Ok, after much debate my husband and I have definitely decided that we will keep our baby's Ethiopian name (whatever it might be) and give them a middle name of our choice. We find this very important as our child will likely be 2+ years old and already pretty comfortable with their name.
Dilema: I know many people who have "non-standard" North American names and while some revel in their uniqueness, others as adults change it to something similar but more familiar, or simply go by a middle name as they become frustrated with mispronunciation etc. For example a friends husband's name is Sjerup, he goes by Shep, a similar pronunciation.
I hope that our child will cherish the connection to their homeland that their first name provides. At the same time, the act of naming is, I think, a deeply rooted part of becoming a parent and so I am already obsessing over middle names. I want to have a list ready so that once I know the first name I can choose the appropriate middle accompaniment that flows well.
Boy names are easy. We are choosing James after DH's father whom we all miss dearly. I didn't get a whole lot of say in this one (DH is adamant)but I loved Jim and am happy and proud to pass that on to a son.
Girl names get to be my choice (see how fair DH is?). So far my list of favs include:
Abigail- fathers joy
Bella-form of Isabella, consecrated of God
Bethany-house of figs
Daphne-laurel tree
Dawn-sunrise :)
Ella-beautiful fairy woman
Kylie-boomerang
Kirby-?
Lily-flower
Lola (my paternal Grandmother)
Maya-God's creative power
Natalie-born on Christmas Day
Phoebe-shining
Rebecca-tied, bound
Rosemary
Samantha
Simona (not Simone)
Susanne/Suzette/Susannah -some form of Susan for my mom who is awesome!
Vanessa-butterfly
I am interested in hearing people's thoughts. Perhaps you can help me narrow down the list! Be honest- I don't want my kid getting beat up for having a dorky name just because i think it would be cute!
6 comments:
I personally LOVE Lola! I have never met a Lola I didn't like! I often think of names for our little one too and my biggest concern is that its cute when they are 5 and its appropriate at age 35! Good luck!
I'm a huge Ella fan. I always had that name chosen for a girl. Low and behold our Eden came along and Ella didn't go with Eden, so an ethio middle name was born with her given ethio first name...Kidist.
It's fun picking, you might change once you see the pics though!!
My favourites on your list are Bella, Lola, Maya and Rosemary.
We are also keeping a list but won't make any decisions until we see a pic of our wee one and hear their Ethiopian name.
I think when you see your wee babe you will know which way to go.
Fun! I love seeing other people's names lists. You've chosen some beautiful ones. If I had to choose, my favorites are Daphne, Natalie, Phoebe, and Abigail. The only one I'm not sure about is Kirby. I like using some traditionally male names for girls, but I'm not sure about that one.
I have a 'living' names list as well. I know I won't make any decision until I see my daughter's face, but it's fun playing around with options.
Thanks for the feed back everyone! This is definitely a "living list" and I know we won't make any firm decisions without seeing our babe first. Fun to while away the time though thinking of these types of things.
Hmmm...don't know why but just loving Rebecca. Ha Ha! : )
You've got a great list! It will be fun to see what his/her Ethiopian name is. I bet you'll know which middle name fits best after that. Coming up with names is so much fun. It makes me sad that I don't get to do it again. Have fun!
Post a Comment