Boy · Sanskrit · Hindu
Harish
हरीशSay it huh-REESH
- Meaning today
- Lord Vishnu
- Original meaning
- "a king of the monkeys" Monier-Williams, p. 1291
- Say it
- huh-REESH
- Written
- हरीश
- Other spellings
- Hareesh
Harish
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Harish meaning
Harish (हरीश) is a Hindu boy's name of Sanskrit origin.
Meaning today
Lord Vishnu
Original Sanskrit meaning
"a king of the monkeys"
Source: Monier-Williams, Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), p. 1291 · entry harī-śa · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026
Harish (हरीश) is a compound of hari and īśa, "lord". Indian name lists usually read it as "Lord Vishnu" or "lord of Hari", since Hari is one of the most familiar names of Vishnu-Krishna. Monier-Williams does list harīśa, but with a different sense: a king of the monkeys, cited from the Rāmāyaṇa. That reading works because hari, besides being a name of Vishnu, also means a monkey, a lion or a horse, and as an adjective a tawny, yellowish or green colour. Both readings therefore use real senses of hari; the dictionary simply records the monkey one, and the Vishnu sense is how families use the name today.
References: Monier-Williams, harīśa, p. 1291 · Monier-Williams, hari, p. 1289
Fits your syllable
First sound ह
Punarvasu nakshatra, pada 3 · Mithun rashi
This exact sound isn't in the table; the closest is हा, which differs only in vowel length. North Indian table. Tables vary by region and family tradition, so confirm with your priest.
Spellings
Harish · Hareesh