Was at the bookstore with DH and happened across a book. The title, The [name]Snow[/name] Child, caught my eye. I’m all about magical wintry crap.
I read the description on the back. The book is about a couple who can’t have children. They build a child out of snow. The next day the snow child is gone but there is a little girl mysteriously living in the woods. She calls herself [name]Faina[/name].
I don’t remember the rest of the description because I was enchanted by the name [name]Faina[/name]. I didn’t buy the book because my husband and I are having trouble TTC and I was afraid it might hit a little close to home in regards to that fragile subject. But the name is very pretty to me.
Nameberry says it’s a variant of [name]Faine[/name], “joyous,” or [name]Fawn[/name].
Any thoughts? [name]Just[/name] figured I’d share it. I think it’s lovely but DH doesn’t like it. Figures.
Oh, the author’s name was pretty, too: [name]Eowyn[/name] [name]Ivey[/name].
Ooh, I think [name]Faina[/name] is charming! I always liked the name of the female deer on [name]Bambi[/name], [name]Faline[/name], but it was too “feline” to ever consider. [name]Faina[/name] has the same general sound and feel, without being catlike. As a child I named one of my dolls [name]Shaina[/name] (supposed to be [name]Shane[/name] with an A at the end–no idea where I got that dumb idea from). I’ve always loved that kind of sound though. Cool find. [name]Faina[/name] makes me think of fairies and fairy tales and enchanted forests.
My sister has the name (not her first name) [name]Shaina[/name], from the Yiddish.
I like [name]Shaina[/name] and [name]Raina[/name]/[name]Reina[/name] better than [name]Faina[/name], but I do like the deer imagery.
Behind the Name has [name]Faina[/name] listed as a three syllable Russian name, and says it’s possibly related to one of the Greek Charities. And means “shining” which is pretty.
I would imagine she invented it… Except it’s already linked in the nameberry database (and we know how many legitimate names are left out). They say it means joyous, and I’ve been scratching my head trying to figure that one out. Phaenna I can see (the [name]Grace[/name] in question), but that means ‘shining.’ I thought of it as a diminutive of Theophane, meaning ‘reveal,’ but obviously that nowhere near joyous.
Thinkbabynames lists it as “young deer” from [name]Fawn[/name]/[name]Fauna[/name]. Babynamespedia lists it as “shining” from the Greek element phaeinos. Either way, I think it’s very pretty.
I have the book - but haven’t read it yet. [name]Faina[/name] isn’t quite my cup of tea, but I like [name]Eowyn[/name]!
I tried googling [name]Faina[/name] and it came up with various meanings like: [name]Young[/name] Deer, Shining, Crown, [name]Light[/name], derived from Phaenna (russian) or [name]Stephanos[/name] (greek).
I am with y’all - I’m not sure of the meaning and while I have found Nameberry meanings to be more reliable than most name sites, I find Behind the Name to be the best for meanings.
[name]Faina[/name] pronounced [name]FAY[/name]-nuh does have a magical, enchanted forest feel that I really like. And I love that I’ve never heard it before.
Also - yes. [name]Eowyn[/name] is a LOTR character. Always liked that name but probably a little too much for me to use.
[name]Faina[/name] makes me think of fairies and fairy tales and enchanted forests.