HugoDocumentation

khata — Hugo Documentation Template

By darshanbaral

khata is a Hugo-based theme for documentation and notes, using folder-based content organization and built-in search powered by Pagefind, with code released under the MIT license.

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Recorded 2026-10-04View source

What stands out

A quick read of the recorded project description.

Hugo-based theme for documentation and notes

Content is divided into chapters by folder, with documentation pages placed in corresponding directories

Built-in search powered by Pagefind

Provides an exampleSite containing config.toml and content examples

archive, recent, search, and taxa are special directories that require understanding the structure before modification

Code is released under the MIT license

Template Details

khata is a Hugo theme developed by darshanbaral, positioned for documentation and note sites. It organizes content using a folder-based structure: create folders for different chapters under the content directory, then place documentation pages into the corresponding folders. The theme repository's exampleSite provides a config.toml and content directory example, which new sites can copy directly; existing sites only need to set theme to khata in config.toml.

The theme includes built-in search implemented by Pagefind. Search requires building the site with Hugo first, then running Pagefind to index the public directory. The README gives the command hugo -b https://your_base_url/; npx -y pagefind --site public, and the repository's GitHub Actions workflow file can serve as a deployment reference.

The theme contains special folders such as archive, recent, search, and taxa. The README advises that these directories should only be modified after becoming familiar with the theme structure. The repository uses the MIT license, permitting use, modification, commercial use, and distribution of this version of the code, but third-party assets such as demo images, fonts, and icons must be checked separately under their respective licenses.

HugoDocumentation

Is it right for your project?

Use Cases

Building a documentation site for a project or product
Organizing personal notes with content organized into chapter folders
Hugo projects that need in-site search on a static site
Existing Hugo sites looking to switch to a documentation-oriented theme

Suitable For

Developers building sites with Hugo
Teams needing to organize documentation or notes by chapter
Documentation projects that want static deployment with built-in search

Getting started & customization

Use these recorded setup notes alongside the repository instructions for your chosen version.

1
Run git submodule add https://github.com/darshanbaral/khata themes/khata in the site root to add the theme
2
New sites can copy the config.toml and content directory from the theme's exampleSite; existing sites set theme = "khata" in config.toml
3
Create folders by chapter under content and place documentation pages into the corresponding folders
4
To enable search, first run hugo -b https://your_base_url/ to build, then run npx -y pagefind --site public to build the index
5
archive, recent, search, and taxa are special directories; do not modify them without familiarity with the theme structure

Read repository instructions

License & source material

Usage conditions & limitations

Free to use · keep license notice

This entry covers the free version under the MIT license in the public repository; the free scope is the code of this version and does not imply that external services or third-party assets are free.

Must comply with when using

Permits free use, modification, commercial use, and distribution of this version of the code.
When distributing copies or substantial portions of the code, retain the original author's copyright notice and the full MIT license notice.
The code is provided as is; warranties and limitations of liability are governed by the original license and applicable law.

Additional costs & items to verify

Built-in search depends on the third-party tool Pagefind: before deployment, you must run npx -y pagefind --site public to index the public directory, otherwise site search will not work; this step requires a Node.js/npx environment.
The search index must be run after the Hugo build completes; building and indexing are two sequential steps, and the wrong order will result in no search results.
archive, recent, search, and taxa are special directories; they should not be modified without familiarity with the theme structure, otherwise theme functionality may break.
Demo images, fonts, icons, and other third-party assets must be checked under their respective licenses and cannot be judged solely by the code's MIT license.
External services such as domains, hosting, databases, payments, or AI may incur additional charges.

View Original Text Basis

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge
Original License Text

The Khata theme includes a built-in search feature powered by **[Pagefind](https://pagefind.app/)**. To enable search on your deployed site, you must index your content before deployment.
Original README

Run the following command after you've built your site with Hugo:
Original README

The `archive`, `recent`, `search`, and `taxa` folders are special and should only be modified if you are familiar with the theme's structure.
Original README

https://github.com/darshanbaral/khata/blob/main/LICENSE https://github.com/darshanbaral/khata/blob/main/README.md

Compiled by DeepSeek based on repository license and README ·2026-10-04. Results only cover the materials read; dependencies, images, fonts, and subsequent term changes are subject to their respective original texts.

Project checks & description sources

Template Information

Source platforms: Hugo Themes
Documentation and maintenance reference score: Partly documented · 69 / 100
Technologies: Hugo
Website type: Documentation

How this score is calculated

Our heuristic uses license records (up to 30), a demo link (12), a preview (10), stars (15), recorded maintenance (15), description completeness (8), feature records (5) and classification data (5). It is not a code, security or performance test, or a Google score. A link does not establish tested functionality.

What to verify for this project

Repository update recorded: 2025-08-06
Screenshot last checked: 2026-10-04

A demo link is listed. Check it with your own content and viewport sizes; its presence does not confirm that forms, authentication or payments work.

The catalog identifies Hugo as the primary stack. Check the actual dependency manifest and lockfile for versions and hosting requirements. These notes use recorded metadata, not a code audit or a deployment test.

Use a selection guide →

How this description was prepared

AI-assisted description based on catalog records and repository material. Repository authors are not automatically the reviewers of this description.

Review declaration: [email protected] · 2026-10-04

Inspect the recorded source material

SHA-256: 0ca2a64ef7d87031d8e0c03ff1e5a8c4c12957dc0da41fb65e328afa92a901cc

2026-10-04T02:48:08.741Z

Source file / repository

### khata Theme

A clean and responsive Hugo theme designed for documentation and note-taking. Khata is highly customizable and provides a simple, elegant layout to make your content easy to read and navigate.

#### Live Demo

Explore the theme in action by visiting the **[live demo](https://darshanbaral.github.io/khata/)**.

#### Installation

Follow these steps to install and set up the Khata theme for your Hugo site.

1. **Add the theme as a submodule:** Navigate to your website's root directory and run the following command to add Khata as a Git submodule:
```bash
cd MY_WEBSITE
git submodule add [https://github.com/darshanbaral/khata](https://github.com/darshanbaral/khata) themes/khata
```
2. **Configure the theme:**
- **New Site:** If you're starting a new Hugo project, copy the `config.toml` file and the `content` folder from the theme's **[exampleSite folder](https://github.com/darshanbaral/khata/tree/main/exampleSite)** into your website's root directory.
- **Existing Site:** If you have an existing site, simply set the theme in your `config.toml` file:
```toml
# config.toml
theme = "khata"
```
3. **Create your content:** Khata uses a folder-based structure for sections. Create new folders within your `content` directory for different sections of your site, then add your documentation pages inside these folders.

> **Note:** The `archive`, `recent`, `search`, and `taxa` folders are special and should only be modified if you are familiar with the theme's structure.

#### Deployment with Search

The Khata theme includes a built-in search feature powered by **[Pagefind](https://pagefind.app/)**. To enable search on your deployed site, you must index your content before deployment.

Run the following command after you've built your site with Hugo:

```bash
hugo -b https://your_base_url/; npx -y pagefind --site public
```

See [github workflow](https://github.com/darshanbaral/khata/blob/main/.github/workflows/deploy.yml) for an example of how to deply the theme.

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