What happens at the Murmur-of-Replacement Ceremony in The Giver?

We learn about this ceremony in Ch. 6. The Murmur-of-Replacement Ceremony is performed when someone has died and a new child is given to a family and that new child has the same name as the person who died - hence, there is a "replacement.

In the ceremony, which happens once a year with the others, the entire crowd slowly and quietly begins to murmur the new child's name. Then, they get progressively louder and...

We learn about this ceremony in Ch. 6. The Murmur-of-Replacement Ceremony is performed when someone has died and a new child is given to a family and that new child has the same name as the person who died - hence, there is a "replacement.

In the ceremony, which happens once a year with the others, the entire crowd slowly and quietly begins to murmur the new child's name. Then, they get progressively louder and quicker as they say the name. It seems that this somehow imprints the name on the child, while it also reminds the community that this name is incorporated into the community again. It breathes life back into the name, so to speak.

Because this ceremony is only performed once in the book, it is unclear if this ceremony is done for every person who dies and whose name is used again, or if it is only done when a family loses a child and then receive another child with the same name. This second scenario is what we see in Ch. 6 with the "replacement Caleb."