We are expecting a surprise #5, and would like to keep with our trend of using biblical names. We most likely will not find out the gender until delivery, so both boy and girl suggestions are needed. We are looking for names that are easy to recognize, but not the usual suspects.
Current names we’ve discussed: [name]Abraham[/name], [name]Asher[/name], [name]Jonah[/name], [name]Phoebe[/name], [name]Miriam[/name]
Names we’d like to avoid: [name]Jacob[/name], [name]Mark[/name], [name]Samuel[/name], [name]Elijah[/name], [name]Joshua[/name], [name]Adam[/name], [name]Noah[/name], [name]Rachel[/name], [name]Rebecca[/name], [name]Chloe[/name]
Middle name suggestions are also welcomed (our last name is two syllables).
I love [name]Asher[/name], it’s on my list and I love [name]Miriam[/name]! Those are great, under-used Biblical names in my opinion! I would definitely keep those two on your list. Also I would suggest [name]Elias[/name] or [name]Gabriel[/name], too. [name]Seth[/name] is a nice Biblical name as well.
My favorite Biblical name is [name]Naomi[/name] (although I prefer the Spanish version- Noemí). Beautiful name and meaning.
Other options:
[name]Abigail[/name]
[name]Tamar[/name]
[name]Isaac[/name]
[name]Reuben[/name]
[name]Judah[/name] (similar to [name]Jonah[/name], plus you can get to cute nn [name]Jude[/name])
[name]Ruth[/name]
[name]Leah[/name]
[name]Gideon[/name]
[name]Levi[/name]
I like the name [name]Simeon[/name], which I view as a nice alternative to [name]Gideon[/name], which is also a nice name. I know that not a lot of people recommend [name]Simeon[/name] though, and I wonder why. I think it is a lovely name.
Four more for the girls, because I didn’t realize I left my lists looking so skewed:
[name]Mara[/name] - which I like maybe a touch more than [name]Miriam[/name] for sound, but has the same meaning.
[name]Sephora[/name] - which is the Greek Biblical name for the Hebrew Tzipporah, and maybe easier for some people to say.
[name]Yael[/name] - I also like [name]Jael[/name], but I grew up hearing [name]Jael[/name] pronounced with a soft, y-sound J. Have more recently run into people saying it with a hard J, and that sounds too much like “jail” for me. Two syllables, yah-elle, please.
[name]Judith[/name] - [name]Judith[/name] is not particularly stylish right now nor getting much love. But I like [name]Judith[/name] for its quiet class and polish. [name]Judy[/name] is a bit sweet and rockabilly-retro, like [name]Susie[/name] or [name]Betty[/name]. But it’s not cool like [name]Jude[/name] is for the boys.
Thanks for the suggestions; You’ve all given us a lot to think about! I copied & pasted all the names into a master list and we will see where it takes us.
[name]One[/name] last question - do you think the biblical reference matters when is comes to using a name?
Example: I like the name [name]Delilah[/name], but when I mentioned it to my husband, he immediately mentioned her story and said it turned him off to the name.
My siblings and I all have Biblical names [name]Bethany[/name] [name]Joy[/name], [name]Sarah[/name] [name]Anne[/name] and [name]Jeremiah[/name]…and unfortunately some Biblical names do get a bad rep ([name]Jezebel[/name]?)
I really love all your names! [name]Just[/name] out of curiousity, what are your other kids’ names? I love Biblical names and am always looking for inspiration.
Boys
[name]Daniel[/name]
[name]Enoch[/name]
[name]Nathaniel[/name]
[name]Simon[/name]
ETA: I just saw your latest post and I do think it could be a good idea to take references into account. [name]Even[/name] though I think [name]Delilah[/name] sounds beautiful, I can see your husband’s point.
People have given you lots of wonderful suggestions. My favorite Biblical name is [name]Asa[/name]. It’s my eight year old son’s name and it’s so handsome. I love [name]Mary[/name] for Biblical girl names.
My friends just named their son [name]Abraham[/name] and I like it quite a bit. I actually like [name]Abram[/name] a tad more, feels more contemporary. Of your list, [name]Asher[/name] is my personal favorite. Of the girl names, I like [name]Miriam[/name], [name]Miri[/name] being a super cute nn.
I don’t think the biblical reference is a big deal, only if you love a certain character. Honestly, I like the biblical characters that get a bad rap the most anyway. They’re more interesting to me. I love the names [name]Cain[/name] and [name]Salome[/name] for example. Call me depraved.
Anyway, most people are not going to immediately recall [name]Delilah[/name] and let her story influence their opinion of your child. But it’s important if your hubby can’t handle it. Who cares what other people think? Can you guys live with the name? That’s what matters most.
I think it matters very much. Presumably you’re choosing names from the Bible because it means something to you, and you name children after personages because you want them to live up to their example in some fashion. To me, that would rule out Herod, [name]Jezebel[/name], [name]Delilah[/name], etc.
I would agree with [name]Blade[/name], largely because some of these impressions have permeated the popular culture. People use the term [name]Jezebel[/name] to refer to a woman who has bad intentions, for example. [name]Even[/name] if these impressions are not in the forefront of people’s minds, they may subconsciously discriminate against people who have names with negative connotations. I believe this is why we have a lot of little Judes running around these days, but no one names their child [name]Judas[/name].
