Is a Names Meaning Important to You?

My mothers biggest reason for naming me [name_f]Amy[/name_f], rather than other names she liked just as much, was the meaning: beloved.

When picking a name, is the meaning something you care about deeply? [name_f]Do[/name_f] you care about the meaning as long as it’s not terrible? Are there any names you love but hate the meaning of?

A positive, personal meaning is a big bonus in my book, but at the end of the day family connection or association is what’s more important to me. If the stars align, that’s great, but it doesn’t have to be “perfect.”

Personally, I’m not usually influenced by the meaning of the name itself, but what it represents to me.
I’ll take [name_f]Amparo[/name_f] and [name_f]Alma[/name_f] as examples.
[name_f]Amparo[/name_f] means “shelter”, which I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u]. It is also a name more densely used in the Valencian Community in Spain because the Virgen de los Desamparados is the patroness of the Community. I used to live in the Valencian Community, so I hold [name_f]Amparo[/name_f] close as a nod to my experiences there. The meaning of [name_f]Amparo[/name_f] is awesome, but I would’t have loved it without the Valencian connection.

[name_f]Alma[/name_f], I don’t even really love it much, but I had a friend whose last name was Espiritu. He died suddenly last year, and I like that [name_f]Alma[/name_f] means “soul”- similar to “spirit”. Without my friend even passing away, I wouldn’t have come to like [name_f]Alma[/name_f] on its own, even though I love the meaning.

The meaning of names doesn’t bother me personally, and I doubt many people who aren’t name nerds will pick up on negative meanings. For example, I adore [name_f]Cecilia[/name_f] and [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f], both of which have negative meanings. [name_f]Cecilia[/name_f] means “blind” whilst [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f] is the name of a rather dark Shakespearean character.

Personal meanings however, are important for me. I have a lot of names on my lists that honour family members in one way or another. Some that I can really see myself using are [name_f]Elysia[/name_f] [name_f]Rose[/name_f] and [name_f]Anna[/name_f] Florestine, after my grandmother [name_f]Rose[/name_f] and my mother respectively, as her middle name is [name_f]Ann[/name_f], but I dislike that so [name_f]Anna[/name_f] is a beautiful alternative.

I wouldn’t use a name I dislike because I love the meaning. I love many meanings of names but the actual name is unappealing to me. [name_f]Carys[/name_f] and [name_f]Rosalind[/name_f] are examples of this, I absolutely adore the meaning of [name_f]Rosalind[/name_f] in particular, but the name itself doesn’t really do much for me.

Meaning is pretty important to me, because the meaning of my own name is really special. But I don’t let it completely dictate whether or not I like a name sound and felling/images comes before meaning.

Sometimes bad meanings bug me, but I just have to try and get over it, and sometimes it can be made positive. Like with [name_f]Cecilia[/name_f], I’m not a huge fan of the meaning of the name by itself, but I matched it with middles that gave a positive meaning. There are some names I can’t let go of, despite meaning, like [name_m]Ptolemy[/name_m], which is my 3rd favourite boys’ name, but means ‘aggressive, warlike’. I hate the meaning, but the sound, look, feeling of the name, and the fact I can imagine actually having a [name_m]Ptolemy[/name_m], outweighs the negative meaning.

So I guess it depends on how much I actually like the name. It’s quite a good test to see if I still love a name even if I learn it has a bad meaning. Or on the other hand, a good meaning can sway me into liking or loving a name.

Meaning is really important to me because you are your name. That’s why it’s so important. My husband ‘is’ his name. [name_m]Son[/name_m] of my right hand To surround and protect. All of his siblings are their names too. As am I. My
sister and best friend as well.

My favorite names are all chosen for the meanings.

I refuse to use any name with a religious meaning. But besides that I don’t think it matters to me.

I personally don’t pay too much attention to it, although it’s a definite bonus if it means something positive…or at least nothing too terrible. I go more for the sound of the name or just for names I like. I feel like if I just wanted to pick a name for a certain meaning, I’d limit myself from considering other names that are great but have not so great meanings.

To me it’s probably the most important thing about a name. I would never use a name that doesn’t have a meaning my husband and I both like. In our (Jewish) tradition the meaning of a name is considered very important.
My sons’ first names mean “bringer of light” and “sublime, elevated”. We gave our sons these names because that’s what we consider them to be, and how we wish they’d be.

