Honoring a Daniel?

Boy Names
1

I’ve never even considered putting family names into the mix…to be honest, while I could understand the significance of the practice, it’s always confused me. But recently someone suggested [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] on one of my threads, and it’s like a lightbulb went off in my head.

I had this uncle named [name_m]Daniel[/name_m]. He was my dad’s half-brother, his only sibling, a beautiful man with a riot of copper curls, more freckles than bare skin, and the bluest of sky blue eyes. He was a daredevil and a wild child, he raced motocross and rode a mountain bike everywhere he went, he played the guitar like an angel, but never outside the walls of his bedroom. He lived with my parents for a while when I was little. No one has ever loved me like that man loved me.

He passed when I was three…he was in a motorcycle accident and lived for a month in the hospital before succumbing to his injuries. My brother’s middle name is [name_m]Daniel[/name_m], after him. Apparently my grandma “made a deal” with God that He couldn’t take her [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] without giving her another one, and my mom found out she was pregnant with my brother right after his passing. The [name_m]Elton[/name_m] [name_m]John[/name_m] song “[name_m]Daniel[/name_m]” mysteriously plays every year on my grandma’s birthday, on [name_u]Christmas[/name_u], on Uncle [name_u]Danny[/name_u]'s own birthday, and on the anniversary of his passing. I grew up thinking it was perfectly normal for my dead uncle to “call” us from heaven on special days.

The idea of honoring him appeals to me in a way I had not anticipated. My hesitation lies in the fact that there are a lot of [name_m]Daniels[/name_m] in this world, and many of them are rather nasty, including some of the [name_m]Daniels[/name_m] that exist in my Husband’s extended family (there are already several). [name_f]Do[/name_f] you have any advice on ways to legitimately honor a [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] if the name itself is off-limits?

2

That is sweet.

My husband is named [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] :slight_smile:

The only name I can think of is Zaniel, which is pretty cool.

3

Update: Sorry guys, I got waaay too caught up going down memory lane in the original post. I edited out some of the non-relevant stuff, but I left info like his interests because if I can’t figure out some way to honor [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] in general, maybe I can figure out a way to honor my uncle specifically through a name that relates to something that was a part of him, like his music.

4

nicksmom - sorry, we must have posted at the same time! Zaniel is beautiful. We do already have [name_u]Zion[/name_u] on our list, but if one is a first and one is a middle I don’t think there would be too much confusion. Thank you!

5

What about [name_m]Nathaniel[/name_m]?

My partner is a [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] and he loves the idea of using [name_m]Nathaniel[/name_m] instead of passing down his own name :slight_smile:

Loved reading your post, and I wish you all the best :slight_smile:

6

just saw it in your signature…I’m guessing then that you may have already considered it?

7

I would use [name_m]Danilo[/name_m] or [name_m]Dano[/name_m]. :slight_smile:

8

My first idea was [name_m]Lion[/name_m]. :slight_smile: Or [name_m]Leo[/name_m]. But if he wasn’t very religious that might not be the best tie to his name, haha. I think [name_m]Lion[/name_m] and [name_m]Leo[/name_m] are pretty cool, though!

I’m not sure really how to encompass all that he was to make a really meaningful name, though… but maybe I can provide some examples from my own list, that might perhaps inspire something to honor your uncle? Because Zaniel and [name_m]Nathaniel[/name_m] and [name_m]Danilo[/name_m]–while cool, they seem very superficial as ways to honor a beloved family member. To me, anyway, even though they are undeniably cool!

[name_f]Lily[/name_f]/[name_m]Boaz[/name_m] is on my own list for my grandmother. I’ve never really liked her actual name ([name_f]Ruth[/name_f] [name_f]Mae[/name_f]), and I wanted something that would connect to her, but feel like a “special” connection between my child, me, and my grandmother. There are already seven family members (including my sister) that have either her FN or MN, so I wanted something that wouldn’t feel like “Oh, just another family member named after nana…” My grandmother was pretty religious, so I think the idea of naming a son [name_m]Boaz[/name_m] (for the story of [name_f]Ruth[/name_f] and [name_m]Boaz[/name_m] in the Bible) is really sweet. :slight_smile: And when she passed away, at her funeral, everyone was encouraged to take a flower from a bouquet, and I took this beautiful lily. It felt like her final gift to me, from beyond the grave. So now lilies are very meaningful to me and sort of encompass everything beautiful about my grandmother, and [name_f]Lily[/name_f] could go to number 1; I could care less. I still want to use [name_f]Lily[/name_f] in some form to honor my grandmother. :slight_smile:

