What's in a Name?

Yes, we know how to finish the above. . .

That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.
--William Shakespeare

So that tends to imply that the name you choose for your child isn't too big of a deal, right? In the past I haven't even thought about what a name means, we just find a name that we both think 'sounds nice'. Something that fits in with our family. Something that looks good on paper, and that flows well with our last name.

But have you ever heard "words have meaning and names have power"? I read a website not long ago which shared how parents named their children by knowing the meaning of the names, and then they put together a first and middle name that MEANT something--something of character--something of a promise to their child--a standard for the child to live up to as 'who they would be'. Some examples of what a first and middle name meant include "Victorious Mountain Flower", "Gift of God of Excellent Worth", "Praised Right Hand Son".

Isn't that just beautiful? I never thought of doing anything like this. We have always thought long and hard about names (and sometimes felt like we would never agree on one!) because we know "The name of a man (can be) a numbing blow from which he never recovers." But we never thought of bestowing upon our children a vision within their name.

What sorts of standards have you used in picking a name for your child? With our boys, we have tried to pick strong, masculine-sounding names. We also don't really want our kids to have the same name half the other kids have--I'm used to being the only 'Shonya' that anyone knows--so we tend toward the more unique. To me, our boys' names have a bit of a Western feel to them. I can picture these names in western books (in fact, I got Destry's name from a Louis L'Amour book and later learned there is an old western movie called "Destry Rides Again"--which I've never seen).

For Briana, we both just liked Briana Leigh--it is pretty and feminine and we didn't think it was overly popular (although it's more popular than we would prefer). When Kiana came along, we wanted a name that fits in with her African-American heritage. We loved the sound of the name, and it rhymes with her big sister, which we though reflected her being a part of our family. Her middle name, Jayde, is a shortened version of Jayden, the name her birthmother really liked.

We are thinking about this as we are once again making that decision of what to name a child if the Lord sees fit to bring us another. According to this website, here are the meanings of my children's names to date.

Briana Leigh--noble/virtuous, strong, delicate (I know! oxymoron!)
Destry Alan--western flavor (seriously, I'm not kidding!) precious
Easton Alex--noble power, defender, warrior
Kiana Jayde--ancient precious stone, protection

Some of them have meaning to them--I especially like the meaning of Easton's name--Noble Defender. WOW! And really, I think Briana's name fits her--she is virtuous, and she is both strong and delicate. So, ok. Destry is precious to me, anyway! :) And Kiana, hmmm, she doesn't seem ancient to me. . . :) Still trying to stretch that one.

So, the names we are thinking. . .

The girl's name would mean "Precious, awakening lily"
The boy's name. . .the first name I really, really like, and so does Alan. . .means. . .are you ready for this???? "STUBBORN" !!!! Does that scare you?! It does me!!! :) But I love this name! And I haven't had a "not stubborn" child yet. . .

So, is this crazy? We are looking for a middle name that would make stubborn a good thing. Like 'Amal' which means 'labor, hard work, pure, hope'. I could take stubborn about purity, stubborn to get the work done, stubbornly holding onto hope when others have given up hope. But Amal???? hmmmmm

'Aman' means honest, faithful, trustworthy. Stubbornly honest? Stubbornly faithful? Stubbornly trustworthy? Oh yes, I'm all over that. But Aman. . .hmmmm (you might notice the other two boys have middle names beginning with A--not married to that idea, but it might be kind of neat if I could find something that fits. . .)

Then there is Justis or Justice which means just, upright, righteous. Again, stubborn goes well with these character traits.

I don't know. . .but it's fun looking! I'm starting to think a good name is rather to be chosen than great riches (Proverbs 22:1). What do your children's names mean? Were you thinking about name meanings at the time? If not, what made you pick that name? I really want to know!! Leave a comment--even you lurkers! :)