janneychatter

I moved to Melbourne (Australia). One of my colleagues at the place where I worked was an 50+ year old Anglo-Celtic Australian. I was amazed at his knowledge of India. He apparently knew about Hindu gods and their importance in a Hindu’s life. Some time later I was doing some collaborative work with him.
One day there was a departmental BBQ held in the lawn. I was not aware of it. I was trying to teach some under-graduate kids about some experiments. He came up to the laboratory and asked me if I wanted to join him in the lawn for beer and BBQ. Well, immediately I told the students to work on whatever they wanted and left!
After a few cans of beer, he really started to talk! One of the first questions he asked me was, “Pranam, Which part of Britain do you come from?”. I was shocked! I do not look like an anglo-celtic and I don’t even have an English accent, I had a strong Indian accent which I believe I still have! I answered “ Oh NO!”. He didn’t stop at that, he continued on with “ Oh, I am sure your father is English!”, I again answered “ Oh Not at all” He was not ready to take “No” as an answer, he continued on “ Oh ok, I am sure your mother is English”, by then I was having a nervous breakdown! I immediately answered “ Nope, my mother is not English. I don’t think no one in my family has even visited England!”. He was amazed, I then asked him “ What made you think that I was English?” For which he answered “ Well, You have proper English Surname!!!”. I was taken back.

All this while I had thought that my surname was weird and it’s Indian! Now there is was total twist in the story! Now I realized my surname is not only weird it’s not even Indian, it supposedly was British!!!!

That day, I decided to actually find the roots of my surname. I registered into ancestry websites, paid hefty fees to them.

I will briefly summarise the findings.

This surname supposedly originated in England and the last person with this surname lived in England in late 1700’s and early 1800’s. Then this surname was sighted in US records from early 1800’s, however this surname was also sighted in India from mid 1800’s.

I have collected more intricate details of this surname. I have also contacted people across the globe with this surname. Some of these people are really well-known in various domains and have been really co-operative (considering their status!!). I do not intend to disclose their details and any other intricate details regarding this surname.

I embarked on this journey to research about my surname around 3 years ago. Consider the amount of shock for a person hailing from a pious brahmin family of Southern India to realise one day that his surname originated in England!!

Bottom line, I am proud to be an Indian, I am proud to be a Hindu, I am proud to be a Brahmin, I am proud to be a part of "Janney" family in India. Respect for my Indian ancestors has grown nonetheless. I could not care less about the origin of my surname any more!

I hope you had a good time reading the story about my surname.

Please stay tuned for snippets from Pranam’s life, which you might find hilarious or thought provoking!

Catch Pranam…Right here on Janneychatter….Anytime..Anywhere…..
Adios!