Created by 115.96.171.151
Last edited March 19, 2026
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{{Short description|Indian family name}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2014}}
'''Kulkarni''' ([[Marathi language|Marathi]]: कुलकर्णी, [[Kannada language|Kannada]]: ಕುಲಕರ್ಣಿ), is a [[family name]] native to the Indian state of [[Maharashtra]] and [[North Karnataka|Northern Karnataka]].The name "Kulkarni" is a combination of two words (''kula'' and ''karni''). ''Kula'' means "family", and ''Karanika'' means "archivist".<ref name="Bloch1970">{{cite book|author=J. Bloch|title=Formation of the Marathi Language|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1noaklDiSOEC&pg=PA318|year=1970|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publ.|isbn=978-81-208-2322-8|pages=318–}}</ref> Traditionally, Kulkarni was a title used by people who  maintained the accounts and records of the villages that were used in collecting taxes. The title of the Kulkarni was later replaced by the [[Talathi]]. The [[Pargana]] and Kulkarni [[Saranjamdar|watans]] (land rights) were abolished in 1950.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bombayhighcourt.nic.in/libweb/acts/1950.60.pdf|title=The Bombay Paragana and Kulkarni Watans' (Abolition) Act 1950|publisher=[[Bombay High Court]]|accessdate=13 November 2014}}</ref>  
'''Kulkarni''' is a [[surname]]. The name "Kulkarni" is a combination of two words (''kula'' and ''karni''). ''Kula'' means "family", and ''Karanika'' means "archivist". Historically, Kulkarni was the title given to the village record keeper.<ref name="Bloch1970">{{cite book|author=J. Bloch|title=Formation of the Marathi Language|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1noaklDiSOEC&pg=PA318|year=1970|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publ.|isbn=978-81-208-2322-8|pages=318–}}</ref>


The name is found among the Brahmin<ref name="Kulkarni Family History">{{cite web | url=http://www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=kulkarni | title=Kulkarni Family History | work=Dictionary of American Family Names |year=2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press | accessdate=27 July 2016}}</ref> communities of these states such as [[Deshastha Brahmins|Deshastha]],<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j2puAAAAMAAJ|title=Maharashtra: society and culture|author=A. Rā Kulakarṇī|publisher=Books & Books|year=2000|page=74|quote=However, the rural areas were still dominated by the Deshasthas, another sub-caste of the Brahmins. The Kulkarni generally belonged to the rural-based Deshastha community, even under the Chitpavan rule.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Home, Family and Kinship in Maharashtra|editor1=Irina Glushkova |editor2= Rajendra Vora |publisher=Oxford University Press|page=118|quote= The wada tells us of a story of three generations of a family called Deshpande who belong to the Deshastha Brahmin caste. ....Spread all over Maharashtra as a result of this process, Deshastha Brahmans held, in particular, the office of Kulkarni.}}</ref> [[Karhade]]<ref>{{cite book|title=Bombay Teachers and the Cultural Role of Cities|publisher=University of California, Berkeley|year=1973|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bBG_QmivOWgC&pg=PA106|page=106|author=Bryan Sharpe}}</ref> and also among the [[Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu]] ([[CKP]])<ref name="IWI">{{cite magazine |title=Unknown |magazine=The Illustrated Weekly of India |volume=91 |issue=3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Glk6AQAAIAAJ |date=July 1970 |publisher=Bennett, Coleman & Company |page=12 |quote=Generally speaking, excepting names such as Kulkarni, Thackerey, Chitnis, Deshmukh, Deshpande, which are common to many communities in Maharashtra, a C.K.P. can be recognised by his surname. }}</ref> community.
As per the historian P.J. Marshall, both Kulkarni and [[Deshpande]] were specialized [[scribes]] who "served great households and enhanced other, familiar, administrative mechanisms at their disposal".<ref name="Marshall2005">{{cite book | author = P. J. Marshall | date = 2005 | title = The Eighteenth Century in Indian History: Evolution Or Revolution? | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 69 | isbn = 978-0-19-567814-7 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=WT1uAAAAMAAJ}}</ref>
The reason the Kulkarni was a [[Brahmin]] or [[CKP]] was because literacy was mandatory for the office. The Kulkarni operated at the village level but at a [[Pargana]] level he was known as a "Deshkulkarni", [[Deshpande]] or [[Nadkarni]] (in [[Karnataka]]).<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Quarterly Review of Historical Studies - Volume 8|page=44|publisher=Institute of Historical Studies|year=1969|quote=The accountant of the Village was simply known as 'Kulkarni' and that of the Pargana or smaller areas was called Deshkulkarni, or Deshpande, or Nadkarni (in the Karnatak)...As work required the incumbent to be a literate man, he was generally a [Brahmin] or a [Chandraseniya] Kayastha Prabhu by caste}}</ref>


