The meaning of baby names
The origin of the names
A baby’s first name is often referred to as a “given name.” Unlike a last name that one inherits, this name is usually given to her by her parents.
In most of the world, the given name is usually used before the surname or surname, but in some countries such as Japan, Hungary, China, and others, the surname is used before the given name. In some cultures, even the given name may have a part shared among all family members.
Where do given names originate from?
o The most elaborate and extensive source of names has always been the Bible. Sarah, David, and Samuel are a few examples, while many other names originate from the New Testament. Hebrew names, coming from the Old Testament, often contain the element “el”, which means god. For example – Michael (Who is like god), Azriel (The lord is my help)
o Some names are derived from Aramaic, such as Batholomew, Thomas, and more.
o Another common source is the names of occupations held by the person or their ancestors. For example, George means farmer, Kaufmann means a man who handles money.
o Personal traits: names like Hope, Faith and others. The Hebrew name “Eitan” means strong and solid. The name “Hiroshi” means generous in Japanese. The name Linda means beautiful in Spanish.
o Names of places: Paris, London, Brittany and Florence are good examples.
o Names derived from literature/fictional characters: The name Wendy was first used and also created in “Peter Pan” by J..M. Barry.
o Names of nature – Lilly, Rose and more.
o Greek Names – From Greek mythology or history. Some, but not all, names from Greek culture have been modified into the English language: Jason, Lucas, Marina, Katherine are examples.
o Names that are words in the English language, sometimes in a variety of spellings: Coral, Brooke, Scarlet.
o Feminine male names: for example, Charlotte, Stephanie and Michaela
o Names for twins. The name Thomas means twin. When twins are born, they are often given similar-sounding names or names with a common source, such as flower names or Biblical names.
o Names influenced by modern culture – Today many names are given to babies after the choice of a famous person for their baby – For example, the name Kayla, who was one of the characters in a famous soap opera, was became very popular with the success of the show.
o Another growing trend today is to name a child originally, combining two names or choosing a name that sounds good without a specific origin, to make it unique.
Other sources: Surnames converted to given names, Month names (April, August, etc.), Object names, eg the name Peter means rock. European names like Albert, Norbert, Henry (German).
Many names have an unknown source.
It’s a good idea to use the Internet as a source of baby name ideas. The babyhold.com site contains many tools to help you choose the right name for your baby. The site lists the most popular baby names by year and also offers many ideas for unique baby names, baby names from different origins, baby names by country (i.e. American baby names, Italian baby names, etc. ) and many lists of baby names organized by category. . You can also try baby names list
tool, offering a different list of short baby names each time, so you can get ideas and inspiration.