Nagarjuna
/N-AA-G-AA-R-JH-UW-N-AH/
The silver serpent, the Buddhist philosopher who founded Madhyamaka and transformed Indian thought — Nagarjuna was the 2nd-century CE thinker whose doctrine of shunyata (emptiness) became the philosophical foundation of Mahayana Buddhism. His name combines 'naga' (serpent) with 'arjuna' (silver/bright), and legend says he retrieved the Prajnaparamita sutras from the underwater naga kingdom
See Nagarjuna scored for your familyMeaning & origin
Nagarjuna is a boy's name of Sanskrit origin, traditionally used in Buddhist families. The name means "The silver serpent, the Buddhist philosopher who founded Madhyamaka and transformed Indian thought — Nagarjuna was the 2nd-century CE thinker whose doctrine of shunyata (emptiness) became the philosophical foundation of Mahayana Buddhism. His name combines 'naga' (serpent) with 'arjuna' (silver/bright), and legend says he retrieved the Prajnaparamita sutras from the underwater naga kingdom" and belongs to the Wisdom cluster — names meaning knowledge, insight, and thoughtful presence.
Beyond its Buddhist heritage, Nagarjuna is also used in Hindu traditions, reflecting how this name has traveled across cultures.
Common among Indian, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayali families, Nagarjuna carries cultural weight that goes beyond its dictionary definition — it's a name with a story and a community.
Numerology of Nagarjuna
Numerology assigns each name a single-digit destiny number by summing its letter values. Different schools use different mappings — NameRoot computes both so you can see how Nagarjuna resonates in either tradition.
How Nagarjuna sounds
NameRoot scores the phonetic fit of every name against the sound of your last name. The pronunciation of Nagarjuna breaks down into 9 phonemes: /N-AA-G-AA-R-JH-UW-N-AH/. In the app, you'll see how those sounds flow with your family name across rhythm, stress, and consonant clusters.
Nicknames
Common affectionate forms of Nagarjuna — useful for everyday family conversation, early childhood, or as standalone given names themselves.
The six signals, applied to Nagarjuna
NameRoot scores every name across six independent dimensions. Here's how Nagarjuna maps to each — install the app to see the full compatibility score for your specific family.
Names similar to Nagarjuna
If Nagarjuna resonates with you, these names live in the same world — drawn from the same tradition, sharing the same meaning, or echoing a similar sound.
From the same tradition
Other Buddhist boy names, common in Indian families
Sharing the same meaning
Other Buddhist boy names from the Wisdom cluster
Names that sound similar
Buddhist boy names that open with the same syllables as Nagarjuna
Common questions about Nagarjuna
What does the name Nagarjuna mean?
Nagarjuna means "The silver serpent, the Buddhist philosopher who founded Madhyamaka and transformed Indian thought — Nagarjuna was the 2nd-century CE thinker whose doctrine of shunyata (emptiness) became the philosophical foundation of Mahayana Buddhism. His name combines 'naga' (serpent) with 'arjuna' (silver/bright), and legend says he retrieved the Prajnaparamita sutras from the underwater naga kingdom." It is a boy name of Sanskrit origin, traditionally used in Buddhist families.
Is Nagarjuna a boy or girl name?
Nagarjuna is most commonly used as a boy name.
What is the origin of the name Nagarjuna?
Nagarjuna is of Sanskrit origin, used in Buddhist, Hindu traditions, commonly among Indian, Marathi, Bengali families.
What are common nicknames for Nagarjuna?
Common short forms of Nagarjuna include Naga, Nagi.
What is the numerology of Nagarjuna?
Nagarjuna has a Pythagorean destiny number of 33 — the master teacher — unconditional love in action.
See how Nagarjuna scores for your family
NameRoot is the only baby-name app that scores every name across 6 signals against your specific family context. Download free — Nagarjuna is waiting.
Get NameRoot — free