Baby naming
Nov. 1st, 2004 11:37 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
magidThis weekend, friends named their daughter. Since this was a daughter, not a son, they had the flexibility to design whatever ceremony made sense to them, unlike for boys. I'm always curious to see what people decide to do.
They started by welcoming everyone, then the whole family (mother, father, 4-year-old sister) said shehechiyanu, a blessing said over something new (new clothes, new time of year, new fruits, etc.). Next, the mother 'bentched gomel', saying a prayer about surviving a danger (said by mothers after childbirth, and anyone surviving a bad accident, extreme surgery, or a potentially disastrous situation). After that, the couple's two sisters (one on each side) came up to name the baby. The text of the mi she-bairach (blessing) was one written by a friend of the family, which was a bit longer than others I've heard, tying in some extra hopes for this new person. Happily, the Hebrew was understandable :-). One sister read the Hebrew, inserting the name at the proper place, then the other sister read the English translation.
Next was the explanation section. The mom got up and explained why they'd chosen the names they gave their daughter. The first one was just because they liked it, while the middle name was after the mother's maternal grandmother. So most of this talk focused on memories of her grandmother that exemplified the characteristics they'd like their daughter to have as well. Then the two grandmothers each gave a talk, each tied in some way to this week's parasha (Torah portion). I'm always fascinated to hear how, given one event theme and one Torah portion, such amazingly different ideas can be brought out.
And then we ate, and kvelled over the baby :-).
They started by welcoming everyone, then the whole family (mother, father, 4-year-old sister) said shehechiyanu, a blessing said over something new (new clothes, new time of year, new fruits, etc.). Next, the mother 'bentched gomel', saying a prayer about surviving a danger (said by mothers after childbirth, and anyone surviving a bad accident, extreme surgery, or a potentially disastrous situation). After that, the couple's two sisters (one on each side) came up to name the baby. The text of the mi she-bairach (blessing) was one written by a friend of the family, which was a bit longer than others I've heard, tying in some extra hopes for this new person. Happily, the Hebrew was understandable :-). One sister read the Hebrew, inserting the name at the proper place, then the other sister read the English translation.
Next was the explanation section. The mom got up and explained why they'd chosen the names they gave their daughter. The first one was just because they liked it, while the middle name was after the mother's maternal grandmother. So most of this talk focused on memories of her grandmother that exemplified the characteristics they'd like their daughter to have as well. Then the two grandmothers each gave a talk, each tied in some way to this week's parasha (Torah portion). I'm always fascinated to hear how, given one event theme and one Torah portion, such amazingly different ideas can be brought out.
And then we ate, and kvelled over the baby :-).
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parse error
Date: 2004-11-01 08:40 am (UTC)Re: parse error
Date: 2004-11-01 08:42 am (UTC)Oops.
Re: parse error
Date: 2004-11-01 12:04 pm (UTC)