Srinivasa (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

) is a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

name. The term Srinivasa is

Vaishnava Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, '' Mahavishnu''. It is one of the major Hindu denominations along wit ...

in origin, the combination of two

words, ''

Shri Shri (; , ) is a Sanskrit term denoting resplendence, wealth and prosperity, primarily used as an honorific. The word is widely used in South and Southeast Asian languages such as Assamese, Meitei ( Manipuri), Marathi, Malay (including In ...

'' (श्री) and ''nivasa'' (निवास). It is a name for males in India as well as a family surname. Shrinivasan (श्रीनिवासन्) is the singular nominative form, and along with its variants Srinivasan, Srinivas, and others, is used as a

forename A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a ...

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

Etymology

''Shri'' means "radiance" or "diffusing light"; ''nivasa'' means "place of residence", which is considered to be the source of light (as a metaphor for life) in Hindu scriptures. ''Shri'' is also an epithet of

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, , ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of wealth, fortune, prosperity, beauty, fertility, sovereignty, and abundance. She along with Parvat ...

who is the consort associated with

Venkateshvara Venkateswara (, ), also known as Venkatachalapati, Venkata, Balaji and Srinivasa, is a Hindu deity, described as a form or avatar of the god Vishnu. He is the presiding deity of Venkateswara Temple, Tirupati. His consorts, Padmavati and Bhud ...

, and often described to be embodied within him. Hence, the alternative meaning of this name is: "one within whom Lakshmi (Sri) lives".

Variants

Srinivas is the northern Indian variant of the original Sanskrit name Srinivasa, employed after the schwa-deletion in the Indo-Aryan languages. The use of the name Srinivasan (also rendered Sreenivasan) is common in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

and

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

. Similarly, the dialectical word, Srinivasulu, is commonly used in

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

and

Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...

. The name is also very much prevalent in

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

and

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

, among other parts of India. The other variants in English spelling include Sreenivas, Shrinivas, Shreenivas, Srinibas, Shrinibas.

Notable people

As first name

Srinivasa Ramanujan Srinivasa Ramanujan Aiyangar (22 December 188726 April 1920) was an Indian mathematician. Often regarded as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, though he had almost no formal training in pure mathematics, he made substantial con ...

, Indian mathematician *

Srinivas Srinivasa (Sanskrit ) is a Hindu name. The term Srinivasa is Vaishnava in origin, the combination of two Sanskrit words, ''Shri'' (श्री) and ''nivasa'' (निवास). It is a name for males in India as well as a family surname. Shriniv ...

, 1990s Tamil Nadu playback singer, also known as Srinivasan Doraiswamy *

Srinivasan Srinivasa (Sanskrit ) is a Hindu name. The term Srinivasa is Vaishnava in origin, the combination of two Sanskrit words, ''Shri'' (श्री) and ''nivasa'' (निवास). It is a name for males in India as well as a family surname. Shriniv ...

, also known as "Powerstar", Tamil comedian *

Sreenivasan Sreenivasan (born 6 April 1956) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, dubbing artist and producer who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. Sreenivasan has starred in over 225 films. Sreenivasan wrote the screenplays of films such a ...

, Malayalam script writer and actor *

Srinivas Avasarala Srinivas Avasarala (born 19 March 1984) is an Indian actor, film director and screenwriter who works in Telugu cinema. He received two Nandi Awards and a SIIMA Award. Early life Srinivas Avasarala was born on 19 March 1984 in Kakinada, Andhra ...

, actor *

Srinivasan Keshav Srinivasan Keshav is a computer scientist who is currently the Robert Sansom Professor of Computer Science at the University of Cambridge. Biography After undergraduate studies at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi in 1986, he received ...

, scientist *

Srinivas Kumar Sinha Lieutenant General Srinivas Kumar Sinha, PVSM, ADC (7 January 1926 – 17 November 2016) was an Indian Army General who served as the Vice Chief of Army Staff. After his retirement, he served as Governor of the states of Jammu and Kashmir, ...

(1926-2016), Indian soldier *

Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan (; born 21 April 1945), also known as Venkat, is an Indian former international cricketer and umpire. He was a right arm off break bowler and a lower order batter. He captained the Indian cricket team in te ...

, Indian cricketer

As middle name

Ullal Srinivas Mallya Ullal Srinivasa Mallya (21 November 1902 – 19 December 1965) was an Indian politician. He served an 18-year tenure as a member of Parliament in Lok Sabha, from 1946 to 1965. He played a key role in development of undivided Dakshina Kannada. ...

