Urmi Desai

Urmi Ghanshyam Desai (Gujarati: ઊર્મિ ઘનશ્યામ દેસાઈ; born 1938) is a Gujarati writer and linguist from Gujarat, India. She received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2017 for her critical work Gujarati Vyakaran Na Baso Varsh (published in 2014). She was born on 5 April 1938 in Mumbai to her mother, Rambhabahen, and her father, Kameshwar Vyas. Her family originates from Chorvad. After matriculation in 1955, she completed her Bachelor of Arts (1961) and Master of Arts (1963) degrees on Gujarati and Sanskrit subjects. She received her PhD in 1967 under the supervision of Harivallabh Bhayani for her research work Gujarati Bhashana Angasadhak Pratyayo. In 1969, she completed her Diploma in Linguistics. She married Ghanshyam Desai, a Gujarati short story writer, in 1965.