Mitra (surname)

Mitra (Bengali: মিত্র) is a Bengali Hindu surname found mostly amongst the Bengali Kayastha community and occasionally among other communities like Barujibi in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent.^[1]^[2] The surname may have been derived either from the Sanskrit word Mitra, meaning friend or ally,^[3] or from the name of an important Indo-Iranian deity in the Vedas and in ancient Iran.^[4]

According to GK Ghosh, some Bengali surnames like Mitra were adopted from Buddhist tradition.^[5] Mitras are considered as Kulin Kayasthas of Vishvamitra gotra, along with Bose, Ghosh and Bangaja (Eastern Bengal) Guha.^[6]

Notables

Notable people with the surname, who may or may not be affiliated to the clan, include:

Aditi Mitra, American theoretical condensed matter physicist known for her research on molecular scale electronics and non-equilibrium quantum systems.
Amit Mitra, politician and current Finance Minister of West Bengal
Ashok Mitra, finance minister of west bengal
Asoke Chandra Mitra, Indian politician and member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Asoke Nath Mitra, known for his work in nuclear physics, particle physics and quantum field theory and in particular, for his fundamental contributions in obtaining the exact solution of the nucleon 3- body problem
Abhik Mitra, Indian cricketer
Ashesh Prasad Mitra, Physicist who headed the National Physics Laboratory in Delhi, India and was the Director General of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research
Amit Mitra, Indian politician
Amitabh Mitra, Poet / Artist, South Africa
Antara Mitra, Indian singer
Arun Mitra (1909–2000), Indian Bengali-language poet
Ayushman Mitra, Indian fashion designer, painter, and actor from Kolkata.
Bhupendra Nath Mitra KCSI KCIE CBE (October 1875 – 25 February 1937), Indian government official and diplomat who served as the third Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 1931 to 1936.
Bimal Mitra (1912–1991), Indian Bengali-language writer
Biren Mitra, Indian politician, a leader of the Indian National Congress and the Chief Minister of Odisha
Chandan Mitra (born 1955), Indian journalist, editor/managing director of The Pioneer newspaper
Chittaranjan Mitra (1926–2008), Indian scientist and director of BITS Pilani
Debasis Mitra (born 1944), Indian mathematician
Debala Mitra, Indian archaeologist who served as Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)
Debu Mitra, Indian cricketer
Digambar Mitra (1817–1879), Indian businessman who served as Sheriff of Kolkata
Dinabandhu Mitra (1830–1873), Indian Bengali-language dramatist
Falguni Mitra, Indian Hindustani classical vocalist who is known as a Dhrupad exponent of India.
Gautam Mitra, Computer Scientist
Hiran Mitra (born 1945), Indian artist
Ila Mitra, Indian communist and peasants movement organizer of the Indian subcontinent, especially in East Bengal (now Bangladesh).
Indraneel Mittra (born 1943), Indian cancer researcher
Kamal Mitra (1912–1993), Indian actor
Kalikrishna Mitra (1822 – 2 August 1891), Indian philanthropist, educator and writer. He established the first non-government girls’ school in India.
Krishna Kumar Mitra (1852–1936), Indian freedom fighter, journalist and leader of the Brahmo Samaj
Koena Mitra (born 1981), Indian actress and former model
Lopamudra Mitra, Indian Bengali-language singer-songwriter
Nabagopal Mitra (1840–1894), Indian playwright, poet, essayist, patriot
Narendranath Mitra(1916–1975), Indian Bengali-language writer, poet
Panchanan Mitra (1892–1936), professor of anthropology in India
Partha Mitra, American neuroscientist and computer scientist.
Panchanan Mitra, Indian professor of anthropology
Peary Chand Mitra, Indian writer, journalist, cultural activist and entrepreneur.
Premendra Mitra (1904–1988), Indian Bengali-language poet and author
Pramathanath Mitra, known widely as P. Mitra, was an Indian barrister and nationalist
Prabir Mitra (born 1941), Bangladeshi movie and TV actor
Nilmani Mitra, Indian civil engineer and architect, who designed the famous mansions of 19th century Kolkata.
Mahan Mitra (5 April 1968-), also known as Mahan Maharaj and Swami Vidyanathananda, is an Indian mathematician and monk of the Ramakrishna Order.
Kishori Chand Mitra, writer, civil servant and social worker
Rajendralal Mitra (1823/24-1891), the first modern Indologist of Indian origin
Ramon Mitra, Jr., Filipino statesman, diplomat, and a renowned pro-democracy activist
Rana Mitter OBE FBA (born 1969), known as Rana Mitter, is a British historian and political scientist of Indian origin who specialises in the history of republican China.
Raul Mitra, Filipino composer, arranger, songwriter, musical director, pianist, and keyboardist
Rhona Mitra (born 1976), English actress of Indian descent
Rina Mitra, Chief Commissioner of the West Bengal Right to Public Service Commission.
Saby Mitra, American academic administrator and professor currently serving as the Dean of the University of Florida Warrington College of Business.
Sanjay Mitra, served as Defense Secretary of India
Sankar Prasad Mitra, Indian politician and former Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court.
Sanjoy K. Mitter, Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT who is a noted control theorist
Samik Mitra, Indian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Chennaiyin
Samarendra Kumar Mitra, Indian scientist and mathematician who created India's first computer
Samaresh Mitra (born 1937), Indian bioinorganic chemist and an INSA Senior Scientist at the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB).
Shyam Mitra, Indian cricket
Shaoli Mitra, Indian Bengali theatre and film actress, director, and playwright. padma shri awardee
Shyamal Mitra (1929–1987), Bengali singer
Sisir Kumar Mitra (1890–1963), Indian physicist
Shrish Chandra Mitra was an Indian revolutionary and active member of Indian independence movement
Sombhu Mitra (1915–1997), Indian film and stage actor, director, playwright
Subodh Mitra M.D., F.R.C.S., F.R.C.O.G. (1896-1961) was an Indian obstretrician
Sreelekha Mitra (born 1975), Indian actress of TV and films
Subrata Mitra(1930–2001), Indian cinematographer
Sugata Mitra is an Indian computer scientist and educational theorist. He is best known for his "Hole in the Wall" experiment, and widely cited in works on literacy and education.
Subrata K. Mitra, director and research professor at the Institute for South Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore
Subhrajit Mitra, (born 1976), Indian film maker
Subhasish Mitra from Stanford University was named Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in 2013[1] for contributions to design and test of robust integrated circuits.
Suchitra Mitra (1924–2011), Indian singer-composer
Sumita Mitra developed the nanomaterials used in state-of-the-art 3M dental composites, which have been used in billions of procedures around the world.
Sushanta Mitra, Canadian mechanical engineer
Sushmita Mitra, Indian computer scientist and is currently the head and INAE Chair Professor at the Machine Intelligence Unit at Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.
Sugata Mitra, Indian computer scientist and educational theorist.
Swasti Mitter, researcher
Shibu Mitra, Indian film director and producer
Parno Mittra, Indian actress who appears in Bengali films.
Tripti Mitra, Indian actress of Bengali theatre and films
Tapan Mitra (18 July 1948 – 3 February 2019), American economist.