== Notable Kulkarnis ==
== History ==
Before British rule, the Maharashtra region was divided into many revenue divisions. The medieval equivalent of a county or district was the [[pargana]]. The chief of the pargana was called [[Deshmukh]] and record keepers were called [[Deshpande]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gordon|first1=Stewart|title=The Marathas 1600-1818|date=1993|publisher=Cambridge University|location=New York|isbn=978-0521268837|pages=22, xiii|edition=1. publ.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iHK-BhVXOU4C&q=%22deshmukh%22+%22deshpande%22+sultanate+pargana&pg=PR9}}</ref><ref name="Gandhi's Tiger and Sita's Smile: Essays on Gender, Sexuality, and Culture - Google Books">{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zN4nTmnlwsAC&q=deshpande+surname&pg=PA74 | title=Gandhi's Tiger and Sita's Smile: Essays on Gender, Sexuality, and Culture | publisher=[[Yoda Press]] | author=Vanita | year=2005 | page=316 | isbn=9788190227254|first=Ruth}}</ref> The lowest administrative unit was the village. Village society in Marathi areas included the Patil or the head of the village, collector of revenue, and Kulkarni, the village record-keeper. These were hereditary positions. The Patil usually came from the [[Maratha (caste)|Maratha caste]]. The Kulkarni was usually from literate communities such as Brahmin (mainly from [[Deshastha Brahmin|Deshastha]]<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j2puAAAAMAAJ|title=Maharashtra: society and culture|author=A. Rā Kulakarṇī|publisher=Books & Books|year=2000|page=74|isbn=9788185016580 |quote=However, the rural areas were still dominated by the Deshasthas, another sub-caste of the Brahmins. The Kulkarni generally belonged to the rural-based Deshastha community, even under the Chitpavan rule.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Home, Family and Kinship in Maharashtra|editor1=Irina Glushkova |editor2= Rajendra Vora |publisher=Oxford University Press|page=118|quote= The wada tells us of a story of three generations of a family called Deshpande who belong to the Deshastha Brahmin caste. ....Spread all over Maharashtra as a result of this process, Deshastha Brahmans held, in particular, the office of Kulkarni.}}</ref> and the [[Karhade Brahmin|Karhade]] sub-castes<ref>{{cite book|title=Bombay Teachers and the Cultural Role of Cities|publisher=University of California, Berkeley|year=1973|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bBG_QmivOWgC&pg=PA106|page=106|author=Bryan Sharpe}}</ref>) and [[Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu|CKP]] castes. The Kulkarni operated at the village level but at a pargana level, the recordkeeper had titles such as Deshkulkarni, Deshpande, or [[Nadkarni]] (in [[Karnataka]]).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Deshpande|first1=Arvind M.|title=John Briggs in Maharashtra: A Study of District Administration Under Early British rule|date=1987|publisher=Mittal|location=Delhi|isbn=9780836422504|pages=118–119|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=79sS_w_bOQYC&q=balutedar+maharashtra&pg=PP15}}</ref><ref name="IWI">{{cite magazine |title=Unknown |magazine=The Illustrated Weekly of India |volume=91 |issue=3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Glk6AQAAIAAJ |date=July 1970 |publisher=Bennett, Coleman & Company |page=12 |quote=Generally speaking, excepting names such as Kulkarni, Thackerey, Chitnis, Deshmukh, Deshpande, which are common to many communities in Maharashtra, a C.K.P. can be recognised by his surname. }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=The Quarterly Review of Historical Studies - Volume 8|page=44|publisher=Institute of Historical Studies|year=1969|quote=The accountant of the Village was simply known as 'Kulkarni' and that of the Pargana or smaller areas was called Deshkulkarni, or Deshpande, or Nadkarni (in the Karnatak)...As work required the incumbent to be a literate man, he was generally a [Brahmin] or a [Chandraseniya] Kayastha Prabhu by caste}}</ref><ref name="Tamaskar1978">{{cite book | author = B. G. Tamaskar | date = 1978 | title = The Life and Work of Malik Ambar | publisher = Idarah-i Adabiyat-i Delli | pages =  | url = https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.117961/page/211/mode/2up}}</ref> The Kulkarni [[Saranjamdar|watans]] (land rights) were abolished in 1950.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bombayhighcourt.nic.in/libweb/acts/1950.60.pdf|title=The Bombay Paragana and Kulkarni Watans' (Abolition) Act 1950|publisher=[[Bombay High Court]]|accessdate=13 November 2014}}</ref>
 
