Having given our daughter the name Nayeli, we get a lot of interesting looks and comments. I think most people believe we just wanted to be ultra unique and picked the most crazy name we could find in "5,000 Baby Names". Sometimes we jokingly tell them that soon before she was born we played scrabble and rearranged all the letters that were left over to make a name. In reality, it has a good story behind it, so I thought I'd record it here.
On my mission in Belize I was in an area called Belmopan for nine months. In the branch there was a little girl named Nayeli. I loved the name and always remembered it. After my mission, I met Ben and since he also served among Latinos, the language and culture has always been very dear to us.
Later, when we got pregnant and were deciding on a name, I suggested the name Nayeli. Surprisingly, Ben had also encountered that name on his mission in Louisiana. And since we had wanted to give her a Latin name anyway, Nayeli seemed like a perfect fit.
Our research yielded these results:
Pronunciation: Nigh-yell-ee
Origin: Zapotec Indian (Mexico)
Meaning: "I love you" in the Zapotec Indian language
When I saw the meaning, I fell in love with the name. I've always believed in names that have a meaning. And it turns out it is a very common Mexican name. In fact one Mexican girl told us, "All the pretty girls in Mexico are named Nayeli". She probably just said it to make us feel good, but it brought a smile to my face just the same.
And as she grows the name fits her perfectly. We love our sweet daughter so much and now I can't imagine a name that would fit her better. It's true what they say- the person makes the name.
I love that! Shara's name is from a swedish word ( where Andrew went on his mission...it would be spelled with a K ) part of a phrase that means something like...sweet little dear one. What a cute baby ..Nayeli! Shara's new baby is Noelle, and I often say No-ell-ee. I think in Portugal it would be pronounced that way ( where Shara went on HER mission) Also her middle name is Lucia as she was born on St. Lucia day ( commonly celebrated in Sweden!) I know you are a wonderful mom. Because you are a wonderful HUMAN BEING.
ReplyDeleteThat's why Athena means Goddess of Warfare! Athena, this was the sweetest story. I love the meaning behind her name and what that little girl said. Nayeli is destined to be awesome.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your story. She's a sweetie (≈
ReplyDeleteHi Athena. I found your blog through Facebook, and I wanted to say congratulations! I can definitely relate to your posts about the craziness of having a newborn. My husband and I just had a baby girl too (she's 6 weeks old), and we've been through similar issues (no sleep, major breastfeeding problems, etc.). But it is so fun too!
ReplyDeleteP.S. I don't know if you know this, but my husband and I were married on the same day as you, and we also had our reception at the White Willow (I saw your wedding photos up the day before when I went to drop off some things). So we must be on the same marriage/kids schedule. :)
Cute! That's why I named Gabe after an angel. Yea, he's an angel.
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