| Arjun | Bodhi | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Bright; shining white | awakening, enlightenment |
| Origin | sanskrit | sanskrit |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | AR-jun | BOH-dee |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1967 | 1976 |
| Peak year | 2014 (650) | 2025 (1,301) |
| In 2025 | 615 | 1,301 |
| Trend | Rising | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Arjun | Bodhi |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 3,058 | 7,042 |
| 2010s | 5,486 | 6,291 |
| 2000s | 2,433 | 788 |
| 1990s | 908 | 156 |
| 1980s | 245 | 0 |
| 1970s | 34 | 15 |
| 1960s | 12 | 0 |
From Sanskrit arjuna (अर्जुन), 'white, bright, silvery, clear'. Best known as the heroic third Pandava prince and Krishna's friend in the Mahabharata; the literal root sense is 'shining/white' rather than 'warrior'.
From the Sanskrit word 'bodhi', meaning 'awakening' or 'enlightenment', a central concept in Buddhism (the Buddha attained bodhi under the Bodhi tree). Its use as a given name is modern and tied to this spiritual meaning.
Bodhi is more popular than Arjun today: about 1,301 US babies were given the name Bodhi in 2025, compared with 615 named Arjun.
Arjun means Bright; shining white (sanskrit origin), while Bodhi means awakening, enlightenment (sanskrit origin).
In US records, Arjun first appears in 1967 and Bodhi in 1976, so Arjun has the longer recorded history.