Save Gender Masculine Usage Hinduism Scripts कूर्म(Sanskrit) Pronounced Pron. /ˈkuːɾ.mɐ/(Sanskrit) [key·simplify] Meaning & History Means "tortoise, turtle" in Sanskrit. This is the name of one of the avatars of the Hindu god Vishnu, who appears as a tortoise to support the base of Mount Mandara during the churning of the ocean.