On a lesser poignant level, I love the idea of [name_f]Audrey[/name_f] in honor of my brother. He was recently honorably discharged from the [name_f]Air[/name_f] Force, and while he was in basic training, I just remember thinking how he had this noble strength about him, and he was my hero. I remember thinking I couldn’t have possibly loved him more. And then I discovered [name_f]Audrey[/name_f], and I love that it means “noble strength”, and it just reminds me of my favorite part about my brother–how he served his country and went through so much at basic training just to be able to do it. :slight_smile:

Maybe there’s something like that with your uncle? I honestly wouldn’t know where to start as to what to suggest. I think you must have edited out the story about ants and you crawling all over him? Honestly, that story is so adorable and poignant, and maybe you could start there? Although I am sure you would know better than I whether there was something more poignant and personal than that…

Good luck!

9

[name_m]How[/name_m] about [name_u]Dane[/name_u]? It’s a variant form of [name_m]Daniel[/name_m].

10

I like the suggestion of [name_u]Dane[/name_u].

What about?
music/guitar related
Chord
Fret
Strum
[name_m]Gibson[/name_m]
[name_m]Elton[/name_m]

What was his middle name?

11

I know this isn’t your style, but Dannelley is a surname from my family tree that I was considering at one point to honor both that side of the family and my great-grandfather [name_m]Daniel[/name_m]. [name_m]Just[/name_m] thought I’d throw that out there. My other thoughts were [name_u]Neil[/name_u] and [name_u]Niall[/name_u], even though those are a stretch.

12

I don’t have any [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] variations for you, or really anything at all but I will ask you a bunch of questions in hopes that they spark something. =]
Like someone already asked, would it be possible to use his middle name instead?
You said half-brother, was his surname perchance different from your dad’s?
Are there any memorable brand names of the motorbikes he used to ride?
Was his birthday by any chance in a month that could work as a name?
Or relatedly did he perhaps have one of the usable astrological signs?
A meaningful word taken from a line in the the [name_m]Elton[/name_m] [name_m]John[/name_m] song?
Something meaning/relating to your grandmother’s deal?
Maybe the name of the city/county/state he was born?
Did he have a favorite song to play on his guitar?
Would just using a D name be enough for you?

13

I want to thank you all so so much for your help and thoughtfulness and ideas. I’m sorry I didn’t reply sooner! I just needed a break from names, I think…it was starting to become stressful. But this time I’m back with great news: We found our [name_m]Daniel[/name_m]-honoring name - [name_m]Balthazar[/name_m]!

At first this may seem like a WTF moment, but it came about as I was reading the story of [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] and researching the name on Behind the Name. The Biblical [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] had two names: his Hebrew name, [name_m]Daniel[/name_m], and a Persian name: Belteshassar, aka [name_m]Balthazar[/name_m]. [name_f]One[/name_f] of the meanings of [name_m]Balthazar[/name_m] is “God’s protection,” which is also significant. Because of my uncle’s motorcycle accident and his involvement in motocross, my grandma attends racing events to pass out copies of his story and pray over the bikers before they ride. We also have a family ritual of flashing the peace sign at passing bikers and saying, “God bless the biker and his bike.” Some of the racers in my grandma’s area know the story of my uncle so well that they teasingly call him the red-haired patron saint of motocross, so I feel like the meaning is yet another way that this name sort of connects to his spirit.

This name was on the most recent short list I took to Hubby (I use the term short loosely), and [name_m]Balthazar[/name_m] was one of my favorites on the list! Sadly, it was vetoed…but when I brought him this info about the [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] connection, neither of us could remember why he vetoed it. Not only that, but he said the connection to my uncle crystallized things for him, and he could see us having a son named [name_m]Balthazar[/name_m]. I was shocked because usually his vetoes are final! But I’m very very happy that one of my favorite names has the personal connection I was looking for AND my husband’s stamp of approval.

Again, I want to thank you all so much! ([name_f]Amy[/name_f], those questions are amazing, and I was actually working on them when I discovered this info and went off on the [name_m]Balthazar[/name_m] tangent.)

14

What about [name_u]Denny[/name_u]? I love the name [name_u]Denny[/name_u] :slight_smile:

opps, didn’t see the previous post

15

I’m so glad you found your name! [name_m]Balthazar[/name_m] [name_m]Wolf[/name_m] is an awesome, awesome name.

16

Thanks [name_u]Berry[/name_u] and [name_f]Maple[/name_f]! I forgot to close the thread, haha.