Fictional characters

Pradosh Chandra Mitter (Feluda), a fictional private investigator created by Satyajit Ray
Tapesh Ranjan Mitter (Topse), cousin of Feluda, created by Satyajit Ray

References

^ Basu, Lokeshwar. Amader Padobir Itihas (in Bengali). Kolkata: Ananda publishers. p. 29.
^ Bhaumika, Khagendra Nātha (1982). Padabīra utpatti o kramabikāśera itihāsa (in Bengali). Mitraloka. pp. Div. D P 25.
^ "Mitra". Family Education. Retrieved 5 March 2012.
^ Carnoy, Albert J. (1917). "The Moral Deities of Iran and India and Their Origins". The American Journal of Theology. 21: 58–78. doi:10.1086/479791.
^ Ghosh, G. K. (2000). Legends of Origin of the Castes and Tribes of Eastern India. Firma KLM. p. 111. ISBN 978-81-7102-046-1.
^ Hopkins, Thomas J. (1989). "The Social and Religious Background for Transmission of Gaudiya Vaisnavism to the West". In Bromley, David G., David G.; Shinn, Larry D. (eds.). Krishna consciousness in the West. Bucknell University Press. pp. 35–36. ISBN 978-0-8387-5144-2.

This page lists people with the surname Mitra.
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[1] Basu, Lokeshwar. Amader Padobir Itihas (in Bengali). Kolkata: Ananda publishers. p. 29.

[2] Bhaumika, Khagendra Nātha (1982). Padabīra utpatti o kramabikāśera itihāsa (in Bengali). Mitraloka. pp. Div. D P 25.

[3] "Mitra". Family Education. Retrieved 5 March 2012.

[4] Carnoy, Albert J. (1917). "The Moral Deities of Iran and India and Their Origins". The American Journal of Theology. 21: 58–78. doi:10.1086/479791.

[5] Ghosh, G. K. (2000). Legends of Origin of the Castes and Tribes of Eastern India. Firma KLM. p. 111. ISBN 978-81-7102-046-1.

[6] Hopkins, Thomas J. (1989). "The Social and Religious Background for Transmission of Gaudiya Vaisnavism to the West". In Bromley, David G., David G.; Shinn, Larry D. (eds.). Krishna consciousness in the West. Bucknell University Press. pp. 35–36. ISBN 978-0-8387-5144-2.

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