This is what I was thinking!

Despite the meaning, [name_f]Mary[/name_f] is one of my favorite names. It’s also my great-grandma’s name so having that family connection really helps me love the name.

I agree with this.

When it comes to naming my own children, yes, I care very much about the meanings of the names.

When I just play around with sounds and combos for fun, I don’t care at all.

Name meaning does mean a lot to me. I first became interested in names when my third grade teacher looked up the meaning of everyone in the class’s name. Some of the names I like because I like the meaning of the name, and that is how I want to connect my children when I have them.
If I don’t like the meaning of the name, it depends on how much I really like the name itself before I will keep it. A lot of the names on my list are there because I like the meaning and the name. I only add names where I like both or I really really like the name itself.

The actual meaning of the name doesn’t bother me too often as I find the meaning has less impact than my association. Someone mentioned [name_m]Ptolemy[/name_m] and its meaning of Warlike. My husband’s name is [name_m]Martin[/name_m] also meaning Warlike and yet he isn’t aggressive in fact most often he’s a big teddy bear.
Most non-namenerds don’t know the meaning of a name anyway they just like the sound. If I love my personal connection to a name then the negative meaning means nothing to me. Positive meanings are fantastic however. At one point we had [name_m]Isaac[/name_m] [name_m]Dante[/name_m] on our list and I’d love to bring it back as together it means laughter enduring which both DH and I need more of.

Yes, the meaning of a name is important but only so far. If it’s got a really bad meaning then I won’t use it, I.e. Eden means Place of Pleasure, I don’t want that on my daughter. If I’m on the fence about a name if the meaning isn’t the greatest I won’t use it, I.e. Tabitha means Gazelle and it’s not a bad meaning but I’m not in love with the name so I probably won’t use it because of the meaning. If I’m in love with the name depending on the personal connection I will use it regardless.

I don’t think the meaning is hugely important to me! However if the name I love has a lovely meaning that’s just a big bonus and the origin is not something I worry about either. I love the name [name_u]Ashley[/name_u] and I love the fact it’s English and means “Dweller Near The [name_u]Ash[/name_u] Tree [name_f]Meadow[/name_f]” I think that’s a really pretty meaning!

I like the names I like, and if their meaning is also great that is just a bonus.

The only exception is that one of the reasons I really love [name_m]Theodore[/name_m] is that it has the same meaning as my mom’s name, [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]. It is not the only reason I love the name, but it does contribute to my loving it even more.

I like to know the meaning, but it isnt a deal maker or breaker. My daughter [name_f]Anna[/name_f] was named becuase I always loved the name. After we had her name chosen I looked up the meaning and it was perfect- [name_f]Grace[/name_f], which is my mn and my Grans first name. Would have been used as a fn for one of my girls but my sister beat me to it with my nieces name. So it mattered then, but we would have named her [name_f]Anna[/name_f] regardless. The meaning [name_f]Grace[/name_f] was just a very welcomed bonus.

There’s one name I love the sound of and the meaning. If we husband agreed I’d use it as a mn for a son, and if we had any sons. [name_m]Matthew[/name_m] which means Gift from God.

Perhaps, but, I feel that the personal meaning of a name trumps the actual meaning. I have a friend called Bronagh, which means sorrow, but, she was named after a deceased relative that her parents adored. As long as the name does not fall in line with something offensive in meaning - I can’t see why meaning would be more important than spelling/pronunciation/personal meaning, but to each’s own.

I think I care about the meanings of names more than most. I like a name a lot more when it has a positive meaning and I think people tend to like/value their names more when it has a positive meaning. I’m okay with neutral meaning (like “tree” or “man”. I could not give my child a name that has a negative meaning even if I absolutely adored the sound of it. But whats most important to me is personal meaning. If I like the sound of a name and it has personal meaning then its unlikely I’ll fall out of love with it. Both my favorite names right now have personal meaning to me and I think thats what makes them my favorites. To be honest they don’t have the best sound. I wouldn’t call them beautiful or handsome. But when I think of them I think of what they represent to me and thats what makes me love them.