Have you ever wondered about name origins? I know for my blog, I thought about it for a long time but could never decide on just the right name, until one day my daughter told me I was a fabulous grandmother. Right then and there I had the name, Fabgrandma.
As for my given name, Karen, I have always wondered if I was named for someone or if my parents just picked that name out of book, or if they just liked the name. Karen is of Greek origin and means “pure” and “dear”. It can also be spelled Karin, Karyn, Karren, Carin, Caren, Caryn, and a myriad of other ways, but I think the way I spell it is the most common.
I have had a running joke with my grown children every time one of them has told me of an impending new grandchild, that they will have to name their child after me if it was a girl. I never really expected any of them to do that, but when my youngest granddaughter, Amelia, was born on my birthday in 2010, she was given my middle name, Gayle, for her “second” middle name. I was overcome with happiness when my son told me about that! Gayle is of English origin, and can be either a girls or boys name. It literally means “festive party”. Imagine that, I am a pure and festive party! hahaha!
My grandson, Michael, was given Zane as his middle name. He was born in Texas, and my son told me that he didn’t want to call him Tex, but did want him to have a name associated with the western United States, so he named him after Zane Grey, the author. And my youngest grandson, Owen James, was named for his mother’s family name, Owen, and Fabgrandpa’s first name, James.
And last but not least, a name story I tell often is this one: My son was two years old when his sister, Rebecca Jean, was born. When she was about two weeks old, we went grocery shopping with my mother. My sister and one of her friends were also in the car. My sister’s friend asked my son what his sister’s name was, and he replied “Rejecca Bean.” That name stuck, and she is still called by that nickname almost 39 years later.
What is the origin of your name? Do you have any name stories to share from your family?
Jody @ Mommy Moment says
March 29, 2012 at 2:41 pmMy moms aunt died right before I was born, my middle name is named after her.
Karen says
March 29, 2012 at 3:59 pmLots of people are named after the deceased. It is an honor in some cultures to do so.
Michelle A. says
March 29, 2012 at 2:53 pmI LOVE names. Just fascinated by them. Melodie was named because of my love of music. Her middle name is Rose after my mother’s middle name (and an aunt and cousin). She also has the same initials as me.
Arianna was also named partly because of music! (did I mention, I love music? lol) We had thought about naming her Aria, but were afraid no one would pronounce it properly. As it is, you can pronounce Arianna in quite a few different ways/spellings, too. And, she usually goes by Ari, which she has begun to spell as Airy. KIDS! lol Arianna also means “silvery” in its own right…since she is the 2nd daughter, silver medal, silver…yeah. I’m that much of a name-nerd. Her middle name is Renee, which is my middle name and as well as a couple of my cousins.
Atley was named after a character in one of our favorite movies! :0) Atley Jackson from “Gone in 60 Seconds”. It’s got my favorite car in it, and we thought Memphis (Nicolas Cage’s character) was too trendy. His middle name is Daniel, after Dan. I still kind of regret we didn’t name him Atley Jackson Daniel, for the mere fact his middle name would be “Jack Daniel” which is my fav. whiskey! lol In the name books, Atley means something along the lines of “heathered fields; heathered meadows”. In all honesty, his name suits him to a T. He is the sweetest, kindest, calmest, most loving kid. And I’ve also been told by Amish friends it’s a nice, strong Amish name, too!
Charlie was named after one of Dan’s grandpas who had passed recently prior to us finding out we were pregnant with him. My favorite uncle who I’ve always been the closest to is also named Chuck. (and that’s saying alot, seeing as though my mom is 1 of 12 kids!) So, we got Charles Cash. His middle name, of course, comes from the iconic “Man in Black” himself….Johnny Cash. And, how cool will he be in high school when he can say, “My middle name’s Cash!” We had contemplated Sebastian after his other grandpa, but he’s got an uncle and cousin named Sebastian after him, and we didn’t want to step on any toes in case his cousin wants to eventually carry on the family name. Now, I’m very glad we went with Charlie….I can’t imagine screaming Sebastian every 15 seconds! lol I had personally wanted his name to be Cash Charles, but I got the final say with the girls, and Dan got it with the boys. I must say, of all the Charlie Cashes in the world, he’s the Charlie Cashiest.
