Adideva (आदिदेव, IAST: Ādideva) is a Sanskrit-origin Hindu boy-name meaning “The primordial, first God”. From ādi (beginning, first, primeval) and deva (divine being, luminous one), this name establishes Viṣṇu as the original deity from whom all other divine forms emerge and through whom all divinity is sustained.

Meaning, etymology & significance

Ādi carries the weight of absolute priority—not merely 'old' but primordially first, before all creation, time, and multiplicity. Deva, from the root div (to shine, to play), points to Viṣṇu's self-luminous nature as pure consciousness. Together Ādideva proclaims him as the uncaused cause of all gods and all light, the fountainhead of the entire divine hierarchy. This epithet resonates with the Purāṇic vision of Viṣṇu resting on the primeval waters before creation begins.

Ādideva is a beloved and widely used given name across Vaiṣṇava communities, often chosen for first-born sons as an invocation of the First God's blessing. Pronounced ā-di-de-va, with a long initial 'ā'; common short form is Adi.

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Scriptural source

Adideva appears in the Vishnu Sahasranama, among the sacred names of Vishnu.

Astrology — nakshatra, rashi & numerology

By the standard Vedic correspondence between a name’s first syllable and the lunar mansion, Adideva aligns with the Krittika nakshatra, under the Mesha rashi (Moon sign). Its Chaldean name-number is 4.