A good friend of mine is pregnant, and just found out it’s a boy. She has decided on a first name, and wanted to have the middle name be [name]Michael[/name], after her father. But my friend’s husband, who is Jewish, says that it is not good to name the baby after a living relative. I’m not familiar with this tradition, but I want to help my friend find a new middle name for the baby. I was thinking a variation of [name]Michael[/name] would work, like [name]Micah[/name] or [name]Mitchell[/name], but I don’t know if that is different enough for this Jewish tradition. I know some of you here on nameberry are Jewish, and I would love it if you could let me know more about this. Also, would a name that means “father” work? Thanks for your help!
[name]Hi[/name]! I’m Jewish, and so is my husband, and my twins. I have always loved Jewish names and here are a few suggestive middle names:
[name]Abba[/name] (means “father”, also band name from Mama [name]Mia[/name]!)
[name]Avi[/name] (also means “father”)
[name]Bram[/name] (although it is the Dutch variation of [name]Abraham[/name], means “father of multitudes”)
[name]Eliab[/name] (“God is my father”. . . . Could that work?)
Sorry, I’ve got to hurry. But good luck! 
!!
Oh, and I like [name]Micah[/name] and [name]Mitchel[/name]. !!
three more
Aviner My father is a lamp
[name]Aviram[/name] My father is mighty
[name]Avner[/name] Father of light
Is there a great-grandfather that they could use for the middle name instead?
I’m Jewish, and some Jewish people I know have named children after living relatives and some (actually, the vast majority) haven’t. (I guess it’s a personal thing, although your friend’s husband is right that Jewish people usually don’t name babies after living relatives).
It’s a Jewish tradition to name children after deceased loved ones by using either the person’s given name or his or her initials. (For example, I’m named after my grandma, [name]Jeanne[/name].)
If your friend’s husband doesn’t want the baby to be named after a living relative, any name in honor of his wife’s living father (be it [name]Mitchell[/name], [name]Micah[/name], or even an M initial in his honor) would technically still be off limits.
If he’s flexible and open to other variations or M names aside from [name]Michael[/name], I love the ideas of [name]Mitchell[/name] or [name]Micah[/name].
Some more M names:
[name]Maxwell[/name]
[name]Milo[/name]
[name]Miles[/name]
Has she considered giving the baby her maiden name as a middle name? I know of many Jewish people who have done this, and it ould be a way of honoring her father and ancestors without using [name]Michael[/name].
Good luck!
Thank you all so much for your input! I’m going to tell me friend your suggestions. It was so helpful to hear from you all
Try something modern and traditionally Jewish.
[name]Jude/name
[name]Cory[/name]
Makayah (micah)
Raph([name]Raphael[/name])
[name]Eli[/name]
etc.