Arcot Desai is a title given to a family in the kingdom of Arcot in India, during its rule by Islamic kings. The male members of the family inherited this title.
Islamic kings who ruled southern kingdoms of India appointed a family from their kingdom as Desais of the kingdom. The head of the family carrying the title of Desai from such Islamic kingdoms was responsible for matters such as collecting taxes and maintaining law and order in the respective kingdoms. Arcot Desai is a title given to the families that carried out such responsibility in the kingdom of Nawabs of Arcot, the Islamic kings who ruled the kingdom of Arcot. Arcot in the present day is a city in the Indian state of Tamilnadu. The current North Arcot and South Arcot districts of Tamilnadu may have together constituted the kingdom of Arcot.
A similar title runs in the family that helped Tippu Sultan during his reign of Seringapatam.
In such cases Desai is not a last name, as is prevalent in the Indian State of Gujarat.