Indian American baby names

Handpicked for families who want names with roots: the beloved classics, what parents in the culture choose today, and the cool discoveries most US name sites never surface.

Aadi first, beginning

Aahana commonly glossed as 'early dawn light' in baby-name references, though the precise Sanskrit root is debated

Aanya limitless, without boundary (fast-rising pick among 2010s-2020s Indian American births)

Aaradhya worship, first ray of the sun (surged in popularity after a well-known Bollywood family used it, echoed in the diaspora)

Aarav peaceful, wise (one of the most common Indian American boy names of the 2010s-2020s)

Aarohi ascending musical scale; a lyrical modern favorite

Aditi boundless; mother of the gods in Vedic myth

Aditya the sun; a name of the Hindu sun god

Advait unique, non-dual

Aisha alive, prosperous (name of a wife of the Prophet Muhammad; a staple in Indian Muslim American families)

Alia exalted, noble; embraced in both Indian Muslim and Hindu American families, boosted by Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt

Amaira modern coinage in the same family as Amara/Amira, meaning read as 'princess' or 'eternal' depending on spelling

Amar immortal

Amara immortal (also reads as the Latin/African name Amara — chosen for cross-cultural fit)

Amrit nectar, immortal (unisex Sikh American name)

Ananya unique, unparalleled

Anaya caring, compassionate (fast-rising 2020s pick)

Angad part of the body; name of the second Sikh Guru

Anika grace, gracious (favored for reading naturally in both Hindi and English)

Anjali offering made with cupped hands; reverence

Ansh part, portion (of the divine)

Anushka grace; boosted in the diaspora by Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma

Anvi often glossed as 'full of life' or 'earth-like' depending on regional spelling traditions

Arjun bright, shining; hero of the Mahabharata

Arman wish, desire; common in Indian Muslim American families

Arnav ocean, sea

Arya noble (a unisex pick whose popularity got an extra lift from Game of Thrones)

Aryaman a Vedic solar deity associated with hospitality and honor

Aryan traditionally 'noble' in Sanskrit; a widely used given name across Hindu Indian American families

Avni earth

Ayaan God's gift (common in Indian Muslim American families)

Ayesha alive, prosperous; the common alternate spelling of Aisha used widely in Indian Muslim American families

Darsh vision, sight

Deepak lamp, light (a heritage name kept strong by first-generation parents)

Dev god, divine (short and easy in English)

Dhruv fixed, immovable (the pole star in Hindu myth)

Divya divine

Diya oil lamp, light

Faiz victory, bounty; common among Indian Muslim American families

Gauri fair one; a name of the goddess Parvati

Harleen one absorbed in God's love (Sikh American given name)

Harsh joy, happiness (an honest heritage meaning that reads as an unrelated English word, worth knowing before use in the US)

Imran a Quranic name; common among Indian Muslim American families

Inaya care, concern (rising choice among Indian Muslim American families)

Ira earth; also linked to the goddess of speech in Vedic tradition

Isha goddess, ruler (short and phonetic — an easy crossover pick)

Ishaan sun (a top crossover pick for its short, phonetic sound)

Ishani a name of the goddess Parvati; ruler

Jaspreet virtuous love, in love with virtue (Sikh American unisex name)

Kabir great (after the 15th-century poet-saint Kabir; used across Hindu, Sikh, and Muslim Indian American families)

Karan ear; also the name of a Mahabharata hero

Kavya poetry

Kiran ray of light (a unisex crossover name used since the first big wave of Indian American immigration)

Krish short form of Krishna

Leela divine play

Manav human, man

Maya illusion, magic (spelled identically to the mainstream American name — the classic Indian American crossover pick)

Meera devoted, prosperous (named for the poet-saint Mirabai; often anglicized to Myra for easier U.S. spelling)

Myra the common English-friendly spelling families use for Meera (devoted, prosperous)

Naina eyes

Neil champion (Irish name widely adopted by Indian American families as an English-sounding stand-in for Nilesh/Neel, both meaning "dark blue")

Nikhil whole, complete

Nisha night

Noor light; a warm unisex name used across Indian Muslim American families

Ojas vigor, vitality

Pari fairy, angel (short, easy crossover pick gaining favor in the 2020s)

Pranav the sacred syllable Om

Priya beloved (one of the most common Indian American girl names since the 1980s wave)

Radha success, worship; the beloved consort of Krishna in Hindu mythology

Rahul efficient, capable

Rajesh king of kings (a common first-generation immigrant name, now often kept as a middle name)

Rani queen

Ravi the sun; a classic still used across generations

Rayan gates of paradise (spelled to crossover smoothly with the American name Ryan)

Reyansh portion of the divine; ray of the sun (charting rapidly in U.S. records in the 2020s)

Rhea a flowing stream (also a Greek Titaness — a name shared comfortably across both traditions)

Riya singer; graceful

Rohan ascending, rising

Saanvi goddess Lakshmi; knowledge (one of the fastest-climbing U.S. girl names in the 2020s)

Sameer companion in evening conversation (often shortened to Sam in daily American life)

Sana brilliance, splendor (common in Indian Muslim American families)

Sara princess; a comfortable crossover pick in both Indian Muslim and mainstream American use

Shaurya valor, courage

Simran meditation, absorbed in remembrance of God (Sikh American classic)

Sitara star

Suhana pleasant, good; boosted in the diaspora by its use as a Bollywood family name

Suresh ruler of the gods; a common first-generation immigrant classic

Tara star (shares spelling with the Irish/English name Tara — a favorite dual-culture pick)

Trisha desire; also used as an anglicized short form

Vedant the essence and culmination of the Vedas

Veer brave, hero

Vihaan dawn, morning (surged in U.S. birth records through the 2010s-2020s among Indian American families)

Vikram valor (a legendary king's name; a common first-generation choice)

Vivaan full of life (fast-rising 2020s pick)

Vivan full of life; a common alternate spelling of Vivaan

Yash fame, glory

Yuvraj crown prince

Zara flower, princess (common among Indian Muslim American families, spelled for easy crossover)

Zayn beauty, grace (a favorite among Indian Muslim American families, boosted further by crossover pop culture)

Zoya life (popular among Indian Muslim American families; also a familiar Russian name)

Which of these fits YOUR family? →