Boy · Sanskrit · Hindu
Kunal
कुणालSay it ku-NAAL
- Meaning today
- Lotus, one with beautiful eyes
- Original meaning
- "a kind of bird; name of a son of Aśoka" Monier-Williams, p. 289
- Say it
- ku-NAAL
- Written
- कुणाल
- Other spellings
- Kunaal
- First sound
- कु · Mithun rashi
Kunal
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Kunal meaning
Kunal (कुणाल) is a Hindu boy's name of Sanskrit origin. By its first sound, कु, it is a Mithun rashi name (Ardra nakshatra) in the North Indian table.
Meaning today
Lotus, one with beautiful eyes
Original Sanskrit meaning
"a kind of bird; name of a son of Aśoka"
Source: Monier-Williams, Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), p. 289 · entry kuṇāla · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026
Kunal (कुणाल) is Sanskrit kuṇāla, which Monier-Williams gives as a kind of bird, citing the Buddhist Lalitavistara, and as the name of a place. Its most famous bearer is Kuṇāla, son of the emperor Aśoka, whose eyes, the dictionary notes, were put out as a result of rivalry among Aśoka's wives. Buddhist legend says he was named after the Himalayan kuṇāla bird because his eyes were as beautiful as the bird's, and name lists echo this with 'one with beautiful eyes'. Many lists give 'lotus' instead. We could not find that sense in the Sanskrit dictionaries, so it appears to be a modern meaning that has grown up around the name.
References: Monier-Williams, kuṇāla, p. 289 · Wikipedia, Kunala
Famous namesakes
- Kunala, son of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka
Fits your syllable
First sound कु
Ardra nakshatra, pada 1 · Mithun rashi
North Indian table. Tables vary by region and family tradition, so confirm with your priest.
Spellings
Kunal · Kunaal