Naming children past and present

Most beauty queen names are good names.

Simple, easy to remember

In the past, people often had many children, at least 4-5, at most up to 9-10 people, some families had even more. To make it easier to remember, parents often gave their children names that were very familiar, related to things around them… When those names were linked together, they rhymed, and many people couldn’t help but laugh.

In Hai Duong city, there is a Doan family that has 6 children, both boys and girls. They named their children Mang, Mi, Mien, Can, Nhac, and Them. In Nam Sach, there is a family that named their children Nuoc, Non, Song, and Sanh. Another family named their children Thu, Tu, Thu, and Tu. Also in this district, there is a Pham family that named their 3 children Can, Hat, and Mit... In Gia Loc district, there is a family that named their children Nen, Chang, Tron, and Trinh...

Fruit trees such as jackfruit, custard apple, grapefruit, mango or some items such as knives, shovels, bowls, cups, sickles, pots, kettles... were also "utilized" by the ancients to name their children. A family in Thanh Mien had 10 children named in order: First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Nineth, Tenth. Later, they had a youngest daughter and named her Them.

The 12 zodiac animals in folk beliefs were also used by the ancients to name their children. Children born in the year of the zodiac were named after that year. For example, those born in the year of the goat were named Mui, those born in the year of the pig were named Hoi... Some families named their children after natural phenomena such as Rain and Storm.

The ancients named their children in many ways but did not have to spend too much time thinking. After naming their first child, they often thought of related names for their next children, combining them into rhymes for easy remembering. Mrs. Nguyen Thi Phu in Tu Ky district gave birth to her first child Bien, then named her second child Khoi. She named her third child Khoi, her fourth and fifth children Nghia and Quan. The names of Mrs. Phu's five children, when combined, form two meaningful phrases: "Bien - Khoi" and "Khoi - Nghia - Quan". The children's last names are naturally given after their father's last names, while the common middle names are "Thi" for girls and "Van" for boys. "Our generation names their children in ways that are easy to remember," said Mrs. Phu.

According to the elders, when naming their children, people in the past often avoided the names of kings, lords or the taboo names of tutelary deities. In fact, the uglier the child's name, the healthier and easier it would be to raise. In some places, the ancients believed that if they gave their children beautiful names, they would be "captured by ghosts". In O Me village, Hung Dao commune (Tu Ky), there is a mausoleum worshipping the Lady of the Cup, the Third Royal Concubine of the Royal Palace, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chen. No one in the past dared to name their children after her and often called the drinking cup "the cup" for fear that bad luck and misfortune would happen.

In the past, people rarely named their children after their relatives. That’s why many people had to redo their birth certificates because of their relatives’ reactions…

Sophisticated

In contrast to the past, many parents today are very picky when it comes to naming their children. They even think about naming their children before they are even pregnant. Names are often long. Children not only carry their father’s surname but may also carry their mother’s. Middle names are rarely “Thi” or “Van” but are replaced by much nicer-sounding words.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Lan Anh in Cam Giang gave birth to her first son half a year ago. Since before the baby was born, she and her husband went online to find out how to choose a good, meaningful name for their baby. Both parents and relatives also suggested many names for the baby, but the couple was not satisfied. Even the couple had their own ideas. It was only after the baby was born that the couple "finalized". Ms. Lan Anh shared: "The baby's name is Nguyen Tuan Hai Dang. Tuan here means handsome, and Hai Dang means a shining light. With this name, my husband and I hope that when he grows up, he will always be healthy, beautiful, intelligent, and wise."

Many young couples go online to look up good names for their children. They even install the best child naming app based on the parents' ages on their phones for easy research. Mr. Tran Van Huy in Hai Duong City even asked a monk to help name his child. After looking, the monk gave his daughter the rather long name Tran Thi Phuong My Han. "The child's name must also match the parents' horoscope and destiny for the family to be peaceful and the business to prosper," Mr. Huy believes.

Many parents give their children the same name, only different middle names. For example, a family with two sons named them Nguyen Hoang Anh and Nguyen Duc Anh. Another couple with two daughters named them Nguyen Le Hoai Trang and Nguyen Le Minh Trang…

The concept of naming children between the past and present has changed. Naming children is important, but the main thing is that parents need to take care of and educate their children so that when they grow up, they will become filial, moral people, contributing to their family and society.

DAWN