The ancestors of present-day Memons who settled a few centuries ago in various parts of the districts of India, particularly Kathiawar (now Saurashtra), commonly identified as simply Memons.

The language of Kathiawadi Memons is Memon, sometimes called Memoni.^[1]

The South African Memon community is largely descended from Memons who emigrated from Kathiawar in the early twentieth century.