== Notable Kulkarni ==


=== Saints ===
=== Saints ===
* [[Jñāneśvar]]:pre-sainthood name: Dhnyandev Kulkarni 1275–1296
* [[Dnyaneshwar]]: Pre-sainthood name Dnyandev Kulkarni (1275–1296)
* [[Eknath]]: Pre-sainthood name: Eknāth Kulkarni : 1533–1599
* [[Eknath]]: Pre-sainthood name Eknāth Kulkarni (1533–1599)
* [[Samarth Ramdas]]: Pre-sainthood name: Narayan Kulkarni (Thosar): 1608–1681
* [[Samarth Ramdas]]: Pre-sainthood name Narayan Kulkarni (Thosar) (1608–1681)
* [[Nivruttinath]]: Pre-sainthood name: Nivrutti Kulkarni : Elder brother and teacher of Dnyaneshwar
* [[Nivruttinath]]: Pre-sainthood name Nivrutti Kulkarni, elder brother and teacher of Dnyaneshwar
* [[Sopan]]: Pre-sainthood name: Sopan Kulkarni
* [[Sopan]]: Pre-sainthood name Sopan Kulkarni
* [[Muktabai]]: Pre-sainthood name: Mukta Kulkarni
* [[Muktabai]]: Pre-sainthood name Mukta Kulkarni
* [[Mahipati]]: Chronicler of many Indian saints, author of the Bhaktavijaya: (1715–1790)
* [[Mahipati]]: Chronicler of many Indian saints, author of the ''Bhaktavijaya'' (1715–1790)


=== Historic Figures ===
=== Historic figures ===
* [[Ramchandra Pant Amatya]]: 1650–1716 The third Peshwa, Finance Minister (Amatya) to Emperor (Chhatrapati) Shivaji and Imperial Regent (Hukumat Panah)
* [[Ramchandra Pant Amatya]] (1650–1716): The third Peshwa, Finance Minister (Amatya) to Emperor (Chhatrapati) Shivaji and Imperial Regent (Hukumat Panah)
* [[Parshuram Pant Pratinidhi|Parshuram Trimbak Kulkarni]]: 1660–1718 Held post of [[Pant Pratinidhi]], the fifth [[Peshwa]] and the founder of [[Aundh State|Aundh]] and [[Vishalgad]] princely states.
* [[Parshuram Pant Pratinidhi|Parshuram Trimbak Kulkarni]] (1660–1718): Held post of [[Pant Pratinidhi]], the fifth [[Peshwa]] and the founder of [[Aundh State|Aundh]] and [[Vishalgad]] princely states.


