The Shinra Electric Power Company (神羅電気動力株式会社 Shinra Denki Dōryoku Kabushiki-gaisha?), or simply the Shinra Company (神羅カンパニー Shinra Kanpanī?), was a powerful mega-corporation which acted as a de facto government for much of Gaia. The Shinra Company grew from a small weapons manufacturer into a large conglomerate after the discovery of mako energy which the Shinra used to fuel the planet. In addition to their monopoly over mako the company employed a large military to secure their control over much of the planet. However, the company collapsed following the Meteor Crisis and now operates on a far smaller level. Despite this downsizing the company still plays a major role in world affairs.
According to materials pertaining to the original Final Fantasy VII, the company's name is parsed "Shin-Ra", though this parsing has not appeared in any English localizations and has been disused in Japan. "Shinra" is written with the Japanese kanji 神羅. This does not appear to be an actual Japanese surname, although its on-reading is the same as many others. The individual kanji mean god/divine and snare/net/silk, respectively.
The name Shinra may also be connected to Jenova, one of the major antagonists in Final Fantasy VII. Jenova is indicated to be an extraterrestrial lifeform, composed of strange cells that carry her will and power even when separated. It may be that JENOVA is portmanteau of Jehova and the Latin stem novus or nova meaning new. This explanation may be alluded to by the many times throughout the game in which Sephiroth mentions he wishes to become a god, and the theme that plays during one of the final fights, Birth of a God. Exactly why this name was chosen and what it might imply are unknown, although "Shin-Ra" could mean capturing a god, or the essence of a god, such as Mako.
It could also mean "Soul (of) Rome" since 神 in Japanese can also mean "soul" or "spirit" (see kami) and 羅 can represent "Rome" thus being a name representation of the game design idea behind Shinra and Gaia.
