Aryan

Aryan meaning

Aryan (आर्यन) is a Hindu boy's name of Sanskrit origin.

Honourable, respectable, noble; a respected man

Aryan (आर्यन) is a modern name built on Sanskrit ārya, which Monier-Williams glosses as "honourable, respectable, noble" and, as a noun, a respectable or honourable man. The -an ending is not a separate Sanskrit word, and Aryan itself is not a Sanskrit headword. In Indian religious language ārya marks what is worthy: Buddhism's Four Noble Truths are the catvāri ārya-satyāni, and Britannica notes that "noble" there describes the people who grasp the truths rather than the truths themselves. Name lists give Aryan as "noble" or "honourable", matching the dictionary. In nineteenth-century Europe the word was turned into a racial label that Nazi ideology later adopted, a misuse that has no part in the Indian name's meaning.

Source: Monier-Williams, Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), p. 152 · entry ārya · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026

References: Monier-Williams, ārya, p. 152 · Britannica, Four Noble Truths · Britannica, Aryan

Popularity abroad

• #872 United States, boys 2025 (down 87 from 785 in 2024)
  US Social Security Administration
• #302 England and Wales, boys 2025
  Office for National Statistics

Official birth registrations. India publishes no national name statistics.

Fits your syllable

First sound आ

Krittika nakshatra, pada 1 · Mesh rashi

This exact sound isn't in the table; the closest is अ, which differs only in vowel length. North Indian table. Tables vary by region and family tradition, so confirm with your priest.

Spellings

Aryan · Aaryan

Related names

Also starting with Ary-

More Sanskrit names

Browse more like this