Namakarana is the fourth of the sixteen samskaras which is followed while naming a newborn. The ritual is conducted on the 11th day of the child’s birth or on any auspicious day until the child’s first birthday. Namakarana is the ceremonial naming of the child in a prescribed format as per the Hindu traditions.

The Namakarana ritual is influenced by Vedic astrology and carried out amid poojas offering salutations to the gods, ancestors and then Navagraha homa. The ceremony is generally performed during the first half of the day and the child’s name is chosen based on the family deity, the astrological date and time of the child’s birth and the preference of parents and family members.

A traditional Hindu name consists of four parts, each signifying one of the qualities imbibed in the child by way of its birth into the family. The first name, “Kuladaiva Nama” refers to the family deity, then “Masa Nama” representing the lunar month in which the child was born, then the “Nakshatra Nama” based on the star under which the child is born and finally the “Vyavahara Nama” which is the preferred name. It is a common practice to use “Vyavahara Nama” as the first name in day-to-day life. The Namakarana ceremony bestows the child with an identity which it will use until the end and remembered for long in the future.

The Namakarana rituals will be conducted by a learned purohit with in-depth knowledge of Vedic astrology, who will suggest appropriate names based on the child’s horoscope. The child, accompanied by its parents, participates in the pooja conducted in front of a kalasha placed on a plate of rice. All the four names of the child are written on rice using a dried turmeric root. Following the pooja, offerings are given to the purohits, and the chosen name is whispered into the child’s right ear three times by the parents.

The Namakarana rituals are concluded by distributing prasadam to the participating family and friends.