Baby names
Hindu Baby Name Finder
Find the syllables a baby's name traditionally begins with, from the Moon's nakshatra and pada at birth, as Swar Siddhanta gives them.
Naming by the birth star
In the Namakarana samskara, the naming ceremony, the child's name traditionally begins with the syllable of the nakshatra pada the Moon was in at birth. Each of the 27 nakshatras has four padas, and each pada has its syllable.
How it is worked out
The Moon's sidereal position at the moment of birth gives its nakshatra (13°20′ of the zodiac) and pada (3°20′). The Moon moves through a pada in about six hours, so the birth time matters.
Choosing the name
Many families keep the nakshatra name for rituals and use another name every day. A pada's syllable has related forms (such as चु and चू), and a name beginning with any of them is taken to suit it.