Singh

[18] In Bihar and Jharkhand, the surname came to be associated with power and authority, and was adopted by people of multiple castes, including Brahmin zamindars.

[22] Many Muslim Shins historically used the surname "Sing", the earlier form of the name, "Simha", was frequently appended to names found in the Gilgit Manuscripts, a corpus of Buddhist texts and the oldest surviving manuscripts in India, discovered in the Gilgit region of Kashmir.

[23][24] People belonging to several other castes and communities also started using Singh as a title, middle name or a surname; these include non-Sikh Punjabis, Charans, Yadavs, Gurjars, Brahmins, Marathas, Jats, Kushwahas, Rajpurohits, Kumawats etc.

[28] Singh is a common name in Nepal; the appellation has acquired caste-neutral status due to its wide scale adoption by many members of Nepali society.

[29] Some Indian immigrants to British Guiana are believed to have adopted surnames traditionally associated with high caste status, including Sharma and Tiwari (Brahmin), as well as Singh (Kshatriya).

[30] A section of around a million adherents of Sikhism that live abroad in Western countries only keep Singh or Kaur as their last name.

For a decade, the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi stated in letters to its Sikh clients that "the names Kaur and Singh do not qualify for the purpose of immigration to Canada", requiring people with these surnames to adopt new ones.

The ban was denounced by the Sikh community, after which the Citizenship and Immigration Canada announced it was dropping the policy, calling the whole issue a misunderstanding based on a "poorly worded" letter.