A real kundli cannot be made from a name alone. A kundli is a chart of the planets at the moment and place of your birth, and a name contains neither. What a name can give you is a name rashi: the first sound of the name points to one of the 12 rashis through a traditional syllable table. That table is useful for choosing names and for some name-based matching, but it is not your birth chart.
Can you make a kundli by name only?
No software can calculate a Lagna, houses, planet positions or dasha periods from a name, because none of these depend on what you are called. Sites that offer a “kundli by name” either ask for your date of birth as well, or only give you a name rashi with general traits. To make a real Janam Kundli you need your date, time and place of birth; the step-by-step guide shows how.
What is a name rashi?
A name rashi (naam rashi) is the rashi linked to the first syllable of a name. The link comes from the nakshatras: each of the 27 nakshatras has four padas, each pada has one traditional starting sound, and each rashi holds nine padas. That is why every rashi below has nine sounds.
Families traditionally used this table the other way round: a child’s birth nakshatra and pada gave the first syllable of the name. So for a name chosen this way, the name rashi matches the birth rashi. For a name chosen any other way, it usually does not.
First letters for each rashi
| Rashi | First sounds of the name |
|---|---|
| Mesh (Aries) | Chu, Che, Cho, La, Li, Lu, Le, Lo, A |
| Vrishabh (Taurus) | I, U, E, O, Va, Vi, Vu, Ve, Vo |
| Mithun (Gemini) | Ka, Ki, Ku, Gha, Nga, Chha, Ke, Ko, Ha |
| Kark (Cancer) | Hi, Hu, He, Ho, Da, Di, Du, De, Do |
| Simha (Leo) | Ma, Mi, Mu, Me, Mo, Ta, Ti, Tu, Te (ट sounds) |
| Kanya (Virgo) | To (टो), Pa, Pi, Pu, Sha, Na (ण), Tha (ठ), Pe, Po |
| Tula (Libra) | Ra, Ri, Ru, Re, Ro, Ta, Ti, Tu, Te (त sounds) |
| Vrishchik (Scorpio) | To (तो), Na, Ni, Nu, Ne, No, Ya, Yi, Yu |
| Dhanu (Sagittarius) | Ye, Yo, Bha, Bhi, Bhu, Dha, Pha, Dha (ढ), Bhe |
| Makar (Capricorn) | Bho, Ja, Ji, Khi, Khu, Khe, Kho, Ga, Gi |
| Kumbh (Aquarius) | Gu, Ge, Go, Sa, Si, Su, Se, So, Da |
| Meen (Pisces) | Di, Du, Tha (थ), Jha, Na (ञ), De, Do, Cha, Chi |
Some sounds look the same in English letters, so use the Hindi letter to decide:
- “Ta, Ti, Tu, Te” with the hard ट sound belong to Simha; with the soft त sound, to Tula. “To” with ट belongs to Kanya, and with त to Vrishchik.
- “Da, Di, Du, De, Do” with the hard ड sound belong to Kark. With the soft द sound, “Da” belongs to Kumbh and “Di, Du, De, Do” to Meen.
- “Na” belongs to Vrishchik for न, to Kanya for ण and to Meen for ञ. “Tha” belongs to Kanya for ठ and to Meen for थ.
How to use the name table
Say the name aloud and find its first syllable in the table. The table works on spoken sounds, not on spelling:
- Rahul starts with “Ra”, so the name rashi is Tula.
- Amit starts with “A”, so the name rashi is Mesh.
- Veena starts with “Vi” (वी), so the name rashi is Vrishabh.
- Ketan starts with “Ke”, so the name rashi is Mithun.
- Gita starts with “Gi” (गी), so the name rashi is Makar.
- Seema starts with “Si” (सी), so the name rashi is Kumbh.
Where do the name sounds come from?
