Karka, the Crab or Cancer, is the fourth sign and is the only sign ruled by the Moon. Its chart gives it only two letters, D (the retroflex ड) and H, so the list on this page is short and mostly made of H names.
The chart for Karka is the first-letter chart that the name rashi calculator also uses. For Karka, as for every sign, it files a name by its first sound alone, without asking when the child was born, which is why many families use it as a quick guide. The Karka letters are shown below with their Devanagari forms, because sounds that English cannot tell apart, such as the dental and retroflex T, sit in different signs.
The letters for Karka
| Letter | Devanagari | Boy names listed | Girl names listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | ड | 0 | 0 |
| H | ह | 31 | 23 |
Boy names for Karka
Names starting with D (ड)
No widely used boy names are listed for this sound.
Names starting with H (ह)
| Name | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Hansraj | king of swans |
| Hanuman | the devoted monkey god of the Ramayana |
| Hardik | from the heart, heartfelt |
| Haresh | lord Hari |
| Hari | a name of Vishnu |
| Haridas | servant of Hari |
| Harikrishna | Vishnu and Krishna combined |
| Harinarayan | Hari and Narayan, names of Vishnu |
| Hariom | Hari and Om, a sacred greeting |
| Harish | lord Hari |
| Harit | green |
| Harpreet | beloved of God |
| Harsh | joy |
| Harshad | giver of joy |
| Harshal | joyful |
| Harshit | joyful |
| Harshvardhan | increasing joy |
| Hemal | golden |
| Hemang | golden-bodied |
| Hemant | winter season |
| Hemraj | king of gold |
| Heramb | a name of Ganesha |
| Himadri | the Himalaya, mountain of snow |
| Himanshu | the moon, one with cool rays |
| Himmat | courage |
| Hiranmay | golden |
| Hiranya | gold |
| Hiren | diamond |
| Hitesh | well-wisher, lord of welfare |
| Hriday | heart |
| Hrishikesh | lord of the senses, a name of Vishnu |
Girl names for Karka
Names starting with D (ड)
No widely used girl names are listed for this sound.
Names starting with H (ह)
| Name | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Hansa | swan |
| Hansika | swan-like |
| Harini | deer |
| Haripriya | beloved of Hari |
| Harita | green |
| Harshada | giver of joy |
| Harshika | joyful |
| Harshini | joyful |
| Harshita | joyful |
| Hasini | smiling |
| Heena | henna |
| Heer | diamond |
| Hema | golden |
| Hemali | golden |
| Hemamalini | golden garland |
| Hemangi | golden-bodied |
| Hemangini | golden-limbed |
| Hemavati | golden, a name of Parvati |
| Hemlata | golden creeper |
| Himaja | daughter of the Himalaya, a name of Parvati |
| Himani | snow-like |
| Hiranmayi | golden |
| Hiya | heart |
How the chart differs from the nakshatra syllables
The classical rule does not use this chart. It reads the first sound from the pada the Moon occupied at birth, and 9 padas fall in Karka. Their syllables are in the table below.
| Nakshatra | Pada | Syllable |
|---|---|---|
| Punarvasu | 4 | Hi (ही) |
| Pushya | 1 | Hu (हू) |
| Pushya | 2 | He (हे) |
| Pushya | 3 | Ho (हो) |
| Pushya | 4 | Da (डा) |
| Ashlesha | 1 | Di (डी) |
| Ashlesha | 2 | Du (डू) |
| Ashlesha | 3 | De (डे) |
| Ashlesha | 4 | Do (डो) |
Of those 9 syllables, 9 begin with a letter that the chart also gives to Karka (Hi, Hu, He, Ho, Da, Di, Du, De and Do), and none begins with a letter that the chart places elsewhere.
The nakshatras in Karka are Punarvasu, Pushya and Ashlesha. Punarvasu is only partly inside the sign, so only some of its padas belong to Karka. Each page lists names for its four syllables, and the Moon sign is the one in the Cancer Moon sign article.
Choosing a name in Karka
The Karka list holds 31 boy names and 23 girl names, drawn from the same collection as the baby names hub and the name finder. If your family follows the nakshatra syllables instead of the Karka chart, the two rules can give different letters for the same child, and neither is wrong; follow your own family custom. To check whether your own name falls in Karka, type it into the name rashi calculator, or browse by first letter on the letters index.
Frequently asked questions
↳ Which letters belong to Karka rashi?
In the first-letter chart, Karka takes D (ड) and H (ह). The Devanagari form decides the sign, so a letter that Karka shares with another sign, as T, D, N and Th are shared, is settled by the sound.
↳ Is the Karka name rashi the same as my birth rashi?
Not necessarily. A name placed in Karka by its first letter is the naam rashi, whereas the birth rashi is the sign the Moon was in when the child was born, and chart reading uses the birth rashi.
↳ Which nakshatras fall in Karka?
These nakshatras have padas in Karka: Punarvasu, Pushya and Ashlesha. Their naming syllables are tabulated above.
↳ How many names are listed for Karka?
This page lists 31 boy names and 23 girl names, each with its meaning. If a Karka letter has no widely used name, the page says so instead of adding one.