar Brahmins and Utkala Brahmins.
General description
Tiwari surname is mostly found in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Bihar, Odisha and Maharashtra as well as metropolitan cities like Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Surat, Bangalore and Hyderabad.Within India, it is the 3rd most common Hindu Brahmin surname nationally and most common Hindu Brahmin surname in the North Indian region.
Historical description by researchers of Tiwari/Tripathi/Trivedi
In Tiwari or Tripathi or Trivedi (Ti or Tri: All the three and wari or pathi or vedi means versed, thus Tiwari/Tripathi/Trivedi means versed in knowledge of past, present and future). Another description of Tiwari or Tripathi or Trivedi (Ti or Tri means three and wari or path or vedi means person who is having the virtues of God's three forms, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh, which represent life's three stages, birth, life and death. Thus Tiwari/Tripathi/Trivedi means knowledgeable priest, who is versed in the life's three stages). In Buddhist tradition persons who studied Tripitaka were known as Tripitakdhari. And Tiwari (Ti or Tri: three and wari: times) means doing 'Triwar Vandan' i.e. three times salute to the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha as per Buddhist tradition. It shows connection with the Buddhist traditions.
History
Tiwari's refers to those Brahmins in Vedic age who used to do all rituals in a Vedic ceremony instead of any specific one. It is one of the most widespread Brahmin surnames in the fertile Gangetic plain region and in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, West Bengal and Assam. It is also found in countries such as Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, due to migration owing to agricultural/plantation employment. The surname is also found in Nepal, Fiji and Mauritius, as well as in other Indian diaspora communities. Tiwaris of Kumaon region in Uttarakhand are mostly from earlier undivided Gujarat state of India. They are sons of Mahatma Shree Shreechand Tiwari (reference:"Kumaon Ka Itihas" by MR. B.D. Pandey, MP, honorably called Kumaon Kesari and was a freedom fighter & "Himalayan Gazetteer" by Edwin T Atkinson, Historian ). They are Samvedi Gautam gotri. The original Tiwaris migrated from Amlabad, Badnagar, Gujarat and settled in the court of Kings of Kumaon. they saved the life of Raja BajBahadur Chand, King of Almorah. Their descendants are known with various surnames in the regions of Kumaon where they settled. The names of village usually replaced the Tiwari surname to make for easy identification, which they got in jagirs from the Rajas of Kumaon. various examples are Balutia, Bameta, Lausali and Suyal etc. Shree Narayn Dutt Tiwari, S/O of Shree Poornanand Tiwari, Ex-CM of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Ex central Cabinet minister GOI and Ex-Governor of Andhra Pradesh is one of them.
They have historically been martial Brahmins as well, and due to there involvement in the uprising against the British in the First War of Indian Independence in 1857, when many of the ranks which followed Mangal Pandey, Chandrashekhar Azad(Chandrashekhar Sitaram Tiwari), Ram Prasad Bismil in his rebellion were composed of Brahmins from the agricultural regions of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. Due to this they were not declared a martial race by Britishers like Mohyals due to their ardent support for the Indian independence movement and rebellion against the British Raj.Tiwaris were therefore devoid of the support from the newly formed Indian Government by Indian National Congress. Historically, Tiwaris have always fulfilled their religious duties and had great knowledge of the Vedas, Puranas, Shastras and other holy texts. However presently the majority are engaged in more secular vocations. Historians believe that Tiwaris were traditional researchers, warriors and farmers sometimes with a strong connection with the original Indo-European which inhabited the Great Gangetic plains. Tiwari is the degree of the premier Brahmins and found in various Brahmin societies like Saryupareen Brahmins, Kanyakubja Brahmins, Maithil Brahmin, Bhumihar Brahmin, Bhrigu Vanshiya Brahmins and other Brahmins communities .
Major occupations
The majority of Tiwaris inhabit the fertile agricultural regions of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and Odisha, where they are engaged in mainly research, education (government and private services) as well as in medical, technologies, research and development, defence, politics, business, law, agriculture and allied activities.
