After getting married, my husband and I began to discuss baby names. We do not have a child yet, but we know that there will come a day when we start to build our family. We learned that searching for a baby name is quite a picky task. We don’t want over-used or hard-to-pronounce names, yet we also want names that are beautiful, unique, and somewhat refined. On top of that, we have to find names that we both agree on and that work well with our last name.
Our children will keep these names for a lifetime. When called upon, our children will respond to these names. But finding these names can be quite a task, and we haven’t even begun to have children yet! Does this fun and exciting task really have to be such a hunt and burden? Bringing a child into the world, or adopting a new family member is a magnificent event. We should keep the events leading up to that time positive.
The Secret to Finding Great Baby Names
As I began my search for baby names, I came upon a treasure cove of baby names—something that can alleviate the problem of hunting for a name, and make it less of a burden. In fact, it turns out that baby names can easily be found with a quick search. Chances are you will find a beautiful, less-common, meaningful name.
Where do you find it? Family history.
I realized that my family history is full of beautiful names that have now been put on my baby name list. Your ancestry is likely full of names too—names that are just what you are looking for. They are unique, not always laughable, and have been used by your own family. Your child can be named easily, and purposefully.
If your family history has not been done, this task will take some more work, but it will be worth it. For those who have a family history that has been worked on, simply log in to a family history site, such as familysearch.org and view your family tree. From there, you can find beautiful names for the next generation in your family.
You may find boy names such as Charles, Walter, Arthur, Albert, and Roy.
For girls, there are names such as Helen, Dorothy, Lillian, Rose, and Edith.
These are top names of the 1910s, but you may find that they are the top names for the next child in your family.
What’s even better about using family history, though, is that you may find names more suited to your family’s culture. If your family has a French past, you may find delightful French names.
They are not just names though: they are people. Your child can be named after someone that you are related to; someone you can research and get to know as you fall in love with the name and the person behind it.
Family history is our responsibility to research and complete, but it can also be a joy as we look for names of the next generation.
Look at your family history today, and see what names stand out to you. If your family does not expect new children any time soon, you can still take the time to research a family member, and understand their history. No babies are required to do your family history.
Are you named after someone in your ancestry or have you used an ancestral name? Let us know in the comments below!