My mom was going to name me Wendy. When my dad’s uncle and his wife decided to name their daughter Wanda, who was born a day after me in the same hospital, she changed her mind. That and the restaurant. She’s a Beatles fan, so she named me Michelle. :0) Renee is after my oldest cousin’s middle name. Dan is a II, named after his dad. (And he hates his middle name so didn’t want a III.)
Karen says
March 29, 2012 at 3:59 pmI can see where someone who loves music would name their children Melodie and Arianna. Very clever.
Sandy says
March 29, 2012 at 3:15 pmmy parents had a dog named sandy that died before i was born…sadly, i was named after that dog. with 5 siblings i have never heard the end of it!
my husbands last name is keech and their family ‘history’ supposedly goes back to blackbeard. when blackbeard married a girl from bath, nc (where his family is from) she changed her name to keech instead of teach to keep her family safe.
i wanted to name our son dawson (because i liked dawson’s creek…the tv show) but my husband hated the show so he wouldn’t consent. i looked hi and low to find an origin for that name to tie it back to my husband. dawson means ‘son of david’ in latin…good thing my husbands name is david =o) and ironically we now vacation on the real dawson creek!
we were going to give our son the middle name of one of my sisters kids until they started fighting over who was going to be chosen…so we just went with their last name…bradley!
i got a million of them…..
Karen says
March 29, 2012 at 4:00 pmOMG! I can not believe your parents would name you for a dog! I am sure your siblings have had a heyday with that!
Kelly says
September 15, 2016 at 10:10 pmHI Sandy. I’m a Keech and our ancestors were from Bath as well. My brother remembers being told this same story when we were little by a family member. I would love to have the chance to get in contact and see if we can trade information that would help us figure out if we really were.
Gaelyn says
March 29, 2012 at 3:44 pmYour middle name is the same as my birth given first name, only spelled different. I was going to Gail Lyn if a girl or Gale Lee if a boy. I think the name was chosen after a movie star named Gail Storm. When I got a divorce and had the opportunity to change my name at no extra cost (like it didn’t cost enough) I decided to carry my Mom’s maiden name. So I chose to become Gaelyn Loomis Olmsted. Names are fun. Great post.
Karen says
March 29, 2012 at 4:01 pmI changed my last name back to my maiden name when I divorced, but never thought to change my first name. I love how you spell your own given name.
Sandra says
March 29, 2012 at 4:39 pmWhen I was born, my parents were going to name me Ethel Rose. I had a 4 year old sister who said she didn’t like the name Ethel and liked Sandra (the name of my neighbour’s daughter). So thanks to my sister, I am Sandra Rose. The Rose came from a lady where my Dad stayed when he worked at a lumber camp in Northern Ontario when he was a young man-Rose Fleming. So my sister has lorded it over me most of my life that she saved me from being Ethel Rose.
Kasandria Reasoner says
March 29, 2012 at 10:05 pmYou know I’ve never really looked it up, but my mom said there was someone on Little House on the Prairie who had my name, but she changed the spelling and saying of it.
I love your middle name means festive party! lol
Kas
Lisa Johnston says
March 29, 2012 at 10:18 pmKylie is Kylie because my mom always wanted a Kyle…. but had 3 girls. So that’s that.
Braxton was named after my parents old boss at AT&T back in the day, who became a wonderful family friend.
Hawk was named after the Christian band, Hawk Nelson.
Jett was named after my childhood dog. No, we just like the name, but I did have a dog named Jett. His middle name is Layton.. Layton just so happens to be my cousin’s new married name.
I was named after one of my aunts who was mentally disabled and my dad LOVED
My blog name, Between the Kids.. came about because we found ourselves always starting sentences iwth it.. Someone would ask us what we do…. and we’d say “Between the kids playing ball and us doing this or that..” 🙂
Jeanne M says
March 30, 2012 at 12:22 amI am named after my aunt Jean (mother’s side) and my older sister is named after my aunt Mary (father’s side).
Mindy Grant says
March 30, 2012 at 9:31 amI was born in 1981. My parents were fans of the show Mork & Mindy and my Mom decided that she really liked the name Mindy, so ya, I was named after Mork & Mindy lol. Usually when introducing myself to older men, they joke around with me and ask where Mork is! My middle name is Marie and that was after my Mom’s grandmother Marie.