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{{Distinguish|text=[[Bhāts]], a traditional genealogist and bardic caste, or the [[Thai baht]], a currency}}
{{pp|small=yes}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2025}}

'''Bhat''' (also spelled '''Bhatt''' or '''Butt''', {{IAST3|Bhāṭ}}) is a [[Brahmin]] title and a surname used in the [[Indian subcontinent]]. Bhat and Bhatt are shortened renditions of '''Bhatta''' or '''Brahmabhatta'''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hanks |first=Patrick |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vG7MZ9J6dAgC&dq=brahmbhatt+surname&pg=PA214 |title=Dictionary of American Family Names: 3-Volume Set |date=8 May 2003 |publisher=Oxford University Press, USA |isbn=978-0-19-508137-4 |pages=214}}</ref>

==Etymology==
The word "Bhat" ({{langx|sa|भट्ट}}, {{IAST3|Bhaṭṭa}}) means "scholar" in [[Sanskrit]].<ref name="Sahagala1994">{{cite book |last1=Sahagala |first1=Narendra |title=Converted Kashmir: Memorial of Mistakes |date=1994 |publisher=Utpal Publications |isbn=978-81-85217-06-2 |page=53 |language=English |quote=Bhat means a Brahmin, teacher, who imparts knowledge.}}</ref><ref name="Sehgal2013">{{cite book |last1=Sehgal |first1=Narender |title=A State In Turbulence Jammu & Kashmir |date=1 January 2013 |publisher=Prabhat Prakashan |isbn=978-81-8430-242-4 |page=18 |language=English}}</ref> While the original shortened rendition of "Bhatta" was "Bhat" or "Bhatt,"<ref name="Saligram Bhatt">{{cite book |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=It1LePnN2LsC&q=Bhat&pg=PA134 |title=Kashmiri Scholars Contribution to Knowledge and World Peace|author=Saligram Bhatt|quote=Bhat {Bhatt},  surnames are found in Uttaranchal, Northern Belt, Central and Western parts of the country and is a surname of sizeable Brahmins in Konkan, Maharashtra and Gujarat; where they had migrated in sizeable strength. Bhattas who migrated to Gauda {Bengal} were called ''Acharaya's'' {Scholars} and thus ''Bhattacharaya's''. In Nepal, they became priests, ardent worshippers of ''Bhadrakali'' and spread ''Kali'' worship; mostly around ''Pashupatinath''  Temple. In Uttaranchal, they became the ''Purohit'' {Priestly} class, adopted the surname ''Purohit'', many changed profession but retained the Bhatt surname. In northern plains, few became Bhattas, many Bhatts; in both cases ''Purohit'' {Priestly} class. In Central and Western parts, strict requirements of a Bhatta {Purohit} could not be sustained, and to indicate the Brahmin roots they opted for a surname only. Thus Bhatta and ''Purohit'' are surnames of the same category. Bhatta has a shortened version, Bhat {Bhatt}; referring to the same class of people. Surname Bhat {Bhatt} in ''Kas'mira'' can also be traced to the short form of Bhatta. In ''Kas'mira'', the Bhatta honorific has been associated with many personalities, scholars of the 9th and 10th centuries, scriptures, and specific in many cases in the 14th century and later. |access-date=2 December 2010 |isbn=9788131304020 |year=2008 |publisher=APH}}</ref> many of the [[Kashmiri Pandits|Kashmiri Brahmin]] migrants to the [[Punjab]] region started spelling their surname as "Butt", which is the transliteration of the name when written using the [[Urdu alphabet|Urdu]]/[[Persian alphabet|Persian]] alphabet (as opposed to Bhat when using the [[Devanagari|Devanagari alphabet]]).<ref name="Anthropological Survey of India2"/><ref name=" P. K. Kaul"/><ref name="Madras Literary Society and Auxiliary of the Royal Asiatic Society">{{cite web|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hVMYAQAAIAAJ&dq=bhat+butt+name&pg=PA143|title=Madras journal of literature and science, Volume 4|year=1836 |publisher=[[Athenæum Press]]|quote=''Bhatt'' (vulgarly ''Butt'') is the distinctive name of a class of Bramins in the north; and in the south the same class bear the distinctive title of ''Pattar'' |access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref>

