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ArchivesRe: MEANING OF MY NAME
in reply to a message by Ravinder kumar
RAVINDER is a combination of the hindu name Ravi meaning 'sun' and the name of a hindu god, Indra.
This message was edited 1/22/2010, 11:29 AM
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Correct but two short comments: whereas the etymology of ravi is not not given on this site (from ru, to sound, according to tradition), the etymology presented for indra is funny. The -u of indu is a verbal suffix (ind means to drop, related to ud/und to flow and cognate with the root for water, and indu is a drop usually of the intoxicating sap, soma, or shining spherical shape or moon, etc.) and has no reason to disappearing on further suffixation. indra actually has a verbal suffix applied directly to the verb ind, and indra is one who drops or one who provides drops. The traditional derivations (and meaning of ind) is probably folk etymology and back formation.
The second comment is that indra, being in mythology the king of gods, often means the greatest when used as the second element of a compound. So, ravIndra would literally be the greatest sun (or greatest among suns), but that is not very meaningful. It seems to have originated as a substitute reading for surendra in an ancient text, where sura (traditionally from svar/sur/svR to sound or to shine; but may be a back formation from asura, powerful divine, from as to throw, drive away, or frighten away) stands for divine beings. surendra is actually also a common name and means the best among the gods, i.e. indra himself.
ravIndra was used as a name in Sanskrit, and a famous person with that name in modern India was the famous bengali poet ravindra nAtha ThAkura. The form ravinder is from North (instead of East) India.
The Sanskrit word kumAra of uncertain etymology (sometimes conjectured to have something to do with either kam, be pleasing, or with ku- originally a question marker, but usually bad, unfortunate, contemptibly, etc. and mR to die, something like easily dead) means son or youth. It was initally used after a parent's name to form the child's name, but today it is often included as a middle name element.
The second comment is that indra, being in mythology the king of gods, often means the greatest when used as the second element of a compound. So, ravIndra would literally be the greatest sun (or greatest among suns), but that is not very meaningful. It seems to have originated as a substitute reading for surendra in an ancient text, where sura (traditionally from svar/sur/svR to sound or to shine; but may be a back formation from asura, powerful divine, from as to throw, drive away, or frighten away) stands for divine beings. surendra is actually also a common name and means the best among the gods, i.e. indra himself.
ravIndra was used as a name in Sanskrit, and a famous person with that name in modern India was the famous bengali poet ravindra nAtha ThAkura. The form ravinder is from North (instead of East) India.
The Sanskrit word kumAra of uncertain etymology (sometimes conjectured to have something to do with either kam, be pleasing, or with ku- originally a question marker, but usually bad, unfortunate, contemptibly, etc. and mR to die, something like easily dead) means son or youth. It was initally used after a parent's name to form the child's name, but today it is often included as a middle name element.
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