boy's name
Arjun
AR-jun
- Origin Indian
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 19,260
the United States
#490
2025 births
Arjun is a boy's name of Sanskrit origin meaning "bright", "white" or "silver". It belongs to the archer at the center of the Mahabharata, whose conversation with Krishna before battle is the Bhagavad Gita.
- Arjun is a name of Indian origin.
- Peaked in 2014, when 650 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 5,391 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1967.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Arjun over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1960s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1960s | 12 |
| 1970s | 34 |
| 1980s | 245 |
| 1990s | 908 |
| 2000s | 2,433 |
| 2010s | 5,486 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 3,058 |
What Arjun means
Arjun means shining, white or clear, from the Sanskrit arjuna. The same root gives the Latin argentum, silver, and the Greek argos, bright — one of the clearest surviving links across the Indo-European languages.
Where Arjun comes from
Arjun comes from the Sanskrit arjuna, white, bright or silver, from a root that also produced the Latin argentum, silver, and hence Argentina. In the Mahabharata, Arjuna is the third Pandava brother and the greatest archer of his age; the Bhagavad Gita is his dialogue with Krishna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in which he refuses to fight his own kin and is answered. That places the name at the center of Hindu religious and literary tradition rather than at its edges. It appears in our records from 1967 and has risen with South Asian migration to English-speaking countries.
Arjun in use
Arjun charts in six of the seven countries we track and peaked in 2014.
How popular is Arjun?
In 2025, Arjun was given to 615 babies in the United States, ranking #490 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Arjun is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Arjun
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Arjun also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Arjun over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Arjun in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Arjun
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Arjun — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Arjun
What does the name Arjun mean?
Bright, white or silver, from the Sanskrit arjuna — a root shared with the Latin argentum, silver.
Who was Arjun in the Mahabharata?
The third Pandava brother and its greatest archer. The Bhagavad Gita is his dialogue with Krishna before the battle.
How do you pronounce Arjun?
AR-jun, with the stress on the first syllable.
How popular is the name Arjun?
In 2025, Arjun was given to 615 babies in the United States, ranking #490 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Arjun a girl's or a boy's name?
Arjun is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Arjun?
Arjun has 2 syllables.
When was Arjun most popular?
Arjun peaked in 2014, when 650 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Arjun a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Arjun currently ranks #255 in the United States. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.