Baby Names and Naming Ceremonies
New Zealand Baby Names and Naming Ceremonies
Choosing a name for your new baby can be a challenge! Read our top ten ideas for settling on the perfect baby name, and get tips on holding a naming ceremony or christening for the new member of your family.
One of the decisions you will inevitably face as a new parent is that of choosing a name for your baby. With so many names to choose from, connotations (good and bad) to consider, fashions and trends - it can be quite a challenge to find the perfect name for you and your baby.
It’s good to look beyond the most popular choices for inspiration or consideration at least. You may want to consider using your mother’s maiden name as your daughter’s first or middle name, naming your newborn after a much-loved granddad or grandmother, looking to your cultural heritage for ideas, or simply picking a name from a favourite book or off a map.
However you choose the name for you new baby, it should be a name you fall in love with, and just as importantly, one that you and your baby can both live with.
Top 10 tips for choosing the perfect baby name
- Getting the sound right. Make sure the first name goes with your surname - try it out for sound.
- Check the initials. Check to see whether the initials of first name, middle and surnames make up a word such as M.U.G.
- Aim to fall in love with a name. No matter what other people say, if you really love it, at least add it to your shortlist for consideration.
- Make your own decision. It can be fun to talk to other people about choosing a name, but remember everyone is going to have their own opinion. If you don’t want people to ‘pooh-pooh’ your favourite names, don’t tell them what they are and go with the names you want.
- Give a child a name they can live with. Remember it’s not just about you. You may really love an unusual, weird or wacky name, but it’s not you that will suffer in the playground, at school, at job interviews or as an adult. Thinking ‘Hollywood’ style names may be en vogue, but is your baby really going to be an A-list movie star…?
- Naming fashions. Do you want to jump on board current naming fashion trends or stick to classics? Nowadays, names that are interchangeable between boys and girls, unconventional spellings and invented names are all commonplace. You can think as outside or inside the ‘name game’ box as much as you like.
- Do some research. Beyond just buying a baby names book, why not head to the library and browse through a few of your favourite novels, unknown authors or new titles? Every book and every story is rich in names.
- Check the meaning of names. The Internet offers a huge array of websites dedicated to deciphering the meaning of baby names. Look for more traditional meanings, (e.g. fair maiden, might warrior etc), choose a baby name from your family tree or find a name that signals something of personal significance to you. You might also want to consider your culture too; for instance, there are many appealing Maori and Polynesian baby names.
- Have some fun with it. Don’t get too hung up with choosing the perfect name – try to enjoy the process (and try not fall out with your partner over it).
- Popular names. If the name you really like just happens to be extremely fashionable at the moment, so what? Your baby will be a child of his or her time – if it’s truly the name you love, pick it!
A naming ceremony for your new baby
Once you have finally agreed on the name for your new baby, you may want to arrange either a traditional christening or a naming ceremony. These are particularly nice to do when the baby is a few months old and won’t just sleep or cry throughout the day. This type of ceremony often has religious overtones, but whether it does or not, it is one of the rites of passage you can celebrate. You can make these ceremonies as traditional or unique as you choose, but typically they celebrate new life, love and care for the new baby.
Naming godparents at traditional ceremonies is still common, but nowadays, godparents can also be referred to as life guardians, sponsors or mentors. If you are going to name a ‘godparent’ at your naming ceremony or christening, be sure that this person is prepared to make the commitment to care for your child for life. Ensure too that your will is updated to reflect their commitment and your wish that they look after your child if you are unable to do so.
Naming ceremony and christening ideas:
- Have the service conducted by a priest or christening celebrant
- Include your favourite prayers
- Ask godparents or a close friend to give a reading
- Plant a tree or flower to symbolise the day
- Open a new bank account and invite contributions
- Light candles as tokens of everyone’s blessing
- Create a book of messages from everyone attending
Looking for more information? Find christening ideas in the NZS.com directory.
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Family images from Flickr: Baptism, Kids Classroom and Hands.
