Thursday, October 2, 2008

Naming

I'm really enjoying the discussion in the comments to the "What's in a Name" post -- I LOVE it when people offer differing opinions. Different viewpoints really expand my thinking on an issue, so the more comments the better!

We were talking about birthparent-given names, and I was trying to make a connection to something I'd heard about naming babies in China. It finally hit me, and I googled "milk name" and found this:

When a baby is first born parents often give him or her a ‘milk name’ or ‘little name,’ such as Little Treasure. The given name is then chosen somewhat later: in China, parents have a month before having to register the child. The parents may continue to use the nickname.

I also want to mention a book I also described in the comments: Three Names of Me by Mary Cummings, for the benefit of those who don't read comments!

1 comment:

Jeff and Madeline said...

I have also heard of the milk name, but I also heard it was a name that was something negative so that ghosts would not come and take the child, ex: little dog, etc.

M was with her birthfamily for a week so I would think they called her something or at least had thought of some type of name in the mind even if unspoken. No matter if they did or not, she has a family name that she deserves to know. I wish we could find them.