Ganesh

Family name origins & meanings

• Indian (southern states) : Hindu name from Sanskrit gạnẹsa ‘lord of the army’ (from gạna ‘army’ + īša), an epithet of the elephant-headed god who is the son of Shiva. Among Tamil and Malayalam speakers who have migrated from their home states it is a variant of Ganesan. It is found only as a male given name in India, but used as a family name in the U.S. among South Indians.