Singh - Etymology

Etymology

The word "Singh" is derived to Sanskrit Siṃha meaning lion. Several variants of the word are found in other languages:

• In Hindi Devanagari script, the name is written सिंह ("siṅh", ) always pronounced सिंघ ("singh", ). Other variants include Simha, Sinha, and Singhal
• In Punjabi (Gurmukhi script), the name is written as ਸਿੰਘ and pronounced as Singh.
• In Sinhalese, the name is written as සිංහ and pronounced as Sinha.
• The term Sinhalese referring to peoples of Sri Lanka, meaning "Lion Blooded" (Sinha = lion, le = blood) may be construed as having origin in the word 'Singh'. The Sinhalese people are said to be descended from Prince Vijaya (a king who is fabled to have descended from a lion)
• In Marathi, the name is written and pronounced as सिंह (Sinh).
• In Malayalam, simham (സിംഹം) means lion in English
• In Tamil, the word for lion is Singham, Singhan, Sing or Singhe written as சிங்க, also derived from Sanskrit (see Singapore)
• In Gujarati, it is spelled as સિંહ (Sinh). Another variant is Sinhji, the form of Singh used in Gujarat, where the 'g' is dropped and the suffix of respect 'ji' is added.
• In Burmese, it is spelled သီဟ (thiha), derived from the Pali variant siha.
• Chinese is said to have also derived the word for lion from Buddhist missionaries from India.
• In Thailand, Singha, written as Thai: สิงห์ with final syllable marked as silent, refers to a mythical lion; the zodiac sign of Leo; a popular brand of beer, Singha; and is frequently used as a place name (for instance, Ban Singh Tha). Singhakhom Thai: สิงหาคม, in which the /ha/ is pronounced, is the Thai solar calendar month of August. Sing Toe Thai: สิงโต, which omits /ha/ entirely and adds Thai for big or grown up, refers to the lion. All except "Toe" are of Sanskrit origin
• A common surname of Bihar, "Sinha" also may have had origins in the word "Singh."
• Singapore is derived from the Malay word Singapura (Sanskrit: सिंहपुर, lit. Lion City).