Boy · Sanskrit · Hindu
Govardhan
गोवर्धनSay it go-VUR-dhun
- Meaning today
- Hill lifted by Krishna, nourisher of cows
- Original meaning
- "the sacred hill near Mathura that Krishna lifted" Monier-Williams, p. 366
- Say it
- go-VUR-dhun
- Written
- गोवर्धन
- Other spellings
- Goverdhan, Gowardhan, Gobardhan
- First sound
- गो · Kumbh rashi
Govardhan
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Govardhan meaning
Govardhan (गोवर्धन) is a Hindu boy's name of Sanskrit origin. By its first sound, गो, it is a Kumbh rashi name (Shatabhisha nakshatra) in the North Indian table.
The sacred hill near Mathura that Krishna lifted
Also used to mean: hill lifted by Krishna, nourisher of cows
Govardhan (गोवर्धन) joins go, "cow", and vardhana, "increasing" or "thriving", so it literally suggests one who makes the herds prosper. Monier-Williams records it as the celebrated hill near Mathura that Kṛṣṇa lifted on one finger for seven days to shelter the cowherds from a storm of rain. It also lists Govardhana as the poet of the Saptashati of the 12th or 13th century. Name lists give it as the hill lifted by Krishna or "nourisher of cows". Govardhan Puja, the day after Diwali, recalls the story. Gobardhan is the Bengali and Odia form.
Source: Monier-Williams, Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), p. 366 · entry govardhana · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026
References: Monier-Williams, govardhana, p. 366 · Monier-Williams, vardhana, p. 926
Famous namesakes
- Govardhana, the 12th–13th century Sanskrit poet of the Saptashati
Fits your syllable
First sound गो
Shatabhisha nakshatra, pada 1 · Kumbh rashi
North Indian table. Tables vary by region and family tradition, so confirm with your priest.
Spellings
Govardhan · Goverdhan · Gowardhan · Gobardhan