=== Entertainment ===
=== Entertainment ===
* [[Atul Kulkarni (actor born 1965)|Atul Kulkarni]]: Marathi film and theater actor
* [[Atul Kulkarni (actor born 1965)|Atul Kulkarni]]: Marathi film and theater actor
* [[Chandrakant Kulkarni]]: Film director
* [[Chandrakant Kulkarni]]: Film director
* [[Dhondutai Kulkarni]]: Vocalist of the Jaipur-Atrauli Ghara
* [[Girish Kulkarni]]: Marathi film actor
* [[Girish Kulkarni]]: Marathi film actor
* [[Mamta Kulkarni]]: Bollywood actress
* [[Mamta Kulkarni]]: Bollywood actress
* [[Mrinal Dev-Kulkarni]]: Marathi television actress.
* [[Mrinal Dev-Kulkarni]]: Marathi television actress.
* [[Saleel Kulkarni]]: Marathi singer and composer
* [[Saleel Kulkarni]]: Marathi singer and composer
* Sameep Kulkarni: Sitarist
* [[Sandeep Kulkarni]]: Marathi actor
* [[Sandeep Kulkarni]]: Marathi actor
* [[Sonali Kulkarni]]: Bollywood actress  
* [[Sonali Kulkarni]]: Bollywood actress  
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* [[Raju Kulkarni]]: Former Indian cricketer
* [[Raju Kulkarni]]: Former Indian cricketer
* [[Shubhangi Kulkarni]]: Indian woman cricketer and secretary of the Women's Cricket Association of India
* [[Shubhangi Kulkarni]]: Indian woman cricketer and secretary of the Women's Cricket Association of India
* [[Vineet Kulkarni]]: Indian cricket umpire and member of the International Cricket Council's International Panel of Umpires and Referees
* [[Vineet Kulkarni]]: Indian cricket umpire
*[[Dhawal Kulkarni]] Indian cricketer, fast bowler from Mumbai.


=== Professionals ===
=== Professionals ===
* [[Ravi S. Kulkarni]] (born 1942): Indian mathematician
* [[Ravi S. Kulkarni]] (born 1942): Indian mathematician
* [[Sudha Murthy|Sudha Kulkarni Murty]]: [[Kannada]] writer, Founder of Sudha Murty Foundation and wife of [[Narayan Murthy]]
* [[Sudha Murty|Sudha Kulkarni Murty]]: [[Kannada]] writer, Founder of Sudha Murty Foundation and wife of [[N. R. Narayana Murthy]]
* [[Sri Preston Kulkarni]] (born 1978): American diplomat and politician
* [[Shrinivas Kulkarni|Srinivas Kulkarni]] (born 4 October 1956): US-based astronomer born and raised in India


== See also ==
== See also ==
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[[Category:Surnames]]
[[Category:Surnames]]
[[Category:Indian surnames]]
[[Category:Surnames of Indian origin]]
[[Category:Indian feudalism]]
[[Category:Indian feudalism]]
[[Category:Indian words and phrases]]
[[Category:Indian words and phrases]]
[[Category:Marathi-language surnames]]
[[Category:Marathi-language surnames]]

Latest revision as of 21:31, 19 March 2026


Kulkarni is a surname. The name "Kulkarni" is a combination of two words (kula and karni). Kula means "family", and Karanika means "archivist". Historically, Kulkarni was the title given to the village record keeper.[1]

As per the historian P.J. Marshall, both Kulkarni and Deshpande were specialized scribes who "served great households and enhanced other, familiar, administrative mechanisms at their disposal".[2]

History[edit | edit source]

Before British rule, the Maharashtra region was divided into many revenue divisions. The medieval equivalent of a county or district was the pargana. The chief of the pargana was called Deshmukh and record keepers were called Deshpande.[3][4] The lowest administrative unit was the village. Village society in Marathi areas included the Patil or the head of the village, collector of revenue, and Kulkarni, the village record-keeper. These were hereditary positions. The Patil usually came from the Maratha caste. The Kulkarni was usually from literate communities such as Brahmin (mainly from Deshastha[5][6] and the Karhade sub-castes[7]) and CKP castes. The Kulkarni operated at the village level but at a pargana level, the recordkeeper had titles such as Deshkulkarni, Deshpande, or Nadkarni (in Karnataka).[8][9][10][11] The Kulkarni watans (land rights) were abolished in 1950.[12]

