Boy · Sanskrit · Hindu
Uddhav
उद्धवSay it OOD-dhuv
- Meaning
- A festival; joy; sacrificial fire; name of Krishna's friend and counsellor Monier-Williams, p. 188–189
- Say it
- OOD-dhuv
- Written
- उद्धव
- Other spellings
- Udhav, Uddhava
- First sound
- उ · Vrishabh rashi
Uddhav
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Uddhav meaning
Uddhav (उद्धव) is a Hindu boy's name of Sanskrit origin. By its first sound, उ, it is a Vrishabh rashi name (Krittika nakshatra) in the North Indian table.
A festival; joy; sacrificial fire; name of Krishna's friend and counsellor
Uddhav (उद्धव) is the Sanskrit uddhava. Monier-Williams gives the word as a sacrificial fire, a festival or holiday, and joy, and as the name of Uddhava, a Yādava who was Kṛṣṇa's friend and counsellor in the Mahābhārata and the Purāṇas. In the eleventh book of the Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Kṛṣṇa's long teaching to him is known as the Uddhava Gītā, and in the Braj stories he is the messenger Kṛṣṇa sends to comfort the gopīs. Name lists give "Krishna's friend" first, then "festival" and "sacrificial fire", all in the dictionary. The name is especially well known in Maharashtra, carried by the politician Uddhav Thackeray.
Source: Monier-Williams, Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), p. 188–189 · entry ud-dhava · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026
References: Monier-Williams, ud-dhava, pp. 188–189 · Wikipedia, Uddhava · Wikipedia, Uddhav Thackeray
Famous namesakes
- Uddhava, friend and counsellor of Krishna
- Uddhav Thackeray, former Chief Minister of Maharashtra
Fits your syllable
First sound उ
Krittika nakshatra, pada 3 · Vrishabh rashi
North Indian table. Tables vary by region and family tradition, so confirm with your priest.
Spellings
Uddhav · Udhav · Uddhava