Photos by ERIC BRADY The Roanoke Times

Landon Howard (left) of the Roanoke Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau talks with members of the Roanoke Valley Asian American Business Visitors Association (from left), Bharat "Bob" Patel, Bhupesh Patel, and Manoj "Mike" Patel during a meeting.

MISSOULA, Mont. -- Sanjay Patel owns and operates a Days Inn in the heart of Missoula's small but happening downtown. In late June, just three blocks away, mountain snowmelt roiled the Clark Fork River and the flips and rolls of show-off kayakers seduced passers-by.

Patel moved to the United States 20 years ago and to Montana six years ago. His personal history mirrors that of many Indian businesspeople named Patel in Roanoke.

He, like they, are representatives of what is called the "Patel diaspora" -- referencing those who have, for many years, left India in search of business opportunities in other countries.

And Sanjay, like many Patels in Roanoke, is a native of the Indian state of Gujarat, where the surname Patel is as common a last name as Smith is in the U.S.

In fact, Patel ranks surprisingly high in this country as a last name. The 2000 U.S. census ranked Patel at 172nd among the nation's 1,000 most frequently occurring surnames. (Smith ranked first.)

In India, the name Patel has been associated with the Vaishya, or merchant class, of the Hindu caste system. Roanoke hotelier Bhupesh Patel and others in the region say the caste system no longer plays a significant role in Indian society.

Meanwhile, for the Atlanta-based Asian American Hotel Owners Association, five of the six officers serving on the board of directors are named Patel. The hotel association reports having about 10,000 members. The organization's spokesman, Chris Carlson, said 2009 membership details suggest that about 55 percent of its members share the last name Patel.

Which brings the story back to Sanjay Patel, whom I met while a guest at his hotel.

He said Patels are renowned in India for honoring guests.

"Our hospitality is very famous," he said. "This thing is in our blood. We treat guests like a god in India."

In the Roanoke Valley, both Bhupesh and Dharmendra Patel are hoteliers.

How did they and fellow Indian businesspeople end up in Roanoke?

Answers vary, ranging from being encouraged by family, friends and financiers to come to an accepting community to the reasons many Roanokers cite.

"I drove [Interstate] 81 many times but for a long time I did not know Roanoke," Bhupesh Patel said. "The main thing is the family environment. That is the biggest thing. Where I used to live, I didn't know my neighbors. Here, I know my whole subdivision, pretty much.

"We feel free to let our kids go out and play with other kids in the subdivision," he said.

Sanjay Patel said he has traveled many places in the U.S. and recently bought an interest in a hotel in Alabama.

He asked where I lived, boldly predicting he had been there.

I figured the chance was slim.

"Well, it's a small city in Virginia called Roanoke," I replied.

"Oh, yes. Sure. Star on the mountain, right? I've been there several times. I am good friends with Atul Patel [a prominent businessman in Roanoke]. I used to go to the star and look down at the beautiful city."