We have observed violet emissions in sodium vapor using a single laser beam with wavelength tuned near two-photon resonance of the Na 3s - 5s transition. These emissions can be observed only along the direction of the laser propagation and only if the laser beam is focused. Tunable emission at 438.3 nm as well as fixed wavelength emissions at 405.7, 438.2, and 471.3 nm are generated. Hyper Raman radiation is involved in a six-wave mixing process which provides the tunable 438.3 nm emission. While both the six-wave mixing process and hyper Raman process can provide these three violet emissions, excitation function of the 438.2 nm emission shows a distinct feature which is different from other violet emissions at heatpipe temperatures higher than 628-degrees-K. The conversion efficiencies of the presently observed emissions are about an order of magnitude higher than those of the well studied four-wave mixing signals.
