[1] Today it is used to refer to traditional practitioners of Ayurveda, an indigenous Indian system of alternative medicine.
[2] Senior practitioners or teachers were called Vaidyarāja ("physician-king") as a mark of respect.
Some practitioners who had complete knowledge of the texts and were excellent at their practices were known as Pranaacharya.
[5] Vaidyan or Vaidyar is a similar term used in Kerala to denote a physician.
As a last name in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala, Vaidya Vaidyar or Vaidyan are usually found in several communities like the Brahmin, Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu, Billava, Mogaveera, Nairs,Ezhava[6][7][8][9][10][11] as well as Sonar (goldsmith).