Chabad names- how to still be unique??

amother

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 9:58 am

amother [ Lavender ] wrote:

OK, so we know what dh wants. What do YOU want?

You don't HAVE to give a kid a chabad name just because you are chabad. There are plenty of good, solid chabadnikim who don't have chabad names, especially the younger generation.

This is true, but because DH is a baal tshuva he's really adamant on only having a lubavitcher name. If all options were on the table I'd be overwhelmed by the amount of choice!

happy chick

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 10:01 am

Just as aside note, when you don't give a complete name (such as Menachem mendel, Yosef yitzchok, sholom dovber etc), it's not the Rebbes name. Breaking apart a name, creates a diff meaning. Also, adding a name to a Rebbe name is disrespectful.
Read more about it in the book "what's in a name".

amother

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 10:03 am

Good Friend wrote:

If he wants to name after a Chabad Rebbe there is also Yosef Yitzchok, Sholom Dovber, Shneur Zalman, Dovber, Shmuel, Yisroel for the Baal Shem Tov, Levi Yitzchok is the Rebbe's father who's yortzeit is actually today, Yisroel Aryeh Leib- Rebbe's brother, gavriel Noach is also given as of the murder of the shluchim in India.
And there are many children of random, such as Chaim avrohom, Moshe, Menachem Nochum, Boruch, Boruch Sholom, Yehuda Leib, Yisroel Noach.

I could go on, or you could check in front of hayom Yom.
There are plenty of nicknames to make these names unique.

Indeed today's R' Levi Yitzhak's yahrzeit, also the name of my first son. I love the name so much, it was a perfect fit for him! I really love Gavriel Noach but not sure if DH will be on board. Thanks for all the great ideas

banana123

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 10:03 am

happy chick wrote:

Yep. But then again, if it helps shalom bayit, it might be worth it.

amother

Mauve

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 10:07 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

This is true, but because DH is a baal tshuva he's really adamant on only having a lubavitcher name. If all options were on the table I'd be overwhelmed by the amount of choice!

Why don't you start by looking at all the "Lubavitch names" and see which ones you connect to. If you don't find anything then you and dh need a compromise

happy chick

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 10:08 am

banana123 wrote:

Yep. But then again, if it helps shalom bayit, it might be worth it.

True too. I won't argue that. I was trying to bring out a point he may not be aware of.

amother

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 10:11 am

happy chick wrote:

True too. I won't argue that. I was trying to bring out a point he may not be aware of.

I didn't know this, good you mentioned. Sometimes I see 'Shalom Dovber' and other times 'Shalom Ber', was this a shortening or does it basically have the same meaning?

happy chick

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 10:18 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I didn't know this, good you mentioned. Sometimes I see 'Shalom Dovber' and other times 'Shalom Ber', was this a shortening or does it basically have the same meaning?

It's the same name. The given name at the bris is sholom dovber. Sholom ber is for short. Technically , dov and ber are the same name ( like tzvi Hersh).

egam

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 11:13 am

happy chick wrote:

This.

I know many Menachem Mendels and many of them go by any possible variations of the first or middle name. Also, there's a very interesting phenomenon in American yeshivos, where boys call each other by their last names. Which is very strange to me.

amother

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 11:16 am

egam wrote:

Lol I also encountered this in Europe. It must be a bummer for those who have terrible surnames!

FranticFrummie

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 11:34 am

Lubavitch in general is not a fan of "U-NEEQ" names. It's not a very Jewish thing to do.

If you want your child to be accepted in your circles, go through the traditional names until you find one that really speaks to you.

Trust me, your child will be plenty unique on his own, with his shining personality and good deeds. Very Happy

amother

Scarlet

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 12:23 pm

Naming after a Rebbe is a beautiful thing. After all, all our chayus and brochos comes through the Rebbe. So for me I also chose to name only after Rebbeim/Rebbetzins but with meaning.
My oldest is Menachem Mendel because I didn't conceive until I asked the Rebbe for a bracha. My daughter is Chana because I had finally made peace with my mother after 10+ years and I had asked the Rebbe for help with that, so I chose the name of the Rebbe's mother as a thank you.
Also pay attention to dates. If you are due elul- yisroel or shneur zalman, right before Sukkos- Shmuel, Kislev can be schneur zalman or Dov ber, etc.
Just please dont give names like miyad mamash or yechi hamelech or Torah tziva lanu moshe. Smile

banana123

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 12:26 pm

amother [ Scarlet ] wrote:

Or Baruch Haba Melech Hamoshiach?
ברוך הבא מלך המשיח - ראשי תיבות: בהמ"ה

exhausted

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 12:27 pm

Perhaps your child will be born around the time of a specific Rebbe's birthday or yartzeit and then you can give that name. It happened twice in our family, one of the names was one I had wanted to use my whole life and the other one was one I never thought of but I absolutely love it now and it suits my son perfectly! I don't think you should stress about it now, the Ruach hakodesh will come in the right time.

amother

Pewter

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 12:29 pm

It’s very beautiful and special to name for the Rebbe. But I’m Lubavitch and some of my siblings are named for Rabbeim, some for relatives and some from tanach. It’s not a must. About splitting names - I know a Lubavitch family whose grandfather is Menachem so they named their son mendel for the Rebbe. You and your husband both have to be okay with the name. That’s the only rule.

amother

Burlywood

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 12:35 pm

happy chick wrote:

Why is it disrespectful to add a name to rebbes name?
I don’t see a problem.

amother

Scarlet

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 1:01 pm

It's a strong minhag not to mix names of 2 people when naming after someone. Because a name describes the essence of a person. And mixing 2 "essences" would mean naming after neither person but creating a new "essence."

I know people do it anyway but it's written in sefarim not to.

NotInNJMommy

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 1:06 pm

There's lots of reasons previously described as to why it's nice/special to name after the Rebbeim/Rebbetzins. There are also many who name after family. There are some who choose different names.

I have one child with a very common Chabad name, one with a normal Jewish name (after a grandmother), and one with a unique name chosen because of the timing of their birth and the name being in the parsha/having special meaning. Trust that you and your husband will know the right name for your child when the time comes. Also, there've always been lots of Mendels, and everyone does ok. (At least it's not the year right after the Rebbetzin's passing where everyone was Chaya Mushka, Chaya, Mushka, or some close variation. I taught 10th grade one year, and it was that class of girls that I had to call almost all by last name. Smile

)

amother

Lavender

Mon, Aug 10 2020, 1:16 pm

egam wrote:

This is very common in my kids' Israeli schools (girls and boys, dati leumi).