List of Indian state and union territory name etymologies

The Republic of India was constituted in 1947 as a union of states. After the States Reorganisation Act of 1956 rearranged state boundaries along linguistic lines, many states were given names in their own languages. Many states are named due to their geographical characteristics, peculiar history or populations and colonial influences.

States

State name (# on map)	In state SAI	Meaning	Notes
Andhra Pradesh (1)	ఆంధ్ర ప్రదేశ్ (Telugu)	Province of Andhras	"Andhra" is the name of a tribe mentioned in ancient Sanskrit literature, later used as a synonym for Telugu people; "Pradesh" means province. The earliest extant text to mention the word Andhra is Aitareya Brahmana. According to the text (7.18), when Vishwamitra's elder sons refused to accept his adoption of Shunahshepa, he cursed their descendants to be exiled from Aryavarta; the Andhras were one of these descendant groups.
Arunachal Pradesh (2)	अरुणाचल प्रदेश (Hindi)	Land of rising sun	In Sanskrit, aruna means "dawn-lit" and achal "mountains".
Assam (3)	অসম (Assamese)	"Uneven" or from "Ahom"	Most scholars believe that Assam is derived from the Ahoms, who ruled Assam for six centuries. The word Ahom itself may be derived from Shan (syam in Assamese) or from the Sanskrit word "asama" (uneven, in the sense of "unequal" or "peerless"). See Etymology of Assam.
Bihar (4)	बिहार (Hindi)	Monastery	From Sankrit Vihara ("Buddhist monastery"). Foreign invaders often used abandoned viharas as military cantonments; the word Bihar may have come from the large number of viharas thus used in the area.
Chhattisgarh (5)	छत्तीसगढ़ (Hindi)	Thirty-six forts	Chhattisgarh translates to "Thirty-six forts" in Hindi. There are several theories about what the term "Thirty-six forts" refers to; see Chhattisgarh#Etymology. According to the various theories, the term may refer to the 36 pillars of a temple, 36 former feudal territories or 36 houses. Another theory says that the term is actually a corruption of the word "Chedisgarh" that refers to the Chedi dynasty.
Goa (6)	गोंय (Konkani)	Uncertain, probably related to "cow"	The name Goa came to European languages via Portuguese, but its precise origin is unclear. A number of theories about its origin are centered around the Sanskrit word go (cow). For example, the legend of Krishna names a mountain where he saved the cow; the mountain was named "Gomantak", which later became Goa. For other theories, see Goa#Etymology.
Gujarat (7)	ગુજરાત (Gujarati)	Land of "Gurjars"	The Gurjars, who ruled the area around the 8th century.
Haryana (8)	हरियाणा (Hindi)	Abode of God or Green forest	One theory is that the name derives from the Sanskrit words Hari (a name of Vishnu) and ayana (home), meaning "the Abode of God". Another theory traces the name to the words hari (green) and aranya (forest).
Himachal Pradesh (9)	हिमाचल प्रदेश (Hindi)	Land of the snow-clad mountains	In Sanskrit, hima means "snow" and achal "mountain".
Jammu and Kashmir (10)	جموں و کشمی (Kashmiri)	Jammu and Kashmir regions	The word "Jammu" is possibly named after the king Jambu Lochan. "Kashmir" may mean the "Land desiccated by water" (from Sanskrit Ka, water + shimira, to desiccate) or may be derived from the name of the sage Kashyapa.
Jharkhand (11)	झारखण्ड (Hindi)	Forest Land	jhari means "dense forest" in Sanskrit. khand means "land."
Karnataka (12)	ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ (Kannada)	Lofty Land	From karu + nad = karnad, which means "lofty land", referring to the Deccan plateau. karnataka is the adjectival form of karnad, and means "of karnad". In 1947, this state was formed from the princely state of Mysore. In 1956, the Kannada-speaking regions of neighboring states were added to Mysore state. The name was changed to Karnataka in 1973.
Kerala (13)	കേരളം (Malayalam)	Land added on or Land of "Cheras" or Land of Coconut Trees	There are two main theories about the derivation of "Kerala". (1) According to Hindu mythology, parts of Kerala were created by Lord Parasurama, who reclaimed the land from the sea. Hence the name is derived from chernna ("added") and alam ("land"), hence the Sanskrit keralam, "the land added on". (2) The Chera dynasty, which ruled most of Kerala from the 1st to the 5th centuries AD, gave its name to the region; chera alam later became Keralam. This is often disputed in academic circles because the word Kerala existed even before the rule of Cheras. One of Ashoka's inscriptions describes Keralaputra as a land on the Mauryan border.
Madhya Pradesh (14)	मध्य प्रदेश (Hindi)	Central Province	Prior to independence, the majority of this area was administered by the British as the Central Provinces and the Central Indian States. At independence, several of these districts were joined together as the Central Provinces and Berar. In 1950, these two regions were merged with Makrai and Chhattisgarh and the term "Central Provinces" was translated to Hindi as Madhya Pradesh.
