The Nag River, a tributary of the Kanhan River, flows in a serpentine path and so is named, "Nag", the Marathi word for Cobra. Nagpanchami, a religious day on which people worship/show respect to snake by providing milk as a food, is observed by majority of people. According to Dr. B. R. Ambedkar people of Nagpur belong to nag dynasty who were followers of the Buddha. And, so the river and city is named as Nagpur. While others says that the river flows through the old city of Nagpur and hence the city is named after this river. "Pur" is common suffix given to cities, villages and towns across India, and is often simply translated "city"

The seal of Nagpur Municipal Corporation depicts a cobra in the water of a river.