Education and literacy
In past generations Tiwaris traditionally pursued occupations in teaching and religion. The current generation has many engineers, chartered accountants,physicians, scientists, Bankers, civil servants, writers, musicians, actors, athletes, businessmen and politicians. The Tiwari community's first basic principle and priority is higher education, and the literacy rate among Tiwaris is almost 99.9%.[citation needed]
Migration and Profession
Over the years, members of this community have migrated towards other parts of India like Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar, West Bengal, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Assam etc., and even overseas, to places including North America, especially the United States, as well as Europe, Japan, New Zealand, Surinam, Fiji, Guyana, Mauritius, and Trinidad.
People with surname Tiwari have been gaining momentum after the liberalization of the Indian Economy. Earlier it was thought that this community may not be able to cope with the new challenges which the new economic model will come up; contrary to the general belief Tiwaris have proved themselves competitive and have received tremendous success in business, information technology, film, sports, media, law, and medical sciences.
Notable people with the surname Tiwari/Tripathi
Spiritual leaders
- Swami Dayananda Saraswati
- Sahadeo Tiwari, A well known religious scholar.
- Maya Tiwari known as Mother Maya, and Sri Swami Mayatitananda (born Maya Tiwari, April 16, 1952 in Liverpool Village, Guyana) "is a spiritual leader, international speaker, and author.
Freedom Fighters
- Chandrashekhar Azad (Chandrashekhar Sitaram Tiwari)- Freedom Fighter
Government Agency
- Sanjeev Tripathi- former chief of RAW (30 Dec 2010 – 29 Dec 2012)
Politicians
- Kamalapati Tripathi- the writer, journalist, editor and freedom fighter was a senior Indian National Congress leader from Varanasi.
- Keshari Nath Tripathi-a former speaker of Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly and president of Uttar Pradesh state unit of Bharatiya
- Ramapati Ram Tripathi-a former president of Bharatiya Janata Party Uttar Pradesh state unit in India . He is a member of Uttar Pradesh legislative Council
- Hari Shankar Tiwari-Politician
- Ravindranath Tewari, an Indian politician and former Cabinet minister of Uttar Pradesh
- Brij Bhushan Tiwari, an Indian politician from the Samajwadi Party
- Ghanshyam Tiwari, an Indian politician who is an education minister in the Government of Rajasthan
- Ram Chandra Tiwari, a Nepalese politician
- Sriniwas Tiwari, an Indian politician who was a former Madhya Pradesh Speaker and Minister
- Vani Tripathi-Vani Tripathi is national secretary of Bharatiya Janata Party
- Manish Tewari - politician, currently serving as Minister of State (Independent Charge),
- D. P. Tripathi - politician,he is the General Secretary of the Nationalist Congress Party of India
Entertainment & Beauty contest
- Shweta Tiwari-Big Boss-4 Winner, Model, Bhojpuri and Bollywood- Actress, Television presenter, Producer
- Lavanya Tripathi- model and actress working in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films.
- Laxmi Ganesh Tewari, an Indian vocalist
- Manoj Tiwari-Bhojpuri Superstar Actor, Singer, Director.
- Bhushan Tiwari, late Hindi actor known for playing the villain's henchman
- Mukesh Tiwari, Actor in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu Films
- Divyanka Tripathi - Miss Bhopal-2005, model, actress.
- Vani Tripathi- Vani Tripathi is an Indian actor.
- Shweta Tripathi - an Indian actress
- Girish Tiwari (Girda) - a scriptwriter, director, lyricist, singer, poet, organic culturist, literary writer, and social activist in Uttarakhand, India
- Rakesh Tripathi - a Hindi lyricist, screenwriter and director based in Kolkata.
- Ankit Tiwari - A playback singer and music director
- Kartikeya Tiwari - A Young Actor (Pyaar Ka Punchnama, Akashvani)
- Ravi Tripathi - He is an Indian playback singer
- Pitobash Tripathy - Hindi film actor
Sports
- Saurabh Tiwary-National Cricketer
- Manoj Tiwary-National Cricketer
- Kaushal Tiwari, a Nepalese national who is captain of the Belarus national cricket team
Literature
- Suryakant Tripathi 'Nirala' - Poet, novelist, essayist and story-writer. He also drew many sketches.
- Amish Tripathi - Novelist
Judiciary
- Sivakant Tiwari, a senior legal officer of the Singapore Legal Service