Maharashtra (15)	महाराष्ट्र (Marathi)	Uncertain; possibly "Maha" (Great) + Sanskritized form of "Ratta dynasty"	The most widely accepted theory among scholars is that the words Maratha and Maharashtra ultimately derive from a compound of maha (Sanskrit for "great") and rashtrika. The word rashtrika is a Sanskritized form of Ratta, the name of a tribe or dynasty of petty chiefs ruling in the Deccan region. Yet another theory is that the term is derived from maha ("great") and rathi or ratha (charioteer). Another theory states that the term derives from the words maha ("Great") and rashtra ("nation"). However, this theory has not found acceptance among modern scholars who believe it to be the Sanskritized interpretation of later writers.
Manipur (16)	মণিপুর (Manipuri)	Jewelled Land	From Sanskrit, mani ("jewel") + pur ("city").
Meghalaya (17)	Megahalaya (Khasi)	The abode of clouds	From Sanskrit, megha ("clouds") and alaya ("abode").
Mizoram (18)	Mizoram (Mizo)	Land of the highlanders	mi means "people" and zo means "hill" and "ram" means country.
Nagaland (19)	Nagaland (English)	Land of the Nagas.	Naga is an exonym used to describe several tribes in the region. The origin of the word "Naga" is uncertain, but one theory states that it originated from the Burmese word Naka, meaning people with earrings or pierced noses.
Odisha (20)	ଓଡ଼ିଶା (Odia)	Land of the "Odias"	The name of the state is derived from the Sanskrit odra vishaya or odra desha that referred to the Odra people who inhabited the central part of the region. Sanskrit and Pali literatures mention the Odra people as odrah and oddaka.
Punjab (21)	ਪੰਜਾਬ (Punjabi)	Land of five rivers	A combination of the Persian words punj ("five") and ab ("water"). The five rivers are the Beas, Sutlej, Ravi, Chenab and Jhelum.
Rajasthan (22)	राजस्थान (Hindi)	Land of Kings	raja means king in Sanskrit. During British rule, this area was known as Rajputana, "land of the Rajputs".
Sikkim (23)	सिक्किम (Limbu)	New Palace	The most widely accepted origin of the name Sikkim is that it is a combination of two words in Limbu: su ("new") and khyim ("palace" or "house"), in reference to the palace built by the state's first ruler, Phuntsog Namgyal. The Tibetan name for Sikkim is Denjong, which means "valley of rice".
Tamil Nadu (24)	தமிழ்நாடு (Tamil)	Homeland of "Tamils"	nadu in the Tamil language means "homeland" or "nation" hence Tamil Nadu means "homeland of Tamils". The origin of the world "Tamil" itself is uncertain: theories range from "self speech" to "sweet sound" (see Tamil language#Etymology).
Telangana (25)	తెలంగాణ (Telugu)	Land of three Lingas	The name Telangana is thought to have been derived from the word "trilinga", as in the "trilinga desha", which translates to "the country of the three Lingas". According to a Hindu legend, Shiva descended in the lingam form on three mountains, Kaleshwaram, Srisailam and Draksharam, which marked the boundaries of the Trilingadesha, later called "telinga", "telunga" or "telugu".[6][7] The word "telinga" changed over time to Telangana and the name Telangana was designated to distinguish the predominantly Telugu-speaking region of the erstwhile Hyderabad State from its predominantly Marathi-speaking one, Marathwada.[8] One of the earliest uses of a word similar to Telangana can also be seen in a name of Malik Maqbul (14th century C.E.), who was called the "tilangani", which implies that he was from Telangana. He was the commander of the Warangal Fort (Kataka Paludu).[9]
Tripura (26)	ত্রিপুরা (Bengali)	Three cities	Several theories exist pertaining to the origin of Tripura's name (see Tripura#Name). Possible origins are from Kokborok (tui, "water" + pra, "near") and Sanskrit (tri, "three" + pura, "city"). The Sanskrit name is linked to Tripura Sundari, the presiding deity of the Tripura Sundari Temple at Udaipur, one of the 51 Shakti Peethas (pilgrimage centres of Shaktism), and to the legendary tyrant king Tripur, who reigned in the region. Tripur was the 39th descendant of Druhyu, who belonged to the lineage of Yayati, a king of the Lunar Dynasty.
Uttar Pradesh (27)	उत्तर प्रदेश (Hindi)	Northern Province	Prior to independence, the majority of the territory now comprising Uttar Pradesh was administered by the British under various names—the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, the United Provinces of British India, and simply United Provinces. The latter name was retained at independence. In 1950, the commonly used initials U.P. were preserved by adoption of the name Uttar Pradesh, meaning "Northern Province."
Uttarakhand (28)	उत्तराखण्ड (Hindi)	Northern Land	In 2000, the new state of Uttaranchal ("northern mountains") was split from Uttar Pradesh. In 2007, the name was changed to Uttarakhand ("northern land").
West Bengal (29)	পশ্চিমবঙ্গ (Bengali)	West part of Bengal	The term West Bengal originated after the Partition of Bengal province in 1905 by the colonial administration. The origin of the word "Bengal" itself is uncertain (see Bengal#Etymology). Possible origins include the name of a tribe that settled in the area around 1000 BCE and the Austric word for the sun god. Another theory states that the word "Bengal" is derived from the words Bonga (God of the [Santals]) + Aal (Device used in Agriculture).

