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Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers
When you think of the name Eli,
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Anonymous
| do you necessarily think Jewish? The reason I ask is that we are not Jewish, and I don't want to seem weird if we pick that name. Its traditionally a Hebrew name, but many Hebrew names kind of go "mainstream" like John, Adam, etc. What do you think? |
Anonymous
| The first thing I think of when I hear the name Eli is that it is a Jewish name. |
Anonymous
| No. I think football. I like the name. |
Anonymous
| I like it. I didn't think Jewish though. I have a Greek friend named Elias who goes by Eli. |
Anonymous
| I like it. I don't necessarily think Jewish. I think bible belt. |
Anonymous
| What do you care if someone thinks it's a Jewish name? I imagine you don't mean it this way, but that sounds anti-semitic, especially because you say you don't want to appear "weird" by naming your kid something Jewish. Just name him Jesus, so everyone is clear which part of the Bible you claim, ok? |
Anonymous
|
It sounds Jewish to me, but it wouldn't be my first thought (Eli Manning would, despite me knowing nothing about football).
We named our DD a very stereotypical Jewish name. We are not Jewish. Every so often someone will ask if we're Jewish. It's not a big deal, we just say no, we just liked the name. |
Anonymous
OP, don't listen to PP. My husband is mid-western white and I am Asian and I wanted to name our son "Noah." We are Catholic and our last name (I took his name) is English, but it is also a very common Jewish last name. My DH refused to name our son Noah because he didn't want people to be surprised when a half white / half asian Catholic kid walked in the door. And no, we aren't anti-semitic, despite what PP might believe! I think Eli's a great name - made me think of the NFL first. FWIW, a close friend of mine named her son Elijah and I never thought it strange (she's not Jewish). |
Anonymous
| NP here. Say what you want, I agree with PP--you sound like an anti-Semite. You said it would be "weird" if people thought you had chosen a Jewish name. Why the heck do you even care? The message that is coming through loud and clear is that, god forbid, you don't want someone thinking your kid is Jewish. |
Anonymous
| Agree with PP--this sounds like a very prejudiced thing to say. |
Anonymous
|
I'm jewish and don't think this is really anti-semetic. I would think twice before naming my child Angel or Angela (because we aren't really known for the heaven thing). And obviously Jesus and Christian are out!
As to OP's question, these days I think everyone will be associating Eli with Eli Manning and footbal from now on. I also would warn you to expect a huge boom in the names popularity. The name Payton shot up the charts after Payton Manning became a star athlete. For boys and girls, btw. |
Anonymous
Hmm...I didn't read this as prejudiced. How do equate something sounding weird (or better adjective may have been "disconnected") to being something negative in its essence? I didn't get that impression OP. |
Anonymous
I don't think it's anti-Semitic to ask such a question. I'm Christian and my husband is Jewish and I'm raising our kids as Christians (this is our agreement). Since our kids' last name is Jewish, we purposely avoided Jewish-sounding first names (e.g. Ruth, Nathan) because we thought it would be confusing/"mis-branding" given that they self-identify as Christians, and participate in a Christian community. To OP: I don't think Eli necessarily connotes Jewish. |
Anonymous
| Whatever crazies. People might think it a little weird if I named my Catholic, red-headed son Raj, or Wang, or any other ethnic name. BIG GIANT EYE ROLL at you. That's what I meant by weird. |
Anonymous
| I am not Jewish, didn't know the name was Jewish, I personally don't like it but it is about what you like. I have a name that is Jewish and we are a Catholic family, I don't think it made any difference for me growing up |