==Geographic distribution==
===Goa===
The surname is in use among some Konkani [[Gaud Saraswat Brahmin|Goud Saraswat Brahmins]] as well as [[Konkani people|Konkani]] [[Christians]] (who trace their ancestry to the Gaud Saraswat Brahmins of [[Goa]]).<ref name="Machado">{{cite book |title=Sarasvati's Children: A History of the Mangalorean Christians |author=Alan Machado Prabhu |publisher=I.J.A. Publications |year=1999 |page=137}}</ref>

===Kashmir===
Batt or Butt (a local Kashmiri language form of Sanskrit language Brahmin title Bhatt) is a generic term used for all Brahmins or [[Kashmiri Pandit]] of Kashmir valley irrespective of their individual surnames, as well as the Kashmiri Brahmins who [[Kashmiris in Punjab|migrated]] to [[Punjab]],<ref name="Anthropological Survey of India2">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gPmBAAAAMAAJ |title=The Journal of the Anthropological Survey of India, Volume 52 |publisher=The Survey |year=2003 |quote=The But/Butt of Punjab were originally Brahmin migrants from Kashmir during 1878 famine. |access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref><ref name="P. K. Kaul">{{cite book |author=[[P. K. Kaul|Kaul, P.K.]] |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DKFjAAAAMAAJ&q=butt+pahari |title=Pahāṛi and other tribal dialects of Jammu, Volume 1 |publisher=Eastern Book Linkers |year=2006 |isbn=9788178541013 |quote=The But/Butt of Punjab were originally Brahmin migrants from Kashmir during 1878 famine. |access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref><ref name="Bansi Pandit">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zsoC6GWr47QC&pg=PA99|title=Explore Kashmiri Pandits|publisher=Dharma Publications|isbn=9780963479860|access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref> a region now divided between India and the neighbouring [[Pakistan]].<ref name="Anthropological Survey of India2"/>

The Bhats who migrated to Punjab in the late 19th century and the early 20th century due to the 1878 drought, were [[Brahmin]] migrants<ref name="Anthropological Survey of India2" /> from Kashmir, escaping discrimination by local rulers and seeking trade opportunities.<ref name=":0">{{cite book|title=From Jinnah to Jihad: Pakistan's Kashmir Quest and the Limits of Realism|last=Bahl|first=Arvin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iaYPyVAjHH8C|publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Dist|year=2007|isbn=9788126907212|pages=76}}</ref><ref name="Anthropological Survey of India2" /><ref name="University of Michigan2">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SANuAAAAMAAJ|title=The quarterly journal of the Mythic Society (Bangalore)., Volume 96|publisher=The Society|year=2005|quote=Even today most common family name in Kashmir is Butt, a distortion of Bhatt, a Hindu surname common amongst the Brahmins in India.|access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref><ref name="Saligram Bhatt2">{{cite book|author=Saligram Bhatt|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=It1LePnN2LsC&q=Bhat&pg=PA134|title=Kashmiri Scholars Contribution to Knowledge and World Peace|year=2008| publisher=APH |isbn=9788131304020|quote=Bhat {Bhatt}, surnames are found in Uttaranchal, Northern Belt, Central and Western parts of the country and are a surname of sizeable Brahmins in Konkan, Maharashtra, and Gujarat; where they had migrated in sizeable strength. Bhattas who migrated to Gauda {Bengal} were called ''Acharaya's'' {Scholars} and thus ''Bhattacharaya's''. In Nepal, they became priests, ardent worshippers of ''Bhadrakali'' and spread ''Kali'' worship; mostly around ''Pashupatinath''  Temple. In [[Uttarakhand|Uttaranchal]], they became ''Purohit'' {Priestly} class, adopted the surname ''Purohit'', many changed profession but retained the Bhatt surname. In northern plains, few became Bhattas, many Bhatts; in both cases ''Purohit'' {Priestly} class. In Central and Western parts, strict requirements of a Bhatta {Purohit} could not be sustained, and to indicate the Brahmin roots they opted for a surname only. Thus Bhatta and ''Purohit'' are surnames of the same category. Bhatta has a shortened version, Bhat {Bhatt}; referring to the same class of people. Surname Bhat {Bhatt} in ''Kas'mira'' can also be traced to a short form of Bhatta. In ''Kas'mira'', the Bhatta honorific has been associated with many personalities, scholars of the 9th and 10th centuries, scriptures, and specific in many cases in the 14th century and later.|access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref>