Union Territories

A clickable map of the 29 states and 7 union territories of India

• Andaman and Nicobar Islands (A):
  • Andaman: Italian traveler Niccolò de' Conti (c. 1440) mentioned the word Andaman meant "Island of Gold". A theory that became prevalent in the late 19th century and has since gained momentum is that the name of the islands derives from Sanskrit via the Malay Handuman, named for the deity Hanuman.
  • Nicobar: The name "Nicobar" is probably derived from the Chola dynasty name for the islands, Nakkavaram (literally, "naked man" in Tamil) which is inscribed on a Tanjore inscription of 1050 CE.
• Chandigarh (B): "Chandi's fort". No actual fort ever existed; a large Chandi temple "protected" the locals, hence the name. The goddess Chandi appears as a form of the goddess Kali or Parvati.
• Dadra and Nagar Haveli (C): From the towns of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
• Daman and Diu (D): From the towns of Daman and Diu.
• Lakshadweep (E): "Hundred Thousand Islands". In Sanskrit, laksha means "a hundred thousand" and dweep means "island".
• National Capital Territory Delhi (F): The etymology of "Delhi" is uncertain. The very common view is that its eponym is Dhillu or Dilu, a king of the Mauryan dynasty, who built the city in 50 BC and named it after himself. The Hindi/Prakrit word dhili ("loose") was used by the Tomaras to refer to the city because the Iron Pillar built by Raja Dhava had a weak foundation and was replaced. Coins in circulation in the region under the Tomaras were called dehliwal. Some other historians believe that the name is derived from Dilli, a corruption of dehleez (Persian: دهليز‎‎) or dehali (Sanskrit: देहली). Both terms mean "threshold" or "gateway" and are symbolic of the city as a gateway to the Gangetic Plain. Another theory suggests that the city's original name was Dhillika.

• Puducherry (G): formerly known as Pondicherry: from Puducheri, from Tamil pudu "new" + cheri "settlement" or "camp".