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The turban isn't determinative of whether you are Sikh. Lots of Sikhs don't wear turbans. And lots of other groups wear turbans. But if your name is Singh -- you're a Sikh.

Somebody upthread wrote that the Sikh religion was a branch of Hinduism. Actually, that is only partially true. Sikhism is a syncretistic religion, combining elements of Bhakti Hinduism and the Sufi branch of Islam. There was also something upthread about the supreme insult for a Sikh being mistaken for a Muslim. Actually, Sikhs would prefer not being mistaken for either Muslims or Hindus. There is a long standing thread of enmity between Sikhs and Hindus. (Hindus destroyed the Golden Temple of Amritsar, the holiest shrine of Sikhism back in the 80's.) The fact that a Sikh is the PM of India is a a good sign -- maybe an indication that some of the worst of the "communal" violence between the various Indian groups is over.

"There is a long standing thread of enmity between Sikhs and Hindus. (Hindus destroyed the Golden Temple of Amritsar, the holiest shrine of Sikhism back in the 80's.) "
Hindus did no such thing. Pl dont spread false ideas.

You're right about Sikhs hating to be grouped with Hindus, but that doesn't mean they hate Hindus. Quite the contrary. Given their numbers in the Indian Army, if they wanted, they could give a good chance for secession from the Indian Union and India could be left unable to do much. But this won't happen.

Sikhs are more closer to Hinduism than they'd want to think, while at the same time Sikhs are more distinct from Hinduism than the Hindus would love to assume.

About the Golden Temple incident, it was a sad thing to have happened. But there's not much you can do when you have die-hard, heavily armed, Pakistan-trained terrorists holed up within the temple (this guy's men had killed and terrorised more Sikhs than Hindus).

A large number of Sikhs (including especially, the current Indian Prime Minister) are ones who fled Islamic butchering in Pakistan, hand-in-hand with their Hindu neighbours. They know their enemy well. And their friends better. They have their founding religionists decreeing that Hindus and Sikhs must always live and fight together. Separatism is no more in Punjab.

" But if your name is Singh -- you're a Sikh."

Wrong. Although all Sikhs are Singh, not all Singh are Sikhs. It has nothing to do with Sikhism. Sikhs just adopted it to get rid of their original caste last name.

Singh has ALWAYS been Rajput! Not Sikh. My last name is Singh and I am not a Sikh. Most Pahari Rajputs are Singh.