How is a new Pope named?

Vatican City, March 14: What's in a name? A lot if you're the new pope.At the end of the conclave, immediately after the chosen cardinal accepts, a senior cardinal asks him: "By which name will you be known?"The name he chooses will be his name as pope from then on."They (the popes) can choose the name they want, but in recent times the usual criteria has been to choose an apostle's name", said Bruno Bartoloni, an expert on the Vatican, on Monday."The only name they never pick is Peter, as a form of respect to Saint Peter, but also because some legends claim a pope with the name of Peter would be a sign of the end of the history of pontiffs.""So maybe they don't use it to avoid bad luck," he added.According to Bartoloni, Pope John Paul "merged the names of two previous popes, John and Paul", as did his successor, Pope John Paul II.Joseph Ratzinger took the name Benedict XVI.Shortly after becoming pope, he told pilgrims gathered at a public audience that he had wanted to recall the spirit of his predecessor Benedict XV, who was pope between the two world wars - and a pope of reconciliation.He said he also sought inspiration from Saint Benedict - the fifth century founder of monastic life in the Catholic Church."For Benedict, it was a pretty obvious choice," said Bartoloni. "We all know his love for Europe, his fondness for Saint Benedict and for the Benedictines."He also had a brief reign of seven-and-a-half years - just a few months shorter than that of Benedict.On the eve of the conclave to select a new pope, speculation has gone into overdrive about who's ahead in the papal campaign.If the leading names fail to reach the 77 votes required for victory in the first few rounds of balloting, any number of surprise names could come to the fore.The first puffs of smoke from the Sistine Chapel chimney should emerge sometime around 8:00 pm local time (1900 GMT) on Tuesday.Black smoke means "not yet" - the likely outcome after round 1 - meaning that voting will continue, with four rounds each day, until a pope is elected.White smoke means the 266th pope has been chosen.According to Vatican spokesman Father Thomas Rosica, there won't be much time between the election of the pontiff and the question of his new name being posed."We've got an hour break by the time the person accepts, and then the question is: 'By what name would you wish to be called?'" he said."Perhaps some of those persons who may have imagined themselves, or could have envisioned a possible election, may have given some thought to this," Rosica added.The new name will be included in the Habemus Papam ("We Have a Pope") - the announcement given in Latin by the senior Cardinal Deacon upon the election of a new pope.It will then be read out from the balcony of St Peter's Basilica to people from all over the world who have gathered in St Peter's Square.