Is this a thing? Naming babies…

[CurlewKate]

I’ve just been told by a woman that in her faith (she’s a Christian, but I don’t know what sort) men name babies because God gave Adam the authority to name all the animals and so on. Is this just her, or is it a thing?

Never heard of this in mainstream Christian circles. She probably belongs to one of the more extreme Christian cults that still oppress women.

Yes this, years ago when i watched the Duggers on tv the dad named the children they are also all J names after the dad, and the family are in an extreme religious "church"

I am a Christian and of course know that Adam was given authority to name animals, but I have never heard that this has been extrapolated to mean the Christian-naming of offspring is solely down to the father. Either there has been a misunderstanding in what the woman said to you, or she maybe belongs to some religious sect, or she's a winder-upper-er.

It’s in the Old Testament a fair amount that naming a child / person is a fathers duty.

Eg, Adam named Eve and the angel told Joseph, not Mary, to name Jesus, Jesus.

Although not exclusively for Eve named Seth and Cain. But I think some more traditional sects use the Joseph example as the reason why dads name the child.

Personally I think it was just another way for patriarchal religions to try to divide mother and child.

Yeah, this.

A ‘thing’ for the kind of dimwit fundamentalists who think men are the head of the household.

Gabriel told Mary, not Joseph, to name Him Jesus. Luke 1:31.

Probably some sort of fundamentalist bunch of fruit loops.

And I say that as an Anglican.

I’m a Christian and have never heard of this

Men and women both named children in the bible, so not specifically scripture based either

I would be thinking she’s not in any mainstream church, but some kind of cult?

It’s not unusual
Actually makes tracing Irish ( RC) relations very easy

My family all name the
First boy after the dads dad
First girl after the dads mum
Then further children after mainly dads siblings
The mum might get a look in or have a second daughter named after her

Ive been able to desipher relatives this way.

No idea where that tradition came from and certainly some relatives since the 70s havent followed this

My db and I are named after our dads parents

apologies @GoldenCupsatHarvestTime didn't mean to tag you

"It's not unusual"

It's not unusual for the father to name the baby and the mother to not have any say in the matter at all?

Thank you! I consider myself quite well informed about religion, but I had never heard of this before. She was a bit intense, so I didn’t want to ask any more questions…..🤣

Yes
If you read my post

Well I mean, it’s not a thing unless you think women are equal adult humans and areas subservient to men in all regards

Googled to confirm for you

‘ Traditional Irish naming conventions, widely used until the late 19th/early 20th century, dictate that
the first son is named after the paternal grandfather (father's father), and the second daughter is typically named after the paternal grandmother (father's mother). This system continued through generations

Repetition
If a child died young, the name was often reused for a subsequent child to ensure the name was kept.
I can confirm this as I have it in my family. My dad was the third of his name. His two older siblings both died.

These patterns were not always strictly adhered to but were highly common in rural Ireland up to the 1960s/70s.

You seriously think that it's not unusual?

Gee whizz, what kind of misogynistic sexist community do you live in where you think that this is in any way normal, and that women are not allowed to decide on the names for their own kids?

Later, in a dream, an angel (often identified as Gabriel or simply "an angel of the Lord") instructed Joseph to name the child Jesus as well (Matthew 1:21). You’re right that he told Mary too though, apologies, don’t know how I forgot that.

I know about family naming conventions, I've done a lot of genealogy in my time, and these conventions were fairly common in various parts of the British Isles. But the point the OP is making here has nothing to do with the traditional re-use of family names down the generations.

In the OP it says that this woman told the OP that in her religion "men name babies" and that presumably the mother of the baby is left out of the decision.

Read my post
It was normal and traditional in rural Ireland
More people started doing things differently in the 60s/70s

Ask yourself some questions mumsnetters

for those of you who are married
-did u take your dhs surname
-did you change your title
-who had a man walk them up the aisle
-which side did you stand on when you took your vows
-did you throw the flowers
-did you wear white or cream
-were there bridesmaids
-were you carried over the threshold
-did you arrange the wedding
-do the kids have their fathers surname

All of these traditions are equally misogynistic in one way or another

Im married and I did one of the above

This is history
Women had less rights….surely everyone knows that
Would you believe women couldn’t have a bank account in their name until 1975 ( u still needed daddies signature even then )

and the Mans name is first on a mortgage and bank account to this very day unless you ask for yours to go first.
Men don’t have to ask.

historically we come from a misogynistic world
And many many traditions occur

You see we lived and still do in a world of traditions and quite frankly naming babies is the tip of the iceberg
Im amazed you’re so shocked

This is history although as many women do a lot of the stuff I’ve listed above

Its now too

This is RC Ireland
It occurred amongst Catholic’s to honour family and preserve family continuity
( Partly because of English rule over the Irish Catholics and the English changing names of the Irish because they banned the Irish language. It was an attempt to save the name. As families had so many kids family names were preserved this way )

So She asked
’is this a thing’

I answered

Note
Many of the above examples (-)
originated in religion

No no. Every woman on MN who took her husband's name only did it because her own name was very difficult to pronounce. This never happens to men, because they all have simple names.

🤭

@Stirabout I did read your post. Are you saying that in rural Ireland, women were not allowed to have any say in the naming of their own children?

But that isn't what she asked, is it?

She asked whether it is 'a thing' in Christianity for men to choose their babies' names because God gave Adam the authority to do so.