Each sound in the table belongs to one pada (quarter) of one nakshatra. A nakshatra has four padas, so it has four sounds, and each rashi holds nine padas. The first seven nakshatras show the pattern:
| Nakshatra | Sounds of its four padas | Rashi |
|---|---|---|
| Ashwini | Chu, Che, Cho, La | Mesh |
| Bharani | Li, Lu, Le, Lo | Mesh |
| Krittika | A, I, U, E | A in Mesh; I, U, E in Vrishabh |
| Rohini | O, Va, Vi, Vu | Vrishabh |
| Mrigashira | Ve, Vo, Ka, Ki | Ve, Vo in Vrishabh; Ka, Ki in Mithun |
| Ardra | Ku, Gha, Nga, Chha | Mithun |
| Punarvasu | Ke, Ko, Ha, Hi | Ke, Ko, Ha in Mithun; Hi in Kark |
Krittika’s sounds are split because this nakshatra crosses the border between Mesh and Vrishabh. The same pattern runs through all 27 nakshatras. At a naming ceremony, the family astrologer reads the Moon’s nakshatra and pada from the baby’s kundli and gives the matching sound for the name: the Moon in Rohini pada 2 gives “Va”.
Name rashi vs birth rashi: what is the difference?
| Name rashi | Birth rashi (Moon sign) | Western zodiac sign | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comes from | The first sound of your name | The Moon’s sidereal sign at your birth | The Sun’s tropical sign on your birthday |
| Needs | Only the name | Date, time and place of birth | The date of birth (the time only on the day the Sun changes sign) |
| Changes if you change your name | Yes | No | No |
| Used for | Choosing names, quick name-based matching | Kundli reading, dasha, Sade Sati, guna milan | Western horoscopes in magazines and apps |
All three can differ for the same person. When the name rashi and the birth rashi differ, the birth rashi is the one used in a kundli. Your birth rashi appears as “Moon sign (Rashi)” at the top of the free kundli result.
Does changing your name change your kundli?
No. Your kundli comes from the moment and place of your birth, so a new name leaves every planet, house and dasha date exactly where it was. A new name changes only the name rashi, because the name rashi comes from the first sound. That is why astrologers read dasha, Sade Sati and guna milan from the birth rashi whenever the birth details are known.
Is kundli matching by name accurate?
Matching by name works in two steps. The first sound of each name gives a nakshatra pada from the table (“Ra” gives Chitra pada 3, in Tula), and the eight kootas of guna milan are then scored from those two nakshatras and rashis. So a name match is only as accurate as that guess. The traditional guna milan uses the Moon nakshatra of both people at birth. If the names were not chosen from the birth nakshatra, the name match and the birth match can give different scores. When the birth details are known, use the kundli matching tool for the real result.
Families traditionally fall back on name matching when one person’s birth details are missing. If only the birth time is missing, matching by date of birth still beats matching by name, because the date and place already give the Moon sign and usually the nakshatra.
How to find your birth rashi in a minute
Open the free kundli maker, enter your date, time and place of birth, and press Make my Kundli. Your birth rashi appears in the Moon sign (Rashi) box at the top of the result, next to your Lagna and your birth nakshatra with its pada. The kundli is free and needs no sign-up.
What to do if you do not know the birth details
A name is a weak substitute, but you rarely need it:
- Find the date. School certificates, passports and Aadhaar records carry the date of birth.
- Find the place. The birth certificate or family memory usually knows the town.
- Look for the time. The birth certificate, the hospital or an old janam patri often has it.
Even without the time, the date and place already give your Moon sign and usually your nakshatra. Our guide to the kundli without birth time explains what you can still trust.
Quick answers
Can I find my rashi from my name? You can find your name rashi from the table above. Your birth rashi needs your date of birth.
Why do two websites show different rashis for my name? Some use the first letter, others the first sound, and a few use different syllable lists. The birth rashi does not have this problem.
Is my name nakshatra my birth nakshatra? Only when your name was chosen from your birth nakshatra at a naming ceremony. Otherwise the two are unrelated; your birth nakshatra is shown in the free kundli result.
Can I read my rashifal by my name rashi? Daily rashifal is written for the Moon sign. Without birth details, the name rashi is the traditional stand-in; with them, read the rashifal for your birth rashi.
Do the Hindi and English name tables differ? No. The table is the same; only the way the sounds are written changes. Hindi letters show each sound exactly, which is why they settle the doubtful cases above.
Is there a name rashi calculator? The table above is the calculator: find the first sound of the name in it. For your birth rashi, the free kundli works it out from your birth details.
Can I download a kundli made by name? A name-only chart is not a kundli. Make your kundli from your birth details and save it as a PDF; see the free kundli PDF guide.