Naming the children.... after the parent (religion, women, history, family)
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Yes, to clarify, the Jewish tradition is not specifically about naming for a grandparent, it's just that is frequently the closest deceased relative. And the new parents often want to honor someone they shared a special relationship with. My son is named for my grandmother and I have shared many things about her with him, even though he never got to meet her.
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I got a little creative.
My son's middle name came from my brother, my father, and my great-grandfather.
It was a little trickier with my daughter- I wanted to honor my grandmother, very much disliked the name, so my approach was what did I remember best about my grandmother, and it was her beautiful rose bushes. So, my daughter's middle name: Rose.
I overheard a discussion today between a father-to-be and a friend (I'm guessing that's what he was). The mod edit: father to be told the other guy that they were going to name the son after him, the father.
I think this is something that fathers do. I've never heard of a mother naming a daughter after her... but I could be wrong. The first impression I get is that this is a male ego thing. What else could it be? The son (or daughter) is supposed to be an original, so why not give them their own name?
What do you think?
Nothing new at all and a lot of the names are family names or tradition.
In some cases a daughter will be named after the mother but used as a middle name or when used as a first name the child is referred to by their middle name.
Perhaps parents name their children what they want to name them without giving a thought to what someone else, who is not their child's parent thinks they should do.
I know a grandfather who named both of his sons after himself and insisted that ALL of his grandsons be named after him too. Only one daughter-in-law refused to go along with this, and the grandfather was furious. They all go by nicknames, and constantly have problems with being confused for one another because they all live in the same town, go to the same doctor, the DMV, etc etc. I think there should be a one-use-per-generation name limit.
Last edited by Oldhag1; 03-13-2015 at 08:30 PM..
Reason: removed icon
I overheard a discussion today between a father-to-be and a friend (I'm guessing that's what he was). The mod edit: father to be told the other guy that they were going to name the son after him, the father.
I think this is something that fathers do. I've never heard of a mother naming a daughter after her... but I could be wrong. The first impression I get is that this is a male ego thing. What else could it be? The son (or daughter) is supposed to be an original, so why not give them their own name?
What do you think?
I don't like it either. It seems like an ego thing to me too. "I'm so great I need to remind myself through my kid how fantastic I am for the rest of my life and even beyond the grave." Even if the father doesn't want to admit that's true, I definitely suspect that is partly the case. I have even heard of men naming their DAUGHTERS after themselves. They name them a feminized version of their own names. If the dad doesn't have a son and their name is Thomas, they name their daughter Thomasine, for instance. I also agree that I have never heard of a mother naming her daughter after herself, which is another reason I suspect it's an ego thing. Although women can have just as huge egos as men, I believe they are less obvious about it.
Growing up, I had a best female friend who's middle name was Kay. The firstborn female of each generation was given Kay as a middle name. I'm not sure why.
What I found to be weird was a guy I know who named his children in pairs (best way I can think to describe). His boy and girl from his first marriage were Christian and Christina, and then in his second marriage came Victoria and Victor. (Victoria was originally given the name because of the grandfather "Victor", then when the boy was born, they named him after the grandfather, too.)
Naming like that was a tradition, but I just don't see why it needs to continue to be so.
Growing up, I had a best female friend who's middle name was Kay. The firstborn female of each generation was given Kay as a middle name. I'm not sure why.
When I was a schoolkid, almost every girl I knew had "Ann" as a middle name. I don't think there was a reason for it, other than it being popular. Very few girls had different middle names.
I overheard a discussion today between a father-to-be and a friend (I'm guessing that's what he was). The mod edit: father to be told the other guy that they were going to name the son after him, the father.
I think this is something that fathers do. I've never heard of a mother naming a daughter after her... but I could be wrong. The first impression I get is that this is a male ego thing. What else could it be? The son (or daughter) is supposed to be an original, so why not give them their own name?
What do you think?
Just because you haven't heard of it, it doesn't mean that it doesn't happen. Baby girls are named after their grandmothers, and their daughters are named after their mothers. This pattern guarantees that the lineage can be tracked through the female line. That means that there are two female first names that alternate each generation ... easy to follow.
It has nothing to do with "ego". It is related to "identity", and knowing where one comes from ... having a connection to ancestors' lifestyles, and that sense of adventure that led you to them.
I guess it's a combination of ego and family tradition (which may be based on ego) unless there is a noteworthy ancestor to be honored. I know of a five year old with the name of a very prominent relative from generations ago who has an historic iron gate named for him at an Ivy League University. I doubt if it will help him get admitted since I don't believe there has been any interaction between the family and the school for decades.
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