The surname is now shared by both [[Kashmiri Hindus]] and [[Kashmiri Muslims]] who mostly retained their [[Hindu]] last names.<ref name = "WMClements">{{Cite book |last1=Clements |first1=William M.|title=The Greenwood Encyclopedia of World Folklore and Folklife: Southeast Asia and India, Central and East Asia, Middle East |last2=Green |first2=Thomas A. |date=2006 |publisher=[[Greenwood Press]]|isbn=978-0-313-32849-7 |page=60 |language=English |quote=A variety of '''Hindu surnames''' such as Dar, '''Bhatt''', Handoo, Kachru, Kichlu, Matoo and Pandit persist in Muslim families. }}</ref><ref name="Parvéz Dewân">{{cite book|author=Parvéz Dewân|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fF0wAQAAIAAJ|title=Parvéz Dewân's Jammû, Kashmîr, and Ladâkh: Kashmîr|date=January 2004|publisher=Manas Publications|isbn=9788170491798|quote=This is a surname shared by Hindus and Muslims.|access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref><ref name="Sharma2001">{{cite book|last=Sharma|first=Usha|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b3gwAQAAIAAJ|title=Political development in Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh|date=1 January 2001|publisher=Radha Publications|isbn=9788174870629|language=en|quote=Surnames like 'Bhatt' and 'Pandit' are common to both Hindus and Muslims.|access-date=11 January 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Samiuddin |first1=Abida |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qEXFxCK-ulUC&dq=global+encyclopaedic+ethnography+of+indian+muslim+by+abida+samiuddin%2C+r.+khanam+volume+0&pg=RA1-PA361 |title=Global Encyclopaedic Ethnography of Indian Muslim |last2=Khanam |first2=R. |publisher=Global Vision Publishing House |isbn=978-81-8220-299-3 |pages=102–105 |language=en}}</ref>

===Punjab===
Some Bhats/Butts found in the [[Punjab region]] are descendants of those [[Kashmiri Brahmins]]<ref name="Anthropological Survey of India2" /> who migrated to different cities of (undivided) Punjab from the [[princely state]] of [[Jammu and Kashmir (princely state)|Jammu and Kashmir]] during the [[Great Famine of 1876–1878|1878 famine]] in [[British India]].<ref name="Anthropological Survey of India2"/><ref name=" P. K. Kaul"/><ref name="University of Michigan2"/>

In [[Ludhiana]], Kashmiris became known for their contribution to the handicraft arena.<ref name="The Tribune">{{cite news |url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030724/ldh1.htm |title=Kashmiris' contribution to Ludhianvi culture |work =[[The Tribune (Chandigarh)|The Tribune]] |date=24 July 2003 |access-date = 25 March 2007 |quote=In fact, the Ludhiana hosiery industry owes its origin to Kashmiris. According to the Ludhiana District Gazetteer, during a devastating famine in the 19th century a number of Kashmiris migrated to Ludhiana. They are known world over for their handicraft skills. They started weaving woollen fabric there. Slowly the trade got popular and Ludhiana started to be identified with hosiery only}}</ref>

===Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh===
The word Bhaṭṭa (Kannada: ಭಟ್ಟ) or Bhaṭṭar (Tamil: பட்டர்) or Bhaṭṭu (Telugu: భట్టు) is traditionally used, especially in the states of [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Karnataka]], [[Telangana]], and [[Andhra Pradesh]] usually to denote a "learned man" or a "scholar" ([[Pancha-Dravida|Brahmins]]), but also in other southern states.

It was originally used as an honorific like [[Shastri|śāstri]] or paṇḍita, but has become a surname in parts of the country in modern times used as a family name rather than an honorific. In [[South Karnataka|Southern Karnataka]] naming convention followed is such that, generally, one's father's name is kept as the surname irrespective of caste and many of these honorifics continue to be used as honorifics.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/India_Personal_Names |title=India Personal Names |access-date=4 May 2023 |website=www.familysearch.org}}</ref>

In earlier times a caste name or village name was used by the Tamils as their last name, but due to the influence of the [[Dravidian movement]], Tamils of all castes have mostly given up caste surnames. However, women frequently adopt their father's or husband's name and take it for successive generations. But, honorific like Bhaṭṭar are still in use in spoken language rather than as a surname.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Indian Culture - Naming |url=http://culturalatlas.sbs.com.au/indian-culture/indian-culture-naming |access-date=4 May 2023 |website=Cultural Atlas |date=January 2018 |language=en}}</ref>

