Sarkar is a surname among the people of the Indian subcontinent. It was an honorific title given to landlords/zamindars of East India, irrespective of their religious affiliation, under the Mughal Empire and even in Sher Shah's reign, as part of the erstwhile Persian nobility.[1][2][3] At present there are Sarkar families in different parts of West Bengal, India as well as in Bangladesh. The term is used in both Bengali Hindu and Muslim communities.

The Persian connotation of the word refers to 'chieftain', 'lord', or 'superintendent'.[1] In modern Bengali and Hindi, however, Sarkar refers to government/governance.[4]

Geographical distribution

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As of 2014, 79.0% of all known bearers of the surname Sarkar were residents of West Bengal, India and 19.8% were residents of Bangladesh. In India, the frequency of the surname was higher than national average in the following states and union territories:[5]

  1. Tripura (1:29)
  2. West Bengal (1:55)
  3. Andaman and Nicobar Islands (1:99)
  4. Assam (1:207)

Notable people

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Notable people with the family name of Sarkar include:

Academics

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Literature

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Politicians

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Sportspeople

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Footballers

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Cricketers

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Journalists

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  • Ash Sarkar (born 1992), British journalist and political activist
  • Ashok Kumar Sarkar (1912–1983), eighth editor-in-chief and owner of Anandabazar Patrika and the ABP Group
  • Aveek Sarkar (born 1945), Indian newspaper owner, editor-in-chief of Anandabazar Patrika and The Telegraph

Entertainers

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Gurus

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Hanks, Patrick (8 May 2003). Dictionary of American Family Names. ISBN 0-19-977169-3.
  2. ^ Melville, Charles (25 February 2021). Safavid Persia in the Age of Empires: The Idea of Iran Vol. 10. ISBN 978-0-7556-3379-1.
  3. ^ Lorea, Carola (August 2016). Folklore, Religion and the Songs of a Bengali Madman: A Journey between Performance and the Politics of Cultural Representation. ISBN 978-90-04-32471-8.
  4. ^ "সরকার". English & Bengali Online Dictionary & Grammar. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  5. ^ "Sarkar Surname Meaning, Origins & Distribution". Forebears. Archived from the original on 6 April 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2017.