Tuesday, December 6, 2011

How We Chose Our Baby Names

Trever and I take the responsibility and privilege of choosing names for our babies very seriously. And I just thought, perhaps, y'all might like to know what steps we take when trying to pick out the perfect name for our children.

First, we are very big on the *meanings* of names. We usually scour etymology websites and look up all kinds of names, tossing the ones with meanings we aren't crazy about. We started doing this with our first, but continued it with more gusto after reading the Bible and discovering how the meanings of names were closely tied to their spiritual character. We just thought that was very special and wanted to pass that on to our children.

Second, we {try} to choose names that are not overly common or popular, mainly because our last name is Smith- the most common last name in the United States. At the same time, we try not to choose names that are so bizarre that people question whether we really love our children or not. {smiles}

Lastly, {and this one is obvious} we pick names we like. I tend to be drawn to names of Irish descent, hence names like Aiden and Riley, and Dylan's middle name, Patrick. We also tend to like names that end in that "n" sound, so we are trying to add a little variety. {I strongly considered naming this new baby Eden, though then our last three children would be Aiden, Owen and Eden. Seemed a little too close.}

Now that you have a little background, I'd like to share with you the name we have chosen for our new daughter, due in May:

Maya Susanna.

Maya is derived from the Hebrew word "mayim", which means "water".

Susanna is derived from the Hebrew name Shoshannah, which means "lily".

Maya Susanna is our sweet little water lily.

Did I mention we are also very fond of nicknames? Our six year old daughter, Liberty, has been going by Libby Lu since she was a baby. So now we have a Libby Lu and a Maya Sue. {smiles}

And I think, sometimes, you just know when a name fits into your family. Maya already feels like a beautiful fit.


~amy danielle

8 comments:

  1. Thanks the was uplifting to hear this morning. Our friends just had a little girl and named her Eden, so that would fall into the more popular names at this time as she is the second I've know this year to be named Eden. Great name Maya Susanna
    Diana

    ReplyDelete
  2. We take the meanings of names into thought too. My name and both of my kids names end with the a sound (one is actually ah) and my husband always laughs about that. But really I didn't plan it that way ;) I also love the name Eden. Maya Susanna is a beautiful name!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Since the day when you first know what is your name? You were surely thought about what does that mean and from where it is originated. Meaning and origin of your name are vital; there are many versatile names origins all across the globe. If you would like to find out the meaning or origin of any of the names, you can simply search over the internet.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Amy Danielle,

    You won my vinyl lettering giveaway! I've sent you an email to your yahoo account. You can also email me through my blog.

    Hope your day is blessed!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Now I know the meaning behind the name for your new little daughter, I love it even more... if that was even possible!!!
    My name is almost the same but back to front :) Susan Mae... :)
    All your kids have lovely names!

    ReplyDelete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete

Your kind thoughts...