Rai (surname)

Rai (Sanskrit: राय; Urdu: رائے‎, rāi; Bengali: রায়, Nepali: राई) is a historical title of royalty and nobility in the Indian subcontinent used by rulers and chieftains of many princely states and zamindari estates . It is derived from Raja (king, prince or chief). The Marathi/Telugu variant is Rao.

It is also prevalent among the Kirat communities of Eastern Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan.

The title was adopted as surname by Bhumihar Brahmin of the Puravanchal region. But other caste like, Jats, Arora and Yadavs also use this surname.

Some also started using the anglicised variant Roy, during the British Raj.[1]

People[]

Alok Rai (born 1992), Diesel Expert
A. N. Rai (born 1955), Indian academic administrator
Aanand L. Rai (born 1971), Indian film director and producer
Aaron Rai (born 1995), English golfer
Ade Rai (born 1970), Indonesian bodybuilder
Agansing Rai (1920–2000), Nepali recipient of the Victoria Cross
Aishwarya Rai (born 1973), Indian actress and former Miss World
Ajay Rai, Indian politician
Ajeet Rai (born 1999), New Zealand tennis player
Alisha Rai (born 1996), Nepali actress, model and dancer
Alisha Rai (author), American writer
Alka Rai, Indian politician
Amit Rai, Indian film director
Amrit Rai (c. 1921–1996), Indian writer
Anand Rai (born 1977), Indian activist
Asish Rai (born 1999), Indian footballer
Atul Rai (born 1982), Indian politician
Babbal Rai (born 1985), Indian Punjab singer
Bali Rai (born 1971), English young-adult fiction novelist
Baleshwar Rai, Indian politician, former Indian Administrative Service officer
Béchara Boutros Raï (born 1940), Maronite Catholic Patriarch of Antioch
Bina Rai (1931–2009), Indian actress
Brij Mangal Rai (1914–1998), Indian freedom fighter and politician
Dayahang Rai (born 1979), Nepali actor
Dipak Rai, Nepali footballer
Daroga Prasad Rai (1922–1981), Indian politician
Gauri Shankar Rai (1924–1991), Indian politician
Gulshan Rai (1924–2004), Indian film producer and distributor
Haqiqat Rai, Sikh martyr
Guru Har Rai (1630–1661), Sikh guru
Himanshu Rai (1892–1940), Indian film pioneer
Indra Bahadur Rai (1927–2018),Indian writer
I Gusti Ngurah Rai National Hero of indonosia
Jharkhande Rai (died 1984), Indian politician
Kalpana Rai (1950–2008), Indian actress
Kalpnath Rai (1941–1999), Indian politician
Kayyar Kinhanna Rai (1915–2015), Indian writer in Kannada and activist
Krishnanand Rai (1956–2005), Indian politician
Kuber Nath Rai (1933–1996), Indian writer
Kusum Rai (born 1968), Indian politician
Lalit Rai (born 1956), Indian Army officer
Lakshmi Rai (born 1989), Indian actress
Lala Lajpat Rai (1865-1928), Indian author, freedom fighter and politician
Mangla Rai (1916-1976), Indian professional wrestler
Manikala Rai (born 1988), Nepali ultra runner
Melina Rai, Nepali singer
Mira Rai (born 1988), Nepali trail and sky runner
Mona Rai (fl. 1260–1303), Chief Minister of Gour Kingdom
Mridu Rai, Indian historian
Mukrand Rai (fl. 1657), Mughal governor
Muthappa Rai (died 2020), Indian businessman, philanthropist and social activist
Nandini Rai, Indian actress
Nityanand Rai (born 1966), Indian politician
Pamela Rai (born 1966), Canadian swimmer
Pramila Rai (born 1963), Nepali politician
Prakash Rai (born 1965), Indian actor, director, producer and politician
Raghu Rai (born 1942), Indian photojournalist
Rajiv Rai (born 1955), Indian film director and screenwriter
Baba Ram Rai (1645–1687), Sikh founder of Ramraiya
Rai Hau-min President of the Judicial Yuan
Ram Bahadur Rai (born 1946), Indian journalist
Ramanna Rai (1930–2008), Indian politician
Ramanath Rai (born 1952), Indian politician
Ramdeo Rai (1943–2020), Indian politician
Ramveer Rai (born 1987), Emirati cricketer
Randeep Rai (born 1993), Indian actor
Sabin Rai, Nepali singer
Sara Rai (born 1956), Indian writer
Sarita Rai, Indian politician
Shivpujan Rai (1913–1942), Indian independence activist and politician
Suyyash Rai (born 1989), Indian actor and singer
Tarundeep Rai (born 1984), Indian archer
Upendra Rai (born 1982), Indian journalist
Vinay Rai (born 1979), Indian actor
Vinit Rai (born 1997), Indian footballer
Vinod Rai (born 1948), former Comptroller and Auditor General of India
Viveki Rai (1924–2016), Indian Hindi-language writer

Rai (surname)

People[]

See also[]