Browse Names - Behind the Name

Arundhati अरुन्धती, अरुंधती f Hinduism, Hindi
The name of a star (also called Alcor), which was named after a type of climbing plant, meaning "not restrained" in Sanskrit. In Hindu belief it is the name of the sage Vasishtha's wife, who is identified with the star.

Chander चन्द्र, चन्द्रा m Hindi
Alternate transcription of Hindi चन्द्र or चन्द्रा (see Chandra).

Chandra चन्द्र, चन्द्रा m & f Hinduism, Bengali, Assamese, Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Nepali
Means "moon" in Sanskrit, derived from चन्द (cand) meaning "to shine". This is a transcription of both the masculine form चण्ड (the god of the moon personified) as well as the feminine form चण्डा (spelled with a long final vowel).

Chandrakant चंद्रकांत, चन्द्रकान्त m Marathi, Hindi
Means "beloved by the moon", derived from Sanskrit चन्द्र (candra) meaning "moon" and कान्त (kānta) meaning "desired, beloved". This is another name for the moonstone.

Chandrakanta चंद्रकांता, चन्द्रकान्ता f Hindi
Feminine form of Chandrakant.

Devaki देवकी f Hinduism, Hindi, Nepali, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil
From Sanskrit देवक (devaka) meaning "divine, celestial", a derivative of देव (deva) meaning "god". According to the Hindu epic the Mahabharata she was the wife of Vasudeva and the mother of Krishna.

Divya दिव्या f Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam
Means "divine, heavenly" in Sanskrit.

Indu इन्दु f Hindi
Means "bright drop" in Sanskrit. This is a name for the moon.

Kartik कार्तिक m Hindi, Marathi
From Sanskrit कृत्तिका (Kṛttikā), the name for the constellation of the Pleiades.

Parveen परवीन f & m Urdu, Hindi
Alternate transcription of Urdu پروین or Hindi परवीन (see Parvin).

Parvin परवीन f & m Persian, Urdu, Hindi
Means "the Pleiades" in Persian. The Pleiades are a group of stars in the constellation Taurus. This name is typically feminine in Iran, but unisex in India.

Poornima पूर्णिमा f Tamil, Kannada, Hindi, Marathi
Alternate transcription of Tamil பூர்ணிமா, Kannada ಪೂರ್ಣಿಮಾ or Hindi/Marathi पूर्णिमा (see Purnima).

Punam पूनम f Hindi
Means "full moon" in Hindi, ultimately from Sanskrit पूर्णिमा (pūrṇimā).

Purnima पूर्णिमा f Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Kannada
From Sanskrit पूर्णिमा (pūrṇimā) meaning "full moon".

Rajnish रजनीश m Hindi
Means "lord of the night" from Sanskrit रजनी (rajanī) meaning "night" and ईश (īśa) meaning "lord, ruler". This is another name for the moon in Hindu texts.

Rakesh राकेश m Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu
Means "lord of the full moon" from Sanskrit राका (rākā) meaning "full moon" and ईश (īśa) meaning "lord, ruler".

Ravi रवि m Hinduism, Hindi, Marathi, Odia, Gujarati, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Bengali, Nepali
Means "sun" in Sanskrit. Ravi is a Hindu god of the sun, sometimes equated with Surya. A famous bearer was the musician Ravi Shankar (1920-2012).

Ravindra रवीन्द्र m Hinduism, Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Kannada
Means "lord of the sun" from Sanskrit रवि (ravi) meaning "sun" combined with the name of the Hindu god Indra, used here to mean "lord". This is another name for the Hindu god Surya.

Savitri सावित्री f Hinduism, Hindi, Marathi
Means "of the sun" in Sanskrit. This is the name of a hymn in the Rigveda dedicated to Savitr, a sun god. This is also the name of Savitr's daughter, a wife of Brahma, considered an aspect of Saraswati. In the Hindu epic the Mahabharata it is borne by King Satyavan's wife, who successfully pleas with Yama, the god of death, to restore her husband to life.

Shashi शशि, शशी m & f Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Kannada, Telugu
Traditional name for the moon, it literally means "having a hare" in Sanskrit. This is a transcription of both the masculine form शशि and the feminine form शशी (spelled with a long final vowel).

Suraj सूरज m Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Nepali
Means "sun" in several northern Indian languages, derived from Sanskrit सूर्य (sūrya).

Surya सूर्य m Hinduism, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi, Marathi, Nepali, Indonesian
Means "sun" in Sanskrit. This is the name of the Vedic Hindu god of the sun who rides a chariot across the sky.

Swati स्वाति, स्वाती f Hindi, Marathi
From the Indian name of the fourth brightest star in the night sky, called Arcturus in the western world.

Tara 2 तारा f Hinduism, Buddhism, Hindi, Nepali
Means "star" in Sanskrit. Tara is the name of a Hindu astral goddess, the wife of Brhaspati. She was abducted by Chandra, the god of the moon, leading to a great war that was only ended when Brahma intervened and released her. This name also appears in the epic the Ramayana belonging to the wife of Vali and, after his death, his younger brother Sugriva. In Buddhist belief this is the name of a bodhisattva associated with salvation and protection.

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