My word! This man is so difficult. I know all of us ladies have dealt with this at one point. So I keep coming back to my nameberry family for some help and encouraging advice. I feel like every name I love he can’t stand. It seems like all of the names he likes are very common and that’s not something I want to saddle my child with because I grew up with the name [name]Lauren[/name]. [name]Lauren[/name] is beautiful don’t get me wrong, but school was a nightmare. In almost every class I had 1 or 2 other [name]Laurens[/name]. I prefer unique names that have beautiful solid meanings. I don’t like anything too out there, but something different for sure. Lately I’ve been trying to venture out into other origins. But we’re coming to the end of line and I feel like I’ve seen every name in the book. A name that I’m completely stuck on is Haniah. It’s hebrew and means [name]Grace[/name] of the [name]Lord[/name] (which I love) and the nn [name]Niah[/name] which I think is adorable. I think it’s perfect for a sweet little mixed girl (we’re an interracial couple) and a wonderful spin on the classic [name]Hannah[/name]. With all these good aspects I just don’t see why he doesn’t like it… He says it’s because of the name beginning with H.
So I guess what I’m looking for is some similar options, some more ways to convince my hubby that Haniah is amazing, or some random names that are my taste I’ve described above. Oh and if you have any other cute nickname ideas that would work with Haniah, please share!
*Keep in mind- I’m not a fan of flower names or old fashioned names that are making a comeback *
Oh my gosh, Haniah is so lovely! Is it han-EE-uh or han-EYE-uh? I’m awful at similar name suggestions but nicknamewise, Han, [name]Hanny[/name], [name]Annie[/name], [name]Nia[/name], [name]Nan[/name] and Hia are some possibilities. Or if you are feeling like a bit of a stretch would be alright, [name]Nin[/name] is also very sweet. As for trying to persuade hubby - a good tactic I’ve heard of is this; after bringing up Haniah first, proceed to mention all your guilty pleasure/strange fancies that you know you can never use and he will never agree to until he is completely bewildered and desperate. Then, casually bring Haniah back up again. He will cling to it like a lifebuoy. Good luck - any girl would be lucky to have Haniah as a name!
For the record I think that Haniah is very pretty, sorry that he is not on board with you.
Other suggestions
[name]Miriam[/name]
[name]Naomi[/name]
[name]Selah[/name] - This is what is said in many of the Psalms at the end of them
[name]Zina[/name]
[name]Hadassah[/name] - I know he said no H’s, but this one is just beautfiul imo.
[name]Hope[/name] some of these help, good luck in choosing a name!
Aside from being stubborn my husband will usually come around. He’s really weird about names but he does compromise. It is pronounced han-EYE-uh. Thanks for the tactic suggestion though hehe
Haniah is gorgeous! And I can totally related to your situation – my hubby and I have completely different taste in names. What about [name]Moriah[/name]? Rhymes with Haniah but doesn’t start with H? Another suggestion to convince him is to just beg him to at least keep it on your short list and not decide until after she is born. My hubby has tended to be more open to names I like once the baby is actually there. Good luck!
Looks like Haniah, like many Hebrew names, has a few lovely variants:
Haniah
[name]Hania[/name]
Chania (still pronounced with an H, sort of like how you see Hanukkah as Chanukkah sometimes)
Chanya
Hanyah
Chaniyah
Hannia
I love the name Haniah and the meaning of it! Well maybe you can convince your hubby to go with some of these names that sound similar or are just pretty/cute/unique in general!
A’niyah - There are obviously different spelling variations such as A’nya, A’niya, and [name]Aniya[/name]. I think it’s a beautiful and unique name but it’s also very similar to Haniah! You can also still use the nn Niyah
Niyah - You can simply use Niyah since you like it a lot. I also think its a very pretty and unique name but at the same time it’s very powerful yet simple!
These are names withe the long I sounds:
(previously suggested) [name]Moriah[/name]/[name]Mariah[/name]
[name]Lila[/name]
[name]Dalila[/name]
[name]Riley[/name]
[name]Ivy[/name]
Haniah is lovely but he doesn’t like H? hmmm well some suggestions…
Anaiah- means Yahweh answers in Hebrew
[name]Amaya[/name]/[name]Amaia[/name]- though this may be too popular for you, it means ‘the end’ in basque
[name]Ainhoa[/name]- name of a town in [name]France[/name], popular name in Spain.
[name]Anais[/name]- catalan form of [name]Anna[/name]
[name]Anina[/name]- german version/diminuative of [name]Anne[/name]
Nahia- means desire in Basque
Anuhea- hawaiian possibly means cool/fragrant breeze
[name]Naia[/name]- Hawaiian for Dolphin
[name]Nia[/name]- Swahili for purpse
Nanea- a persian goddess
I completely feel your pain. My hubbie & I have very different taste in names. If it is any encouragement at all he started out not liking our oldest’s name at all. It was the only one I was absolutely in love with from day one and adored all the way through my pregnancy. He never told me it was growing on him, but when she was born we were still unsure what her name would be so we both agreed to give our top two and try to go from there. He went first and [name]Aubriana[/name], the name I’d loved all along, was on his list! Keep looking, but keep in mind his heart just might turn towards Haniah. Here’s hoping!
P/S - The only other names that I thought of while reading your post were [name]Mika[/name]/[name]Myka[/name] and [name]Eliana[/name]
A few more suggestions
[name]Palmer[/name] - rare but totally familiar, the palm-bearing [name]Christian[/name]
[name]Arielle[/name] - “lion of god”
[name]Clare[/name] or [name]Serena[/name] - both were saints
[name]Azaria[/name] - “helped by God”
Haniah is nice and I really do like [name]Niah[/name]! Hopefully he comes around and you get to use it!
If not my suggestions are:
[name]Celeste[/name] - means heavenly
[name]Allegra[/name] - joyous
[name]Clementine[/name]
[name]Jessamy[/name]
[name]Nicola[/name]
[name]Sylvia[/name] - one of my recent loves
[name]Evangeline[/name] - bearer of good news
[name]Lucia[/name] (loo-sha) - means light
[name]Kendra[/name]
[name]Abra[/name]
I actually really liked the name [name]Jessamy[/name] when I saw it in our baby name book. I wrote it down and kept it in mind for a possible middle name.
Haniah is beautiful! At first I thought he was put off because it ended with “h” but then I read that he didn’t like it starting with “h”. Uhm, what’s wrong with H names?? But I really instantly thought that if you liked it so much and his only problem is that it starts with H is drop the H? Aniah? I think that’s really neat still, unique, and a spin off of a classic name. Pitch that one to him.
Never consider that one before, but Haniah is lovely! Guess I prefer [name]Ania[/name] though. If Haniah is a spin of [name]Hannah[/name], [name]Ania[/name] is from [name]Anna[/name]. Same meaning, but doesn’t start with H. [name]How[/name] about that?
hehe