Naming a Newborn by BaZi: Six Steps
For many parents, choosing a name is the first time they look at a BaZi chart seriously. This page breaks the process into six steps and says what each involves and where it most often goes wrong. The elements are only one of the steps; meaning, sound and ease of writing matter just as much.
Six steps
- Confirm the birth time. Go by the time on the birth certificate. A birth right on the boundary between two double-hours, or close to the change of a solar term, can change the hour or month pillar; see birth time correction.
- Cast the chart. Year, month, day and hour pillars; see how to cast a BaZi chart, or use our free chart calculator.
- Judge strength and find the favorable elements. See favorable elements, and for children's charts, BaZi for children.
- Pick one method for a character's element. Radical, stroke number or meaning: choose one and use it for the whole name. See a character's element.
- Choose and combine characters. List candidate characters in the favorable elements first, then weigh meaning, sound, stroke count and how they sit with the family name.
- Say it, write it. Say the full name with the family name several times and avoid unfortunate homophones. Write it out, too: a character with too many strokes will be hard work for a child learning to write.
What matters more than the elements
| Aspect | What to check |
|---|---|
| Meaning | Is the meaning positive, and is the character not too obscure? |
| Sound | Does it flow with the family name? Any awkward homophones? Say it in Mandarin and in any other language or dialect the family speaks, such as Taiwanese Hokkien or Hakka, and check how the romanized spelling reads where the child will grow up. |
| Written form | Is it easy to write and recognize? Avoid characters with a great many strokes or that are easy to get wrong. |
| How common it is | A very rare character may not be available on computers or official documents. |
| Family | Names of elders to avoid, and any generation character set by the family genealogy. |
A note on registering a birth in Taiwan
In Taiwan, a newborn's birth should be registered with the household registration office within 60 days, and the name is settled at that point. Make sure the characters you choose can be entered in the household registration system. Changing a name later is limited in the number of times under Taiwan's Name Act (姓名條例). The household registration office's current announcements are the final word.
Find the favorable elements, then check each character of a name
Enter a date of birth (the hour is optional) to see the favorable and unfavorable elements, with example characters for each favorable element. Add a Chinese name if you like, and each character is shown with its element under both the radical school and the stroke-number school. Everything is calculated in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
Uses the Gregorian birth date, with the day changing at 11 p.m. Kangxi stroke counts come from the same Unicode Unihan table used by Chinese name numerology.
A straight word: a name is for life
The element of a name is the part of BaZi naming that gets the most emphasis and is the easiest to overstate. What we can do is help you find the favorable elements and lay the different ways of assigning a character's element side by side. The meaning of a character, how the name sounds, how easy it is to write and what the family hopes for all matter more than its element. Everything on this site is for reference and entertainment; we offer no paid naming service and do not rate names as good or bad.
Start from your child's favorable elements
Enter your child's birth details to see the favorable and unfavorable elements and example characters for each favorable element, and check each character of the names you are considering.
BaZi baby naming steps FAQ
What should I do first when naming a newborn by BaZi?
Confirm the birth time, cast the chart, judge strength and find the favorable elements. Then pick one method for assigning a character's element, choose and combine characters, and finally say the name out loud to check its sound and meaning.
Can I name a baby by BaZi without knowing the birth hour?
Yes, but the favorable elements may be less reliable. With only the year, month and day pillars, a different hour can change the strength reading and the favorable elements, so it is best to confirm the birth time first.
How long do parents in Taiwan have to register a birth?
In Taiwan, a birth should be registered within 60 days, and the name is settled at that point. The household registration office's current announcements are the final word.