==Notable individuals==
===Academics===
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* [[Aryabhata]] (476–550 [[Common Era|CE]]), first of the major mathematician-astronomers from the classical age of Indian mathematics and astronomy
* [[B. V. Rajarama Bhat]] (born 1966), Indian mathematician
* [[Bāṇabhaṭṭa]], [[Sanskrit]], prose writer and poet
* [[Eric Bhat]] (1956–2025), French journalist
* [[Kiran Bhat]] (born 1990), Indian-American novelist
* [[Mayurbhatta]], poet of Harsha's court
* [[Miriam Butt]], Professor of Linguistics and Chair of the Department of Linguistics (Facereich Sprachwissenschaft) at the University of Konstanz
* [[Motiram Bhatta]] (1866–1896), Nepali Sanskrit and Khas language poet
* [[Muhammad Asim Butt]], Pakistani Urdu novelist and short story writer
* [[P. Gururaja Bhat]] (1924–1978), Indian archaeologist
* [[Pamposh Bhat]] (born 1958), Kashmiri Indian environmentalist
* [[Rasheed Butt]] (born 1944), renowned Pakistani artist and recipient of "The Pride of Performance" 1989
* [[Shyam Bhat]], physician
* [[Suresh Bhat]] (1932–2003), Marathi Indian ghazal writer
* [[U. Narayan Bhat]] (1934–2021), Indian mathematician
* [[U. R. Bhat]], economist
* [[Vasanti N. Bhat-Nayak]], Indian mathematician
* [[Vinay Bhat]] (born 1984), American chess player

===Actors, models, technicians and musicians===
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* [[Ahmed Butt]] (born 1975), male Pakistani model and actor
* [[Ali Azmat|Ali Azmat Butt]] (born 20 April 1970), Pakistani rock artist and former lead singer of rock band Junoon
* [[Alia Bhatt]] (born 1993), Bollywood actress
* [[Ambreen Butt]], Pakistani model
* [[Anuradha Bhat]] (born 1969), Indian playback singer
* [[Asha Bhat]] (born 1992), Indian model
* [[Asim Butt (artist)|Asim Butt]] (born 1978), Pakistani painter and sculptor and a member of the Stuckist Art Movement
* [[Biraj Bhatta]], Nepalese actor
* [[DJ Butt]] (born 1987), Pakistani disc jockey for PTI
* [[Farhan Saeed|Farhan Saeed Butt]] (born 1984), Pakistani singer and member of rock band Jal
* [[Furqan and Imran|Imran Imtiaz Butt]], Pakistani singer
* [[Ganapati Bhat]], Hindustani classical vocalist
* [[Hrishitaa Bhatt]], Indian model
* [[Keerthi Bhat]] (born 1999), Indian actress
* [[Mahesh Bhatt]] (born 1948), Indian film producer and director
* [[Muhammad Younis Butt]] (born 1962), Pakistani screenwriter
* [[Neil Bhatt]], Indian television actor, dancer and choreographer
* [[Osman Khalid Butt]] (born 1986), Pakistani actor
* [[Pooja Bhatt]] (born 1972), Indian actress
* [[Praneet Bhat]], Kashmiri Indian actor
* [[Rabia Butt]], Pakistani model
* [[Rahul Bhat]], Kashmiri Indian actor
* [[Ramesh Bhat]], Indian actor
* [[Samina Peerzada|Samina Peerzada Butt]], Pakistani actress
* [[Tanmay Bhat]], Indian actor and comedian
* [[Yogaraj Bhat]] (born 1972), Indian film writer and director

===Businesspeople===
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* [[Baiju Bhatt]] (born 1984/1985), American billionaire, co-founder of Robinhood

===Military===
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* [[Malik Tazi Bhat]], 15th-century warlord, from Jammu, who fought the Lodhi Dynasty
* [[Muhammad Zaki Butt]] (1929–1993), former Air Commodore in the Pakistan Air Force and bodyguard of Quaid-e-Azam, Muhammad Ali Jinnah
* [[Tahir Rafique Butt]] (born 1955), 20th Chief of Air Staff of the Pakistan Air Force
* [[Ziauddin Butt]], former Chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence

