Credit: Tova B.
We’ve let the baby name requests pile up around here! These three readers are looking for four Hebrew names for their daughters:
- Hi! I don’t know if you’re still doing the baby name posts, but please help if you can! We are looking for an Israeli girls’ name which is the same as a secular name. Examples would be Libby or Maya, which are English names but have a Hebrew meaning. I think Kayla is one too? Can you think of any others? Names we like are Amy, Tayla/Taylor, Megan, Skye. Would any of these be adaptable to Hebrew words?
- My twin girls were born 3 weeks ago (Gemma and Lola) and I would like some creative ideas for their Hebrew names. I am open to names that are similar to their American names (i.e. Lila) or I also like the idea of two names that go together well (I love the name Orli and if there was another name ending with “-li” that is as sweet as the translation of Orli, I’d like that too). In general I prefer more unusual names like Keshet, or I love the name Matan for a boy. Can you help?
- We are expecting our first baby (a girl!) in April, due date is 12th April, so literally just after Pesach. We would like to give her a name that fits in well in Israel but at the same time, not too unusual or hard to pronounce in North London, which is where we live at the moment. I’d quite like it to be connected to Pesach if possible, although I don’t really like any of the female names associated with the Pesach story. At the moment, we both like Talia as a first name and this is pretty much all we have! Any other suggestions based on the above??! I love the strong female characters in the Tanach and really like Sara, although my husband says no. Tamar is also another one that I like. He likes Michal but I’m not too keen.
We’d quite like her to have a middle name as well – I am considering naming her for my grandmother but who didn’t have a Hebrew name. Her name was Grace which I would not choose. However, I’ve considered Chana as an alternative with the same meaning. The qualities I admire most in my grandmother was that she was always a very peaceful, contented person, thankful for everything that she has. Does anyone have any suggestions for names that might convey this sentiment?
Readers, can you help?
List of all Isreali baby name posts
Top 20 Israeli Baby Names for Girls, 2010
Popular Israeli Names for Girls (October 2008)
Re: no 3. I think you could count Talia as a Pesach name at a stretch. After all we say the prayer for dew then. Or instead of ‘dew’ you could use the ‘lamb’ meaning and link it with the Pesach sacrifice… 🙂
We have used Michal, Tamar and Chana for different daughters and they are all lovely names. What about Hodaya (gratitude) or Shalva (tranquility) in memory of your grandmother’s qualities? or Chen/Bat-Chen which are a bit more modern than Chana? if it’s a middle name then it doesn’t so much that it’s not so easy to say
Thanks Vicki! I actually really like Chen as a middle name – I think Talia Chen is a beautiful name, think my husband needs convincing on Chen though! I had thought of the connection to prayers for dew and in glad someone else has now mentioned it as well! Really enjoying pondering on names….I’m hoping that when we see her, we will know for sure what to call her!
2) Shai-li (spell it however you like) could be nice. It’s not so common but pretty.
3) Talya is pretty, but anything ending in ‘tal’ could work: Avital, Meital, Revital, Lital…. You could go with a spring theme: Aviva, Aviv (yes, it’s used for girls) or Nitzan. Or you could use Shir Hashirim as inspiration and use Shir, Shirelle or Shirli. Alternatively, Shir Hashirim has some nice imagery, like where the woman is called “My dove” (Yonati) which is unique and pretty. For a strong female Pesach character, you could use Shifra or Miri (Miriam is a bit old school).
1, there are the Biblical Miriam, Sarah, Esther, Dina, Rina, Leah. More modern would be Hallel, Shirli. Amy could be Ami, my people,
2 Ginat (garden) and Lilach (lilac)
3 Talya, Lital, Geula is the perfect Passover name, Chen or Shalva would be nice in memory of your grandmother
#1: I know a girl called Shamaim (Sky), Megan means “pearl” which would translate into Pnina (although a little old-fashioned in my opinion)
#2: You might like to consider Lior/Liora or Shirli.
#3: Herut (Freedom) is another Pessach name, and Shalev (also used for girls) could be in memory of your grandmother.
Oh! Oh! Hatzlalpony! It’s the Bible and everything. It’ll really stand out too.
Ella- tree. Beautiful name. I know a couple with that name although it is not common.
Annaelle – we recently named our daughter that. It can be spelled with an ? to mean ” God answered” or with an ? for “I beseech you, God.” Also, unique but not unheard of.
My husband always brings up Hatzlilpony when we discuss girls names 🙂
Another baby name question-
I’m pregnant with a girl and we’re considering naming her Shiloh. We live in the US and follow reform Judaism. I understand that this is the name of a current and biblical town in Israel, and that there’s also a reference to the Messiah in the old testament that includes this name. My question is, would this name be acceptable in Israel? I’m ok with it being more of a boy’s name or being an unusual name, but I’m worried that the Messiah reference would somehow make this name sacrilegious. Your thoughts?
Hi Rebecca! Shiloh is a common name for boys in the religious community, and using it for a girl would not make it sacreligious. Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy.
