In the nāmakaraṇa (naming) tradition, a child's name is chosen to begin with the sound tied to their exact janma-nakshatra pada. Born under Anurādhā, that starting sound is one of four — Na, Ni, Nu, Ne — depending on which of the four padas the Moon was in.
The four padas and their naming syllable
Pada
Starting sound
Devanagari
1
Na
ना
2
Ni
नी
3
Nu
नू
4
Ne
ने
Nāmakaraṇa (naming) tradition
नाम · Baby names by pada
Popular names that begin with each pada's sound, with their meaning. The syllable comes from the classical table above; the names do not — they are everyday usage, chosen by us, and the rest of the name is always your choice.
Pada 1 · ना Na
Name
For
Meaning
नारायणNarayan
Boy
Lord Vishnu
नागेशNagesh
Boy
Lord Shiva
नागेंद्रNagendra
Boy
king of serpents
नारायणीNarayani
Girl
Goddess Lakshmi
Pada 2 · नी Ni
Name
For
Meaning
नीरजNeeraj
Boy
lotus
नीलNeel
Boy
blue
नीलकंठNeelkanth
Boy
Lord Shiva
नीलेशNeelesh
Boy
Lord Krishna
नीलमNeelam
Girl
sapphire
नीरजाNeerja
Girl
lotus
नीलिमाNeelima
Girl
blueness
नीतिNeeti
Girl
morality, righteous conduct
Pada 3 · नू Nu
Name
For
Meaning
नूतनNutan
Girl
new
नूपुरNupur
Girl
anklet
Pada 4 · ने Ne
Name
For
Meaning
नेहाNeha
Girl
rain, love
नेत्राNetra
Girl
eye
प्रमाण · Where this comes from
This is the classical nāma-akṣara (naming-syllable) table used across muhurta and panchanga practice: each of the 27 nakshatras' 4 padas (108 in total) carries one traditional starting sound. Nāmakaraṇa is counted among the shodasha samskaras in muhurta manuals — it sets the auspicious sound, not the whole name; everything after the first syllable is free choice.
Tradition ties the name's first sound to the exact pada: pada 1 — Na (e.g. Narayan, Nagesh) · pada 2 — Ni (e.g. Neeraj, Neel) · pada 3 — Nu (e.g. Nutan, Nupur) · pada 4 — Ne (e.g. Neha, Netra). There is no single answer without knowing the exact pada — find it first from the birth time.
Does the pada matter for naming?
Yes — each nakshatra has 4 padas (3°20' each), and the tradition assigns one starting sound per PADA, not one per nakshatra. Two babies born under the same nakshatra can traditionally get different starting sounds if they were born in different padas.
Does the whole name have to start exactly with this sound?
The tradition sets only the opening sound — the rest of the name, its meaning and length are entirely open. Many families treat it as a gentle guide rather than a strict rule, and that is the spirit in which this page presents it too.
Sources
Nāmakaraṇa (naming) traditionThe nāmakaraṇa syllable-per-pada table ('nāma-akṣara koshtaka', also marketed as 'Swar Siddhanta' by some panchanga sites): each of the 108 nakshatra-padas carries a traditional starting sound for the child's name. Nāmakaraṇa is named among the shodasha samskaras in muhurta manuals (Rama Daivajna's Muhurta Chintamani and the Muhurta Martanda both treat naming among the auspicious-timing samskaras), and the akshara-per-pada table itself is standardized and reproduced identically across panchanga practice and Vedic-naming references — it is not attributed to one specific numbered shloka in any single edition, and we say so honestly (same treatment as `nakshatra_tradition`/`parashari_tradition`/`anka_tradition` elsewhere in this KB). Triangulated for this entry against three independent renderings before being accepted: Drik Panchang's 'Nakshatra Pada Swar Siddhanta' table (drikpanchang.com), Ishvaram's per-nakshatra naming-syllable reference table (ishvaram.com), and cross-checks against GrahaGuru, Pitarau and a 2008 Astrosage community table for the handful of padas (Ardra pada 4, Shravana pada 4, Uttara Bhadrapada pada 4) where the first two sources initially disagreed — resolved in every case by 3+ way majority, never by picking one source and trusting it blindly.