===Politics===
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* [[Balaji Vishwanath Bhat]] (1662–1720), Peshwa of the Maratha Empire
* [[Ghulam Mustafa Bhat]], former mayor of Srinagar
* [[Hassan Butt]] (born 1980), the former spokesman for the disbanded British Islamist group Al-Muhajiroun
* [[Kalsoom Nawaz Sharif]], First Lady of Pakistan, wife of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, of Kashmiri origin
* [[Khemraj Bhatta 'Mayalu'|Khemraj Bhatta "Mayalu"]], [[Nepali Congress]] politician
* [[Lekh Raj Bhatta]], Nepali [[CPN Maoist]] politician
* [[Masarat Alam Bhat]] (born 1971), Kashmiri separatist
* [[Maqbool Bhat]] (1938–1984), executed Kashmiri separatist
* [[Sanjiv Bhatt]] former [[Indian Police Service]] officer
* [[Shakeel Ahmad Bhat|Shakeel Bhat]] (born c. 1978), outspoken Kashmiri separatist activist, labelled as an "Islamic Rage Boy" by Western media
* [[S. L. Bhat]], Kashmiri Indian serving as chairman of the Jammu & Kashmir Public Service Commission
* [[Shailen Bhatt]] administrator of the Federal Highway Administration
* [[Sohail Shaukat Butt]] (born 1983), Pakistani politician
* [[Trilochan Bhatta]] (born 1969), Nepalese politician and current Chief Minister of Sudurpashchim Province, Nepal
* [[Umer Tanveer]] Butt (born 1982), politician and Member of the Punjab Provincial Assembly, businessman, and philanthropist

===Scientists===
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* [[Atul Butte]], researcher in biomedical informatics and biotechnology entrepreneur in Silicon Valley
* [[Noor Muhammad Butt]] (born 1936), Pakistani nuclear physicist, research scientist, and chairman of the Pakistan Science Foundation
* [[Parvez Butt]] (born 1942), Pakistani nuclear engineer and former chairman of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission

===Sports===
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* [[Abhishek Bhat]] (born 1989), Indian cricket player
* [[Amad Butt]] (born 1995), Pakistani cricket player for Islamabad United, of Kashmiri origin
* [[Arif Butt]] (1944–2007), Pakistani cricket player
* [[Arvind Bhat]] (born 1979), Indian badminton player
* [[Danish Farooq Bhat]] (born 1996), Indian professional footballer
* [[The Great Gama|Ghulam Mohammad Baksh Butt]] (1878–1960), popularly known by his [[ring name]] the Great Gama, [[pehlwani]] wrestler of Kashmiri Muslim origin
* [[Hussain Butt]] (born 1976), Pakistani cricketer
* [[Ijaz Butt]] (1938–2023), former chairman of Pakistan Cricket Board and cricket player, of Kashmiri origin
* [[Ikram Butt]] (born 1968), rugby player for England, of Pakistani/Kashmiri origin
* [[Muhammad Sharif Butt]] (1926–2015), Pakistani sprinter
* [[Pramila Bhatt]] (born 1969), Indian cricketer
* [[Raghuram Bhat]] (born 1958), Indian cricketer
* [[Rehan Butt]] (born 1980), Pakistani field hockey player
* [[Sadia Butt]] (born 1975), Pakistani cricketer
* [[Salman Butt]] (born 1984), Pakistani cricketer
* [[Samad Bhat]] (born 1995), Indian cricket player
* [[Shujauddin Butt]] (1930–2006), Pakistani cricketer
* [[Yasir Butt]] (born 1986), Pakistani squash player
* [[Yousuf Butt]] (born 1989), Pakistani footballer

==Fictional==
* [[List of Seinfeld characters|Babu Bhatt]], [[Pakistani]] restaurateur in the US sitcom ''[[Seinfeld]]''

==See also==
{{Portal|India|Pakistan}}
* [[Barot (caste)]]
* [[Bhati]]
* [[Bhattacharya (surname)|Bhattacharyya]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Kashmirifamalies}}
{{Bahun communities}}
{{Chhetri communities}}
{{Surname}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhat (Kashmir)}}
[[Category: Muslim communities of India]]
[[Category:Brahmin communities of Uttarakhand]]
[[Category:Brahmin communities]]
[[Category:Indian castes]]
[[Category:Kashmiri tribes]]
[[Category:Kashmiri-language surnames]]
[[Category:Konkani-language surnames]]
[[Category:Surnames of Indian origin]]
[[Category:Surnames]]
[[Category:Titles in India]]