Other Surnames / Gotras : Common Kurmi surnames or family names include Chaudhary, Singh, Sinha, Patel, Patil, Pawar, Reddy, Gowda, Mahto, Mehta, Mohanta, Mahanta, Mahato, Mandal, More, Naidu, Katiyar, Gangwar, Sachan, Kanaujia, Verma, Bhonsle.
Division amongst Kurmis : Kurmis are descended from various Kshatriya clans, they divide themselves into:
Religion : Hindu
Varna : Kshatriya
Language : Hindi
Regional Spread : All over India but mainly North-Indian state like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand
Traditional Occupation : Land owning agrarian but a significant percentage of them were warriors
Population : 1.4 % to 2 % of India's population
Food Habits : Most prefer non-vegetarian
Marriage Preference : Prefer marriage within their community
Related Communities : Kunbi and Khanbi
Famous Personalities : Nitish Kumar, Vinay Katiyar
History and Origin : The word 'Kurmi' in Sanskrit translates as 'I can' or 'I am able'. In other words 'Kurmi' is related to 'karmi', which is based on Karma or action and service to humanity rather than purely on lineage and birth. Kurmis, as also the Kunbis Kshatriyas are relatively prosperous and educated but due to their being mostly agrarians, they were classified as backward castes. Etymologically, the words, Kunbi and Khanbi are generally considered a derivative of the word Kurmi.
By 1910, in the All India Kurmi Kshatriya Mahasabha, the Ramanandi sect, a group of monastic Brahmin sages, traced the Kurmis ancestry to Luv, confirming their Kshatriya claims.