Being 2.1 degrees south of the ecliptic, Lambda Sgr is sometimes occulted by the Moon and, rarely, by a planet. The last planet to pass in front of it was Venus, on 19 November 1984. The previous occasion was 5 December 1865, when it was occulted by Mercury.[citation needed]
It bore the traditional name Kaus Borealis, which derives from the Arabic قوس qaws 'bow' and Latinboreālis 'northern'. In 2016, the International Astronomical Union organized a Working Group on Star Names (WGSN)[11] to catalog and standardize proper names for stars. The WGSN's first bulletin of July 2016[12] included a table of the first two batches of names approved by the WGSN; which included Kaus Borealis for this star.
In the catalogue of stars in the Calendarium of Al Achsasi al Mouakket, this star was designated Rai al Naaim, which was translated into Latin as Pastor Struthionum, meaning keeper of the ostriches.[14]
This star is Al Tizini's Rāʽi al Naʽāïm (ألراع ٱلنعم), the Keeper of the Naʽams (Ostrich), meaning the "keeper" the two asterisms al-Naʽām al-Wārid ( النعام الوارد ), "The Going Ostriches" and al-Naʽām al-Ṣādir (النعم الصادر), "The Returning Ostriches".[15]
^ abcdeOttoni, G.; Udry, S.; Ségransan, D.; Buldgen, G.; Lovis, C.; Eggenberger, P.; Pezzotti, C.; Adibekyan, V.; Marmier, M.; Mayor, M.; Santos, N. C.; Sousa, S. G.; Lagarde, N.; Charbonnel, C. (2022-01-01). "CORALIE radial-velocity search for companions around evolved stars (CASCADES). I. Sample definition and first results: Three new planets orbiting giant stars". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 657: A87. arXiv:2201.01528. Bibcode:2022A&A...657A..87O. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202040078. ISSN0004-6361. Lambda Sagittarii's database entry at VizieR.
^ abGutierrez-Moreno, Adelina; et al. (1966), "A System of photometric standards", Publ. Dept. Astron. Univ. Chile, 1, Publicaciones Universidad de Chile, Department de Astronomy: 1–17, Bibcode:1966PDAUC...1....1G.
^Wielen, R.; et al. (1999), "Sixth Catalogue of Fundamental Stars (FK6). Part I. Basic fundamental stars with direct solutions", Veröff. Astron. Rechen-Inst. Heidelb, 35 (35), Astronomisches Rechen-Institut Heidelberg: 1, Bibcode:1999VeARI..35....1W.
^Kunitzsch, Paul; Smart, Tim (2006). A Dictionary of Modern star Names: A Short Guide to 254 Star Names and Their Derivations (2nd rev. ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Sky Pub. ISBN978-1-931559-44-7.