To name, or not rename, that is the question
It's an interesting discussion to have around the family table, and let me tell you, each person in the family has a strong, defensable opinion. We've been pronouncing A&K's name phonetically...but we were ever wrong! The agency director got them on video saying their names & they are not ANYTHING like we were saying them. Add on top, K's name has a rolling 'r' in the middle of his name, and do you remember me saying before, Paul can't roll his r's? How do we keep a name we can't pronounce?
Then, there's the argument for keeping their Ethiopian names. After all, it is part of their heritage. Part of the family they were born into. I think of how we selected each of our other children's names, much prayer and discussion...and I imagine A&K's birthparents did the same thing. It somehow seems dishonoring to their sacrifice to change the children's names.
We could stick with the 'American,' for lack of a better term, pronounciation & conversion from Tinigria to English. But, that is still CHANGING their names, right? (my bias may be showing!)
So, there's the question. We may give them an English first name & keep their Ethiopian names as their middle names. In that instance, we will continue to call them their Ethiopian names, as best as we can say them, to make their transition easier.
We're taking them away from something that is all they've ever known. I grieve for what they leave behind, as much as I look to the future with excitement for all they will gain. I do wonder, will they feel like they are gaining? How long will it take for us to be family, and our house to truly be their home?
Then, there's the argument for keeping their Ethiopian names. After all, it is part of their heritage. Part of the family they were born into. I think of how we selected each of our other children's names, much prayer and discussion...and I imagine A&K's birthparents did the same thing. It somehow seems dishonoring to their sacrifice to change the children's names.
We could stick with the 'American,' for lack of a better term, pronounciation & conversion from Tinigria to English. But, that is still CHANGING their names, right? (my bias may be showing!)
So, there's the question. We may give them an English first name & keep their Ethiopian names as their middle names. In that instance, we will continue to call them their Ethiopian names, as best as we can say them, to make their transition easier.
We're taking them away from something that is all they've ever known. I grieve for what they leave behind, as much as I look to the future with excitement for all they will gain. I do wonder, will they feel like they are gaining? How long will it take for us to be family, and our house to truly be their home?
Comments
Post a Comment