Indian Baby Names Starting with S

About this collection

S is the second-largest letter in this catalog and the one where English spelling hides the most. Devanagari has three sibilants, and two of them matter here: the plain स of Saanvi, Sarita, Simran and Siddharth, and the palatal श of Shreya, Shaurya, Shlok, Shivansh and Shravya. The rashi tables treat them differently, assigning स to Kumbh and श to Kanya.

The documented meanings are rich. Shreya is auspicious, Shaurya is valour, Samarth is capable, Shlok is a verse, Swara is a musical note, Sarita is a river and Sahasra is a thousand. Siddharth is the Buddha's given name, Siya is Sita, Sai is a devotional honorific, and Simran is the Punjabi word for remembrance of God. From Arabic and Hebrew come Saira, Sana and Sarah.

Several South Indian spellings keep an h that North Indian spelling drops: Samyuktha, Anvitha and Sahana are written here as families in Karnataka, Andhra and Tamil Nadu write them. Saanvi, Saisha, Samaira, Sanjana and Shanaya are popular names whose meanings are disputed, and each guide sets out what is and is not documented.