Indian Baby Names Starting with M

About this collection

The M names split neatly by tradition. Madhav and Mohan are both epithets of Krishna, one meaning descendant of Madhu and the other the enchanter. Meera is the sixteenth-century poet-saint Mirabai, and Meenakshi is the fish-eyed goddess of Madurai and the queen of its founding legend. These are names with stories attached, and the guides tell the documented parts.

From Arabic come Muhammad, one of the most widely given names in the world, Maryam, the Arabic form of Mary, and Mahira, meaning skilled. Each is spelled here in Devanagari as Hindi speakers write it, with the Arabic headword in the guide. Mishka and Myra are modern cross-cultural names whose meanings vary by the language a family has in mind.

Every name on this page begins with म in Devanagari, and the traditional syllable tables assign म to Simha, the sign that corresponds to Leo. That is a naming custom rather than astronomy; the rashi guide explains how the tables are read.