# Chhetri (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/chhetri/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A Nepali surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Sanskrit |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 752 |
| US rank (2010) | 30,916 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 410,566 people |
| Change since 2000 | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | Kshetry, Kshetri |

## Etymology

From Nepali छेत्री (chetrī), variant of Nepali क्षेत्री (kṣetrī), from Sanskrit क्षत्रिय (kṣatriya, “protector of gentle people”), from Sanskrit क्षत्र (kṣatra, “rule, dominion, authority”). Cognate with Old Persian 𐎧𐏁𐎠𐎹𐎰𐎡𐎹 (x-š-a-y-θ-i-y /⁠xšāyaθiya⁠/, “emperor”), from which is derived Persian شاه (šâh).

## Who carries it

Share of people named Chhetri in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 1.7% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 0.9% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 94% |
| Two or more races | 2.4% |

## Similar surnames

Chowdhury, Cotter, Couture, Chaudhry, Cutter, Cater, Choudhury, Cuadra, Chaudhary, Coder, Choudhry, Choudhary.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.