Liesel for baby girl

Ruchel

Sat, Sep 24 2016, 4:08 pm

amother wrote:

I disagree with your premise. For example, I have a Jewish niece who is named Christina. This does not make Christina a Jewish name.

(anon to protect my family's privacy)

Xtina is obviously not Jewish.

But grandmother may be old enough that her name is "mesoradik", especially with such root as Elisabeth.

I happen to like Liesel a lot. Do expect questions, like I have sometimes on my daughters' Ladino names. One (Sefardi!) lady even insisting it wasn't Jewish if not Hebrew or Yiddish...... She wouldn't relent so we didn't apply to her school. It turned out she is crazy LOL

but still.
Most people don't ask, or askNICELY.

amother

Brown

Sat, Sep 24 2016, 9:07 pm

amother wrote:

I also know an Aliza who goes by Liesel (wonder if it's the same one?), but honestly, I never liked it.

The one I know has a maiden name beginning with G and a married last name beginning with S. Is that the same one you know?

sweetpotato

Tue, Sep 27 2016, 1:01 pm

amother wrote:

I disagree with your premise. For example, I have a Jewish niece who is named Christina. This does not make Christina a Jewish name.

(anon to protect my family's privacy)

Obviously, there are exceptions, like names that directly reference non-Jewish religions (though there are Yiddish names that derive from names associated with Xtian saints, like Trayna from Katerina). But I do think there were frum Jewish men in the past who had the English or European name "Paul," for example, and similarly Xtian sounding names.

I meant more specifically that frum Jews in different lands had a mesorah of using all sorts of names, especially for girls, that don't come from Tanach or Hebrew. Many Yiddish names are just versions of German, Russian and Polish vernacular names--for example, my daughter is named Raizel Bella, which comes 100% from European names. I see no difference between a name like Raizel and a name like Liesel. I don't think you have to swap in a modern Hebrew name that sounds similar in order to make it acceptably Jewish by today's standards, because clearly those names were Jewish enough for our ancestors.

But I'm a very big proponent of naming directly for ancestors and maintaining that mesorah and connection, if possible, instead of modernizing the name or trying to make it sound like modern Hebrew just because you think people will accuse it of being a non-Jewish name.

Chayalle

Tue, Sep 27 2016, 2:08 pm

There are so many "Jewish" names that in reality come from European names. Once a name has been used long enough by many people, we start thinking of it as Jewish.

For example, the name Shprintza comes from the Spanish name Esperansa. Now my grandmothers, may they all rest in piece, would undoubtedly pass out at the name Esperansa, but Shprintza would be just fine....a real yiddishe name.....