Akhtar

akh-TAR; AK-tar
Persian
"star"

Akhtar Origin and Meaning

The name Akhtar is a boy's name of Persian origin meaning "star".

Used as a given name and a surname, Akhtar is a celestial choice with a grounded feel. Used among Persian, Punjabi, Urdu, Pashto, and Bengali speakers, it means "star", though if you follow its etymology back to Middle Persian, it may also refer to the planets or any other glowing celestial body.

Additionally, in Pashto, it may be associated with the Persian New Year (Nowruz) and with Eid Day, owing to the greeting akhtar de mubarak sha, meaning "May your festival be blessed". As such, "blessed, fortunate, lucky" is a more figurative meaning of Akhtar, and makes it perfect for a baby born on the day of a celebration.

While Akhtar is a unisex name, it does lean masculine in many places, with Iran and Iraq being notable excepts. Also transcribed as Akhter, Akthar, and Aktar, it appears as an element in spiritual compound names such as Akhtar-ud-Din ("star of the religion") or Akhtar-ul-Iman ("star of Faith").