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Forum -> Pregnancy & Childbirth -> Baby Names
How/why did Elana become a name?
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:13 am
I love the name Elana. But I'm trying to figure out why I would name my kid "tree." I read somewhere it refers to an oak tree, which as far as I know symbolizes strength, but I don't know if it was an accurate source.
Anyone know?
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Learning




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:17 am
amother [ OP ] wrote:
I love the name Elana. But I'm trying to figure out why I would name my kid "tree." I read somewhere it refers to an oak tree, which as far as I know symbolizes strength, but I don't know if it was an accurate source.
Anyone know?

It’s an Israeli name. Ilan for a boy. Secular Israelis are into naming after things in nature.
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Rappel




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:20 am
Ilan/Ilana has a beautiful connotation in Hebrew.
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:22 am
Rappel wrote:
Ilan/Ilana has a beautiful connotation in Hebrew.

What's the connotation? I know several Americans with the name and I think it's beautiful, but there are a lot of nice words. I don't know if there's really an answer, but I'm wondering why certain words become names. I love the more modern names (as in, became a name in the past 2 generations or so) but I also feel like a name should have a source.
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JoyInTheMorning




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:27 am
I know people born on Tu B'Shevat who are named Elana. Others are named Elana because their parents like the sound of the name.

Ilan is the male version of Elana. I am not normally superstitious, but I know of three people named Ilan who died young, so I wouldn't want to use the name.

Erez, which means cedar tree, has become a popular boy's name.
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Rappel




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:30 am
amother [ OP ] wrote:
What's the connotation? I know several Americans with the name and I think it's beautiful, but there are a lot of nice words. I don't know if there's really an answer, but I'm wondering why certain words become names. I love the more modern names (as in, became a name in the past 2 generations or so) but I also feel like a name should have a source.



I don't know a source for it, but Ilan simply has...Èlan. Grace. Beauty.

Etz means "wood," and has the same simple, stiff feeling to it. Ilan is a much classier word, and brings up the feeling of the softly whispering bows sweeping across a sun-dappled day.
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paperflowers




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:30 am
Growth, strength, perseverance, grace, protection, fertility. Being perfect the way HaShem made you (Ilan Ilan bima avarechicha). Take your pick.
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:31 am
paperflowers wrote:
Growth, strength, perseverance, grace, protection, fertility. Being perfect the way HaShem made you (Ilan Ilan bima avarechicha). Take your pick.

Love all that, thanks. Anyone know where I can find out how it became a name? 3 things are important to me: sound of the name, meaning, and source. I have the first 2, but not the source.
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FranticFrummie




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 11:31 am
Other popular names are tzipporah (bird) tamar (palm tree) levana (moon) and tzur (rock). Lots of nature names.

Some sects of Judaism insist on only using proper names from the Tanach. Some use a modern Hebrew first name, but will be particular to use a Tanach name for the middle name.
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Iymnok




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 12:57 pm
Ilan is from אילן אילן במה אברכך, a Gemara that uses a tree as a mashal for talmid Chacham who already has anything he could be blessed with.
I don’t know if Ilana is related to this Ilan.
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WitchKitty




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 1:16 pm
I don't know when it became a name, but as far as I remember it is from Aramaic, not any hebrew. I think Onkeles uses Ilana as a translation for tree, and the Gemara uses Ilan all the time.
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 1:19 pm
Iymnok wrote:
Ilan is from אילן אילן במה אברכך, a Gemara that uses a tree as a mashal for talmid Chacham who already has anything he could be blessed with.
I don’t know if Ilana is related to this Ilan.

I love that song and that source too. But still curious how it became a name. Thanks all for your input!
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amother
Blush


 

Post Sun, Jun 23 2019, 2:13 pm
It became popular as a name in Israel in the fifties and early sixties, when it was fashionable to create female names from male names by adding a 'hey'.
Ilan is, of course, a tree in the the language of chazal. It derives from the Aramaic word אילנא which entered Hebrew as אילן.
Ilan/Ilana belong to the popular genre of agricultural/botanical names like Oren/Orna, Carmel/Carmela, Amir/Amira, Alon/Alona etc.
My name is Elana. May parents thought it was an original, nice sounding modern Hebrew name. Back in the late sixties in the US, it was. In Israel it was already past its heyday by then.
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Ruchel




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jun 25 2019, 4:39 am
I say it Elana, like Elmer or Elizabeth
Ilan is from the tree
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amother
OP


 

Post Wed, Jun 26 2019, 4:20 pm
amother [ Blush ] wrote:
It became popular as a name in Israel in the fifties and early sixties, when it was fashionable to create female names from male names by adding a 'hey'.
Ilan is, of course, a tree in the the language of chazal. It derives from the Aramaic word אילנא which entered Hebrew as אילן.
Ilan/Ilana belong to the popular genre of agricultural/botanical names like Oren/Orna, Carmel/Carmela, Amir/Amira, Alon/Alona etc.
My name is Elana. May parents thought it was an original, nice sounding modern Hebrew name. Back in the late sixties in the US, it was. In Israel it was already past its heyday by then.

Thanks!
Now next question- do you pronounce it with the long e or short I? Ruchel, sounds like you go by short e, which I dont think many people do in the US.
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amother
Cerise


 

Post Wed, Jun 26 2019, 4:32 pm
Long e
People will end up calling her eeelaainah a Spanish nAme
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Ema of 5




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jun 26 2019, 6:38 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Thanks!
Now next question- do you pronounce it with the long e or short I? Ruchel, sounds like you go by short e, which I dont think many people do in the US.

I know uuuuuulana (sounds like under) eeeeeeelana (sounds like eel) and iiiiiilana (sounds like in)
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cm




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jun 26 2019, 6:53 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Thanks!
Now next question- do you pronounce it with the long e or short I? Ruchel, sounds like you go by short e, which I dont think many people do in the US.


Definitely a short e sound or a schwa.

In American English (not Jewish) it would be Ell-lane-ah.
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Ema of 5




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jun 26 2019, 6:55 pm
cm wrote:
Definitely a short e sound or a schwa.

In American English (not Jewish) it would be Ell-lane-ah.

Elaina is different than Ilana
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cm




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jun 26 2019, 7:13 pm
Ema of 4 wrote:
Elaina is different than Ilana


Yes, it is.

I would pronounce "Ilana" with a short I sound. Very similar to "Elana."

I have never seen "Elaina" spelled with an "ai" in the middle, but I suppose it could be.
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