Honorific titles of Indian figures
Popular figures of India have often been conferred with an honorific title by fans and followers. These generally include those that are not formally recognised.
ListEdit
Key
- In descending order of the subjects' long-term notability, roughly.
| Portrait | Full Name | Honorific | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi | Mahatma | Sanskrit for "great soul". In popular usage ever since Rabindranath Tagore used it to refer to him.[1] One of the very few biographies on Wikipedia that carry the honorific in title. | |
| Gautama | Buddha | In Buddhism, means "awakened one" | |
| Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar | Babasaheb | Marathi for "respected father" (Baba = father and Saheb = sir). Used by followers initially, now a part of popular culture and usage. | |
| Jawaharlal Nehru | Pandit | Sanskrit for "learned man". Originally meant exclusively for a man expert in Hindu law and literature.[2] | |
| Rabindranath Tagore | Gurudev | Bengali for "Godly Teacher" or "Divine Mentor" | |
| Ram Mohan Roy | Raja | Translates to 'king' in most Indian languages. Conferred upon by Akbar II. | |
| Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel | Sardar | Persian for "leader or chief". Conferred upon by his long-time mentor Mahatma Gandhi[3] after the Bardoli Satyagraha. | |
| Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy | Thathai | Tamil for 'father' or 'father figure' | |
| Periyar | Tamil for 'respected one' or 'elder one' | ||
| Singanalluru Puttaswamaiah Muthuraj | Nata Saarvabhouma | Kannada for 'Emperor of Actors'. Revered as so by the people of Karnataka. | |
| Subhas Chandra Bose | Netaji | Hindustani for "political leader". Conferred upon by the soldiers of the Indian National Army. | |
| Bal Gangadhar Tilak | Lokmanya | Sanskrit for "accepted by the people (as their leader)".[4] | |
| Chakravarti Rajagopalachari | Mootharignar | Tamil for "the Scholar Emeritus", for his scholarly contribution to the Tamil literature. | |
| Jayaprakash Narayan | Loknayak | Hindi for "People's leader" | |
| Vinayak Damodar Savarkar | Veer | Hindustani for "the brave". Popularly used by followers; now a part of popular culture. | |
| Vinayak Narahari Bhave | Acharya |
Translates to 'respected teacher'. | |
| Madan Mohan Malaviya | Mahamana | ||
| Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw | Bahadur | Meaning 'the Brave'. Bahadur is an honorific title bestowed upon princes and victorious military commanders by Mughal emperors, and later by their British successors. | |
| Chittaranjan Das | Deshbandhu | Hindi for Friend of the Nation | |
| Jagjivan Ram | Babuji | A term of respect for one's father | |
| Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golwalkar | Guruji | Hindi for 'respected teacher' | |
| Abdul Ghaffār Khān | Badshah | ||
| Aluru Venkata Rao | Karnataka Kulapurohita | Translation - "High priest of the Kannada family" | |
| Jagadish Vasudev | Sadhguru | "Sadhguru", alternatively spelt "sadguru",[5] means "real or true guru".[6] The term has also been translated as "senior sadhu; eminent preceptor".[7] |
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ReferencesEdit
- ↑ "Who gave the title 'Mahatma' to Gandhi? Gujarat govt says not Tagore, but 'unknown journalist'". The News Minute. 2016-02-16. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
- ↑ "Prime Ministers of India - Jawaharlal Nehru". www.indiainfoline.com. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
- ↑ "Sardar was the title given to Vallabhbhai Patel by class 9 social science CBSE". www.vedantu.com. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
- ↑ "Bal Gangadhar Tilak: Freedom Fighter Who Said, "Swaraj Is My Birth Right"". NDTV.com. Retrieved 2021-10-15.
- ↑ Sanghvi, Rajesh D. (2018), Going Beyond My Guru's for Human Welfare, Notion Press, p. 30, ISBN 978-1-64429-901-2
- ↑ Cornille, Catherine (1992), The Guru in Indian Catholicism: Ambiguity of Opportunity of Inculturation?, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, p. 103, ISBN 978-0-8028-0566-9
- ↑ Shantipriyadas, S. (1998). Pramukh Swami Maharaj (2nd ed.). Amdavad: Swaminarayan Aksharpith. p. 307. ISBN 81-7526-000-9.