Notable Kulkarni[edit | edit source]

Saints[edit | edit source]

  • Dnyaneshwar: Pre-sainthood name Dnyandev Kulkarni (1275–1296)
  • Eknath: Pre-sainthood name Eknāth Kulkarni (1533–1599)
  • Samarth Ramdas: Pre-sainthood name Narayan Kulkarni (Thosar) (1608–1681)
  • Nivruttinath: Pre-sainthood name Nivrutti Kulkarni, elder brother and teacher of Dnyaneshwar
  • Sopan: Pre-sainthood name Sopan Kulkarni
  • Muktabai: Pre-sainthood name Mukta Kulkarni
  • Mahipati: Chronicler of many Indian saints, author of the Bhaktavijaya (1715–1790)

Historic figures[edit | edit source]

Entertainment[edit | edit source]

Literature[edit | edit source]

Sports[edit | edit source]

Professionals[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. J. Bloch (1970). Formation of the Marathi Language. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. pp. 318–. ISBN 978-81-208-2322-8.
  2. P. J. Marshall (2005). The Eighteenth Century in Indian History: Evolution Or Revolution?. Oxford University Press. p. 69. ISBN 978-0-19-567814-7.
  3. Gordon, Stewart (1993). The Marathas 1600-1818 (1. publ. ed.). New York: Cambridge University. pp. 22, xiii. ISBN 978-0521268837.
  4. Vanita, Ruth (2005). Gandhi's Tiger and Sita's Smile: Essays on Gender, Sexuality, and Culture. Yoda Press. p. 316. ISBN 9788190227254.
  5. A. Rā Kulakarṇī (2000). Maharashtra: society and culture. Books & Books. p. 74. ISBN 9788185016580. However, the rural areas were still dominated by the Deshasthas, another sub-caste of the Brahmins. The Kulkarni generally belonged to the rural-based Deshastha community, even under the Chitpavan rule.
  6. Irina Glushkova; Rajendra Vora (eds.). Home, Family and Kinship in Maharashtra. Oxford University Press. p. 118. The wada tells us of a story of three generations of a family called Deshpande who belong to the Deshastha Brahmin caste. ....Spread all over Maharashtra as a result of this process, Deshastha Brahmans held, in particular, the office of Kulkarni.
  7. Bryan Sharpe (1973). Bombay Teachers and the Cultural Role of Cities. University of California, Berkeley. p. 106.
  8. Deshpande, Arvind M. (1987). John Briggs in Maharashtra: A Study of District Administration Under Early British rule. Delhi: Mittal. pp. 118–119. ISBN 9780836422504.
  9. "Unknown". The Illustrated Weekly of India. Vol. 91, no. 3. Bennett, Coleman & Company. July 1970. p. 12. Generally speaking, excepting names such as Kulkarni, Thackerey, Chitnis, Deshmukh, Deshpande, which are common to many communities in Maharashtra, a C.K.P. can be recognised by his surname.
  10. "The Quarterly Review of Historical Studies - Volume 8". Institute of Historical Studies. 1969: 44. The accountant of the Village was simply known as 'Kulkarni' and that of the Pargana or smaller areas was called Deshkulkarni, or Deshpande, or Nadkarni (in the Karnatak)...As work required the incumbent to be a literate man, he was generally a [Brahmin] or a [Chandraseniya] Kayastha Prabhu by caste {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  11. B. G. Tamaskar (1978). The Life and Work of Malik Ambar. Idarah-i Adabiyat-i Delli.
  12. "The Bombay Paragana and Kulkarni Watans' (Abolition) Act 1950" (PDF). Bombay High Court. Retrieved 13 November 2014.