Neelkanth

Neelkanth meaning

Neelkanth (नीलकण्ठ) is a Hindu boy's name of Sanskrit origin. By its first sound, नी, it is a Vrishchik rashi name (Anuradha nakshatra) in the North Indian table.

Blue-necked; a peacock; a name of Shiva

Also used to mean: lord shiva, blue-throated

Neelkanth (नीलकण्ठ) means "blue-throated", from nīla, "dark blue", and kaṇṭha, "throat". Monier-Williams gives it as a peacock and several other birds, including the blue-necked jay, and as a title of Shiva, whose throat turned dark when he swallowed the poison churned up from the ocean, saving the world from it. Name lists give "Lord Shiva" or "blue-throated", matching the dictionary. Nilakantha was also the name of the scholar whose commentary on the Mahabharata is the one most often printed with it.

In Hindu tradition this is a name of Shiva.

Source: Monier-Williams, Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), p. 566 · entry nīla-kaṇṭha · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026

References: Monier-Williams, nīla-kaṇṭha, p. 566 · Monier-Williams, nīla, p. 566

Famous namesakes

• Nilakantha Chaturdhara, commentator on the Mahabharata

Fits your syllable

First sound नी

Anuradha nakshatra, pada 2 · Vrishchik rashi

North Indian table. Tables vary by region and family tradition, so confirm with your priest.

Spellings

Neelkanth · Nilkanth · Neelakantan · Nilakantha

Related names

Also meaning god

Also starting with Nee-

More Sanskrit names

Browse more like this