(1902-1965), Indian politician *

Vaman Srinivas Kudva Vaman Srinivas Kudva (; 9 June 1899 – 30 June 1967), popularly called V. S. Kudva, was a founding director of Syndicate Bank, one of the oldest and major commercial banks of India. Early life and education In 1899, Kudva was born in a conserv ...

(1899-1967), Indian businessman

As last name

* Trivikram Srinivas, Indian film director and screenwriter *

Adithya Srinivasan Adithya Srinivasan is an Indian singer. He is best known for his award winning ghazals, and international singles in classical, pop, and world music genres. His notable performances include sharing stage space with Hariharan and opening for ...

, Ghazal singer and global business development leader *

Akhila Srinivasan Akhila Srinivasan is the Managing Director of the Shriram Group Shriram Life Insurance Company. She is also the founder of the Shriram Foundation, a philanthropic organization with a focus on education, micro-credit, and anti-poverty initiati ...

, Indian businesswoman *

Balaji Srinivasan Balaji S. Srinivasan (born May 24, 1980) is an American entrepreneur and investor. He was the co-founder of Counsyl, the former chief technology officer (CTO) of Coinbase, and former general partner at the venture capital firm Andreessen ...

(born May 24, 1980), American entrepreneur and investor *

Dharmapuri Srinivas Dharmapuri Srinivas (27 September 1948 – 29 June 2024) was an Indian politician from Telangana. He was a four-time legislator, serving three terms as a Member of the Legislative Assembly and one term as a Member of the Legislative Council (ML ...

(born 27 September 1948), Indian politician *

Dipti Srinivasan Dipti Srinivasan is a Singaporean electrical engineer whose research involves renewable energy and smart grids. She is a professor in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering and director of the Centre for Green Energy Management & Sma ...

, Singaporean electrical engineer * Grandhi Srinivas, Indian politician *

Hari Sreenivasan Hariharan "Hari" Sreenivasan (born 1974) is an American broadcast journalist. Biography Sreenivasan was born in Mumbai, India, around 1974.Kamineni Srinivas Kamineni Srinivas is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party from Andhra Pradesh. He has won the 2014 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election and 2024 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election from Kaikalur. He won with 88,092 votes in ...

, Indian politician *

Kannan Srinivasan Kannan Srinivasan is an American politician from Virginia. In 2023, he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates to represent the 26th district. He was elected to the Virginia Senate in a special election on January 7, 2025. Personal lif ...

, Indian-American politician in Virginia * Krishnan Srinivasan, Indian diplomat *

M. B. Sreenivasan Manamadurai Balakrishnan Sreenivasan (19 September 1925 – 9 March 1988), or MBS, was a South Indian music director who worked mainly in the Malayalam and Tamil film industries. He was born to an orthodox Tamil Brahmin family on 19 Sept ...

(Manamadurai Balakrishnan known as MBS, 1925–1988), Indian music director *

M. N. Srinivas Mysore Narasimhachar Srinivas (16 November 1916 – 30 November 1999) was an Indian sociologist and social anthropologist. He is mostly known for his work on caste and caste systems, social stratification, Sanskritisation and Westernisation i ...

(Mysore Narasimhachar, 1916–1999), Indian sociologist * Madapuji Rajagopalan Srinivasan (born 31 May 1967), usually cited as M.R. Srinivasan, head of Agricultural Entomology at the Agricultural College and Research Institute of

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) is the state agricultural university of Tamil Nadu Headquartered in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. It is the first State Agriculture University (SAU) of India to be recognised by the Indian Council ...

. He has published works on both ''

Apis cerana ''Apis cerana'', the eastern honey bee, Asiatic honey bee or Asian honey bee, is a species of honey bee native to South, Southeast and East Asia. This species is the sister species of '' Apis koschevnikovi'' and both are in the same subgenus as ...

'' and ''

Apis mellifera The western honey bee or European honey bee (''Apis mellifera'') is the most common of the 7–12 species of honey bees worldwide. The genus name ''Apis'' is Latin for 'bee', and ''mellifera'' is the Latin for 'honey-bearing' or 'honey-carrying', ...

'' (western honey bee). * Madapusi Srinivasaprasad, Indian cricketer *

Mandyam Veerambudi Srinivasan Mandyam Veerambudi Srinivasan AM FRS, also known as "Srini", (born 1948) is an Australian bioengineer and neuroscientist who studies visual systems, particularly those of bees and birds. A faculty member at the University of Queensland, he ...