Sorry for misspelling!
Thank you, Hannah!!
We need naming advice ASAP. If you could post as a new thread, I would appreciate it. We are expecting a daughter in less than a week. Big sister is Talia. We have it narrowed down to Aviva Grace and Maya Grace, and are very torn. My husband won’t go for the more modern Aviv. We would love your advice and opinions, but please no additional suggestions! 🙂 We are Conservative Jews in the US, and our children will probably go to public school.
Hi, I put this on the Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/AMotherInIsrael/posts/1037103669637619
Any inspiring names for a baby girl due during tabernacles 2015? I’d like something joyous as it’s taken five years to get pregnant. We live in London. Appreciate it!
Hi Lio, I believe I asked this on the blog’s FB page. I’ll get the link later.
I noticed in an earlier post Hannah Katsman you said Zelda was not a good name to use. Curious the reasoning. I am looking for nice names. Not sure if I am having a boy or a girl yet. My husband’s family has mostly Yiddish names (his grandparents…even some of their Hebrew names are more Yiddish) the younger folks are mostly Jewish/American names.
Hi Tivonna,
I asked the owner of the nameberry.com site. She said that in Washington, she is hearing the name Zelda, and Washington is usually “ahead of the curve” for trendy names. Apparently parents like names that are a little different and hard to turn into a nickname. It’s still far from popular, though. It would not go over yet in Israel. Good luck!
I’m in California and use to work for a local Chabad Day school. When I was there (around 2010) there were a handful of little girls named Zelda in different ages.
My daughter’s name is Amaris…..It’s definitely not a name you hear everyday!
Hi!
I’m due to have a baby girl in a few weeks & we are planning on having her simchat bat within the first month after she’s born. We’re having a hard time coming up with a Hebrew name for her.
Her first name in Hebrew would be for my grandfather Jacob, Yaakov. Is Yaakova an acceptable Hebrew name for a girl? Possibly Coby (I believe this is a valid name)? Another “yud” name perhaps?
Her middle name will be for my husband’s great grandmother, Florence. She did not have a Hebrew name. We are thinking maybe Bluma or Nitza as the meaning, blossming woman/blooming flower, seems to be the same. Any other suggestions? Names that start w/a “pey” or “fey”?
Thanks!
Me and my wife are expecting our first child in less than a month. We have been trying to come up with biblical and modern hebrew names that we both like, but we can’t agree. We really did want to name our child after both of our grand parents that had passed away. Marlowe which means remnant of a lake, and roselynn which means rose or rose land. I really like Sarid but my wife hates it. Is there a name that is similar in biblical or modern hebrew?
Hello,
My husband and I are interested in the name Yael or Ya’El for a baby girl. We noticed that the name can be spelled as one word or as two separated by an apostrophe (‘). What is the explanation for the different spellings? Which spelling do you recommend? Are either spellings technically “correct?”?
Thanks!
Hi, they are both correct but Yael is common enough that the apostrophe is not necessary.
Hi, we would like to name our daughter after a few of our late grandparents – one of them being a grandfather named Eliesha/?????. I was wondering if this name is ever used for a girl? It would be a middle name. If not, what would a female equivilent of the name be? Also, i could use a few suggestions please of simple/pretty M names – we were thinking of Maya or Miri (is Maya used in hebrew?) Thank you for your help!
Hi Rachel, I don’t know that Elisha is ever used for a girl. Maya is very popular in Israel, but it is not strictly Hebrew.
Hello,
Can you please help me find a baby girl’s name in loving memory of safta Pnina.
In US it’s hard for people to say Pnina but we really want to have a name after her.
Thank you in advance.
Pam
Hi! We are expecting a baby girl IYH around Pesach. We had a lot of issues getting pregnant and really want a very special name for her. I love Libby Ruth but I’m not sure if Libby is Hebrew. I was thinking of Leba Rut and calling her Libby? Is Leba very old fashioned? What do people think of it? Also open to suggestions.
Hi Adina, Libi is used in Israel on its own, as my heart. It’s more common and modern than Liba.
Great thank you! Is it ever pronounced with a short i or is it always pronounced Leebee? Also do modern orthodox Jews ever use it or only more secular Jews? Thank you for your help.
It’s pretty much pronounced Leebee. It’s not common in the modern Orthodox community but in my opinion, would be perfectly fine. There are a lot of Leebas so some of them would be shortened to Leebee.
Hi,
I am expecting in a few months and going through different names with my husband. We have a grandfather we would love to name after, Avraham, and trying to figure out if there is a way we can use that for a girl. I’ve seen the name Avra on some websites but not sure how we feel about it.
Are there girls named after Avraham in Israel, and what are the names they use for that?
Thank you for your help!
Is Ava a Hebrew name? I can’t find it on a list, only as a variation of Chava but then its not the same name as Avraham…
if Ava is used in Israel , how do they spell it?
No, I don’t know of the name Ava. Avia is a popular name.