Etymology and Other Names
According to the Monier Williams Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), the name Iravan, also spelt Irawan, is formed from the root Iravat (इरावत्, Irāvat), also spelt Irawat. In turn, the root Iravat is derived from Irā (इरा)—closely linked with Iḍā (इडा)—meaning "possessing food", "endowed with provisions" or, by extension, "comfortable" (as used in the Mahabharata and the Rig and Atharva vedic scriptures). Alf Hiltebeitel, George Washington University professor of religion, suggests that the Sanskrit name Iravan or Iravant is derived from Iḍā-vant, "one who possessed Iḍā". The French Indologist Madeleine Biardeau describes religious use of the word Iḍā as reference to an "oblatory substance consumed by the participants from which comes all fecundity of the sacrifice". Based on this definition, Biardeau concludes that Iravant means sacrificial victim in the Mahabharata. Iḍā is also used elsewhere to denote a substance that Devas (demi-gods) and Asuras (demons) vie for.
Iravan is generally known as Aravan, also spelt as Aravaan in South India. He is revered as a deity in two southern Indian Hindu cults: the Kuttantavar cult (dedicated solely to Aravan), and the cult of Draupadi (Aravan's stepmother and Arjuna's wife). In his own cult, Aravan is also known as Kuttantavar (கூத்தாண்டவர்), originating from the legend of Kuttantavar killing the demon Kuttacuran. This name is sometimes spelled as Kuttandar, Khoothandavar or Koothandavar.
The South Indian, Tamil name, Aravan, is popularly believed to be derived from the word aravam (அரவம்) (snake). Aravan's association with snakes is also apparent in his iconography.
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