("Srini"), usually cited as M.V. Srinivasan (born 15 September 1948), bioengineer and

neuroscientist A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist specializing in neuroscience that deals with the anatomy and function of neurons, Biological neural network, neural circuits, and glia, and their Behavior, behavioral, biological, and psycholo ...

, who studies

visual system The visual system is the physiological basis of visual perception (the ability to perception, detect and process light). The system detects, phototransduction, transduces and interprets information concerning light within the visible range to ...

s, particularly those of Western honey bees (''

'') and birds; faculty member

Queensland Brain Institute The Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) is an Australian neuroscience research institute, located in Brisbane at the St Lucia campus of The University of Queensland (UQ). Founding director Professor Perry Bartlett established the QBI in 2003 wit ...

at the

University of Queensland The University of Queensland is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone ...

. * N. Srinivasan (Narayanaswami, born 1945), Indian industrialist and chemical engineer * P. Seenivasan, Indian politician, Deputy Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from 1971 to 1972 * P. Srinivas,

Indian Forest Service The Indian Forest Service (IFS) is the premier forest service of India. .The IFS is one of the three All India Services along with the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) & the Indian Police Service (IPS). It was constituted in the year 1966 un ...

officer *

P. B. Sreenivas Prathivadhi Bhayankara Sreenivas (22 September 1930 – 14 April 2013) widely known as P. B. S. was an Indian playback singer, composer, harmonium player, Lyricist and poet known for his works in South cinema, and Bollywood. His major chunk of ...

(Prathivadi Bhayankara, 1930–2013), Indian playback singer * R. Srinivasan, Indian politician, member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly *

Rangaswamy Srinivasan Rangaswamy Srinivasan (born February 28, 1929, in Madras, India) is a physical chemist and inventor with a 30-year career at IBM Research. He has developed techniques for ablative photodecomposition and used them to contribute to the development ...

, scientist *

Rettamalai Srinivasan Diwan Bahadur Rettamalai Srinivasan (7 July 1860 – 18 September 1945), commonly known as R. Srinivasan, was a scheduled caste activist and politician from then Madras Presidency of British India (now the Indian state of Tamil Nadu). He is a ...

, Indian politician * Shyam Srinivasan, Canadian professional midstakes poker player * Sri Srinivasan, American judge *

Subramaniam Srinivasan Subramaniam Srinivasan (4 January 1904 – 26 August 1969), popularly known by his screen name S. S. Vasan, was an Indian journalist, writer, advertiser, film producer, director and business tycoon. He is the founder of the Tamil-language maga ...

, Indian filmmaker * T. E. Srinivasan (Tirumalai Echambadi, 1950–2010), Indian cricketer * T. N. Srinivasan (Thirukodikaval Nilakanta, 1933–2018), economist who worked in the US *

Thengai Srinivasan Thengai Srinivasan (21 October 1937 – 9 November 1987) was an Indian actor who appeared in Tamil-language films and plays from the 1960s to the 1980s. He was given the prefix ''Thengai'' (coconut) after his role as a coconut-seller in th ...

(1937–1987), Indian actor *

U. Srinivas Uppalapu Srinivas (28 February 1969 – 19 September 2014) was an Indian mandolin player in Carnatic classical music and composer. U. Srinivas was called the Mozart of classical Indian music and he was a child prodigy. He was awarded the Padma ...

(Uppalapu, 1969–2014), Indian mandolin player *

Vandemataram Srinivas Kanneboina Srinivasa Rao Yadav, known professionally as Vandemataram Srinivas, is an Indian music director and playback singer who works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He has won two Filmfare Awards and six Nandi Awards. He got the prefix "Vand ...

, Indian music director, playback singer, actor and film director *

Vineeth Sreenivasan Vineeth Sreenivasan (born 1 October 1984) is an Indian actor, director, producer, dubbing artist, screenwriter, playback singer and lyricist who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. He is the eldest son of actor and screenwriter Sreeniva ...

(born 1 October 1985), Indian playback singer, actor, film director, screenwriter, producer, lyricist, etc., working in Malayalam cinema, son of actor-screenwriter

. * Yogi Srinivasan, Indian actor, son of

As pseudonym

Shrinivási Shrinivási (12 December 1926 – 26 January 2019) was a Surinamese poet, whose civil name is Martinus Haridat Lutchman. He was born in Kwatta, Suriname and a teacher by profession. In 1949 he moved to Curaçao where his earliest poetry was publi ...

, Surinamese poet and teacher

References

{{given name, type=both Indian masculine given names Masculine given names