Gaekwad (also spelt Gaikwar and Gaikwad; Marathi: Gāyǎkǎvāḍǎ) is a surname native to the Indian stateofMaharashtra.[1] The surname is found among the Marathas, Kolis and in Scheduled castes.[2][3][4] It is also a common surname among Bharadis,[5] Dhor,[6] and Mahar communities of Maharashtra.[7][8]
The Marathi historian D.S. Parasnis and his co-author, the British Raj High Court judge, C.A. Kincaid of colonial-era India, wrote in 1908 that the origin of the name Gaekwad is a combination of two Marathi words. In Marathi: gai means cow and kavad means small door. Therefore, gaekwad (orgaikwad) denotes cow door.[9]
Notable people with the surname include:
Gaekwad is actually a surname and not a title or designation.
Maratha surnames like More, Kadam and Gaikwad are found even among the scheduled caste people
There are no sub-divisions among Dhor Kakkayya of Dharwad district. The following surnames are found among them: Sindhe, Pol, Hatgar, Holkar, Borade, Gaikwad, Ingle, Mankar, Salunke and Kavale
In Maharashtra we find surnames of Jadhav, Chavan, Pawar, Gaekwad, Thorat etc. among the Maratha caste as well as Mahar caste
Gaekwad was typical of the Mahar old guard who had joined Ambedkar in the early days. It was a group largely rural in background