Last updated: March 2026

Character Name

Shakuntala

Meaning — Derived from Sanskrit "shakunta" meaning "bird" — the name means "one who was cared for by birds". In legend, Shakuntala was abandoned by her mother and raised by birds in the forest hermitage of the sage Kanva. She is the heroine of Kalidasa's celebrated Sanskrit play.·Sanskrit origin·Female·sha-KUN-tah-lah

Shakuntala Kalidasa's Shakuntala is one of Sanskrit literature's most beloved heroines: raised in nature, innocent yet perceptive, capable of deep love and of sustaining enormous suffering with grace. Characters named Shakuntala tend to possess an untutored directness and a naturalness that sharply distinguishes them from those raised in more calculating social worlds.

Best genres for Shakuntala

MythologyHistorical FictionRomanceLiterary FictionDrama

Famous characters named Shakuntala

Shakuntala

Abhijnanashakuntalam (The Recognition of Shakuntala) Kalidasa

A forest-raised maiden of extraordinary beauty and virtue who falls in love with King Dushyanta; their story — separation, a curse of forgetfulness, and eventual recognition — is the masterwork of Sanskrit dramatic literature.


Variations & nicknames

ShakuntalaSakuntalaShakuntala

Pairs well with

Shakuntala DeviShakuntala SharmaShakuntala NairShakuntala RaoShakuntala Iyer

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Related names


More Sanskrit names

Deepa

Derived from Sanskrit "dipa" meaning "lamp", "light", or "that which gives light". The dipa is central to Hindu worship — the lamp lit before deities in puja — making this a name of sacred luminosity and devotional practice.

Radha

Derived from Sanskrit "radhana" meaning "success", "achievement", or alternatively "prosperity". In Hindu tradition, Radha is the supreme devotee and divine consort of Krishna — the embodiment of pure, selfless love (bhakti) in the Vaishnavite tradition.

Draupadi

Derived from Sanskrit meaning "daughter of Drupada" — the patronymic of the princess born from a sacrificial fire to the King Drupada of Panchala. She is the shared wife of the five Pandava brothers in the Mahabharata and one of the most complex heroines in world literature.

Priyanka

Derived from Sanskrit "priya" (beloved, dear) and the suffix "-anka" (mark or sign), meaning "one who is a beloved mark" or "she who gives a mark of love". It extends the root of Priya with added warmth and affection.

Sita

Derived from Sanskrit meaning "furrow" — Sita was found in a furrow of ploughed earth by King Janaka, and her name evokes the earth's fertility and nurturing power. In Hindu tradition she is an avatar of Lakshmi and the noble consort of Rama in the Ramayana.

Mohan

Derived from Sanskrit "mohana" meaning "enchanting", "bewitching", or "one who fascinates". It is one of the most celebrated epithets of Krishna, who enchanted all beings with his flute and his divine beauty.


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