Sefira | Imamother

amother

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 8:40 pm

I am in love with this name but my husband doesn’t know if it would quite be acceptable in frum society. I’ve heard it sounds weird to
Israelis (although we don’t live in Israel) and I wouldn’t want her to be taunted in school if it’s
too woowoo .. I love the sound of it and the association with the kabbalistic sefiros, with sapphire, and even think it be neat to have a special link with the counting of the omer (even though baby is not due at that time).
Any thoughts please share!!

amother

Gray

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 8:45 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I think this is a recipe for taunting. There will be a good many years before she can understand the association and special links you're referring to. By that time, if she endured a lot of taunting, it won't be able to resonate with her.

You may love it, but she's the one who has to carry it for life. I don't think it's fair to put a child in this position.

amother

Forestgreen

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 8:48 pm

Eh, no. There are plenty of names you could use that are connected to sefira- Tiferet, Malka, Gavriel/la (for the sefirot), or Akiva, Shimon, Yochai (people connected with sefira). But yeah, Sefira is not a name.

trixx

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 8:49 pm

Some names are OK though weird if you think about them - simcha, Mazal, Pesach, Nissan, geula. Some names will never be. Like sefira.

trixx

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 8:55 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Ok... but that’s the issue with it? Just the association with Sefiras Ha Omer?

It's not a name. And it's too random to be a nice made up name, Israeli style.
Also, it won't even be a sefira baby?? Asking for bullying right there.

amother

Tan

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 9:01 pm

I can't understand how a parent just decides that a certain word is a name and even thinks about naming their child a weird name. There are enough normal names out there, you don't have to decide random words are names. It's so unfair to the child to give them such a name

amother

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 9:08 pm

Maybe it’s my BT ears but It just doesn’t sound like a made up name to me.
It sounds like a real name to me. It has a ring to it like a real name... I even know someone with that name and she loves her name!
Similar names are Sapir, Sapira, Serafina

Why is this name inviting ridicule??

Still no supporters?

JoyInTheMorning

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 10:10 pm

Sapir is a beautiful and relatively unusual name, and has the meaning of sapphire that you like.

I think the reason people are down on the name Sefirah is that many of the connotations with the period of Sefirah are negative. For the last 2000 years, after all, sefirah is a period of semi-mourning. What do we say about sefirah?

"We can't go to the movies; it's sefirah."

"Danny and Sarah can't get married until after Shavuos. The halls were taken the few days that are available during sefirah."

And so on. When I hear sefirah, I do not get happy vibes, even though counting up to Matan Torah is beautiful.

oneofakind

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 10:17 pm

Sapir is a saphire, Sefirah means a "counting", LeSapare means to tell. If you want a shavuous name try Shoshana-a rose, Yakira-precious, Atara-a crown, anything but sefira.

lucky14

Mon, Jun 03 2019, 11:42 pm

JoyInTheMorning wrote:

I think the reason people are down on the name Sefirah is that many of the connotations with the period of Sefirah are negative. For the last 2000 years, after all, sefirah is a period of semi-mourning. What do we say about sefirah?
.

Yeah, this is what I think of when I hear "sefira". Please don't name your child this.

etky

Tue, Jun 04 2019, 12:33 am

Just adding that in Israel - if she ever comes here- people won't know what to make of it.
Sefira, as ashkenazim in the US say it- with the accent on the middle syllable, is not pronounced that way in Israel. And it is always said in conjuction with the omer - sefirat ha'omer - never alone.
Sefi-RA - as it will be pronounced, is just a counting of something random which would be really weird.
Or, people will just think the name is Sapira, as in a 'hey' tacked on to Sapir for some strange reason.

amother

Lemon

Tue, Jun 04 2019, 12:35 am

amother [ Tan ] wrote:

Do you know anyone named Devorah? Or Rachel? Who first thought that bee or lamb made a nice name?

I'm not in favor of Sefira either, because "counting" just sounds funny to me, but random names have a long history.

trixx

Tue, Jun 04 2019, 12:36 am

amother [ Lemon ] wrote:

Uh both these names are biblical.

etky

Tue, Jun 04 2019, 12:36 am

amother [ Lemon ] wrote:

Yes - they have a history, and a legacy, and that is why we use them now.

etky

Tue, Jun 04 2019, 12:39 am

oneofakind wrote:

Sapir is a saphire, Sefirah means a "counting", LeSapare means to tell. If you want a shavuous name try Shoshana-a rose, Yakira-precious, Atara-a crown, anything but sefira.

Or Omer. Can't get more Shavuot-ish than that. Smile