In the name Dhanteras, what does 'dhan' mean?

In the name Dhanteras, “dhan” means wealth.

Dhanteras is commonly understood as a combination of dhan, “wealth,” and teras, a vernacular form referring to the thirteenth lunar day, or Trayodashi. The festival is therefore often translated as the thirteenth day associated with wealth. It marks the opening of the Diwali season for many communities.

The association with wealth explains several familiar customs. Families clean and decorate their homes, worship Lakshmi, and consider purchases of gold, silver, utensils, or other useful goods especially auspicious. Traders may also worship their shops, account books, safes, or instruments of work.

A common mix-up is to assume that dhan in every explanation refers only to money. Dhan can carry a broader sense of prosperity and valuable resources, while Dhanteras is also linked with Dhanvantari, the divine physician associated with Ayurveda and health. That connection gives the festival a second important theme: health and longevity alongside material prosperity. The word teras, meanwhile, points to the lunar date rather than to a separate object or deity.