Elzara Amirova

Named by Unknown

Elzara is an Islamic name. Originally this name from the Turkish and Arabic languages. In Arabic, my name means "the most golden or gold of the people". In Russian language it means "God's mercy". When I was little, I asked my mom who gave me this name and she told me it was my grandmother because my mom wanted to give me a different name. All my life, I was thinking that my grandmother named me, but when I moved to Chicago and met her four years ago, I asked her why she chose this name for me. She said, "I didn't, your mom named you", and I was really confused. From that day, nobody in my family knows who named me Elzara. In my guess, I think the nurse who helped my mom to give a birth me, gave the name.

No one can pronounce my name correctly even back in my country "Uzbekistan". Maybe because my name is unique. At least I'm trying to believe this because my whole life I have never met a girl who has the same name as me. When I write my name in English is only five letters, but in Russian there are six because after "L" I have one more letter, which the English alphabet doesn't have. I get used to how people say my name.

All my friends can't say my name correctly, do they call me Zara like the fashionable clothing store in Chicago. In Chicago, I found out that in Ukrainian and in Polish languages, Zara means "right now" and in Arabic "visited". Back in Uzbekistan, my friends called me Amira because of my last name Amirova and Amira on Arabic language means "princess" and I like it, so I'm thinking about to change my name.

Jaimy Garcia
September 20, 2017
ESL100


                                                                   Boy or Girl?

       My name is like a UFO because I don't know anything about it. When i think about my name i think of the word sadness even though  it does not mean that. I think of it as sadness because when i was a little girl, my birth mom left me when i was two or three years old. She never came back or looked for me. My name means Hebrew baby or supplanted one who replaces according to the internet. When i was in elementary school, very first day o school the teachers would miss pronounce my name and lots of student would make fun of my name  which hated. Still some people think that I am a guy. On my firts job interview. the manager that did the interview with me she told me she was sorry because she had though that i was a guy. That is one of the reasons that I don't like my name very much, but on the other hand i like it because that is what makes me unique. Some times I think that my name came up because they wanted a boy and not a girl. I still ask myself if they named me because they wanted a  boy or a girl?

         

About My Name

Mother’s Hope

My name is Kenje, but it is written as “Kenzhe” in English. Most of the American people read it like Kenzie. Because Kenzie is easy to say for Americans. I am the fourth daughter of my parent. My mother wanted to give birth to boy a baby, but she gave birth to four girl babies. When I was born, my mother gave me this name. It is her superstition that she wanted to stop had girls. She gave me that name and she believed and hoped that the next baby would be a boy. Kenje means “younger”, “smaller” and “last child” in a family. If we translate from Kyrgyz language, kenje means “junior”. I am glad that my name is Kenje. Because of this name has an exact meaning and it is easy to change and to find a nickname.

When Kyrgyz people hear my name, they can think that I am a youngest in my family, but I am not. As I wrote, my name has noted meanings, which are every Kyrgyz people can understand. Besides its meaning, my name is easy to say for some nationalities. For example, American people call me Kenzie, Turkish people call me Genj. I do not need to change my name and I do not have to spell it. In addition, I have many nicknames. My mother and sisters call me as Kesha, and my friends name me as Kesh. I am Kenjegul for my husband’s parents, because my father-in-law’s name is Kenje.

In summary, my name is a gift from my parents. That was my mother’s superstition that she wanted to have a boy baby after me. Her wish came true. Because I am the youngest daughter in my family as my mother hoped. Moreover, I am glad that they gave me a good name, which is short and meaningful, and it is like American name “Kedzie”. Of course, they didn’t know that I would live in the United States, but they gave me lucky name. If my name is long or hard to say, I would have to change it.

P.S I put a picture of chick. I am an adult, but my family look me like a kid. Because of I am a  junior of my family.

Sunday， September 17， 2017

Thinking and Miracle

            My name is SIQI Zhang. SIQI is a normal name which my parents gave me. At first, I didn't like my name very much because it sounded like a girl's name in Chinese. In fact, when I was a primary school student, my classmates laughed me about my funny name. Not only classmates but also the teachers laughed. One of the most impressive things that happened when I was in a class, our teacher decided to choose a girl to answer a question. Finally, he chose my name. Then, he said "Isn't SIQI a girl's name? "As a result, the whole class laughed at that time, and I felt terrible. However, when I grow up, it doesn't matter what other people think of my name anymore. Although my name is funny sometimes, I think it is an important sign in my life. Also, I think it is an important connection between my parents and me.

  

     Sī                                              Qí 

       My name is made up of two letters. One is the Sī, the other are Qí. The character Si means thinking in Chinese. As a result, my mother gave my name Si in order to let me think more with my brain. It is similar to another Chinese parent, my mother always put her dream on me. She wants me to be successful. Therefore, she gave me another letter of my name, Qi, which can mean miracle in Chinese. When these two letters come together, I think that is the real meaning which my parents gave me. They want me to think and to be a miracle.

Success and Politness

           Every name is individual and unique. In Chinese, each character contains a lot of meaning. Whenever a baby born, their parents will spend a lot of time thinking about a name for their baby. Name usually represent their parents’ hope.

            My parents gave me the name “Taoyuan Chen”. They considered it for a long time. At first, my name just had two characters “Tao” and “Chen”. “Chen” is my last name, so it doesn’t have a special meaning. “Tao” has different meanings when it comes with different characters. People usually use this character to express politeness or strategy. In ancient China, people thought politeness is the purpose in their education. This traditional culture is also essential in family education. People still attach importance to politeness. Therefore, my parents are not an exception, and they hope I can be polite to everybody. In addition, when I was five years old, they added my third character “Yuan”. The reason why is they hope I can succeed with all goals in school work or career. “Yuan” symbolize success. In ancient China, the imperial examination system used to select talented students. There were millions of students took this exam every year. When someone got first grade, they would get a job in the government with good salary and power. The first grade is called “Yuan” in Chinese.

            I am really thankful that my parents gave me a great name. Achieving politeness and success is not as easy as I write my name, and I need to work on it diligently. In conclusion, I love my name, and I will walk in a way which my name wants me to go. 

Religious Name

                                                                Religious Name
             My name is Daniyal.  I know it’s my middle name, but everyone calls me this name.  I like my name, and sometimes I feel it’s good luck.  Many people have their faith, and I believe that name plays a role in our lives.  Daniyal means, “who stands up for justice”.  My nick name is Danu, and all of my friends call me Danu.  Danu is my very famous nick name, more famous than my real name.  When I came to the United States of America people called me Daniel, and they still do.  However, at first I didn’t like it.  After a while I got used to it, Daniel is my American name now.  I don’t know much about my name, but in Pakistani culture, we name after messenger, prophet of Islam.  My name was named after a messenger, I like my name and I don’t want to change it.  My grandfather named me Daniyal, this makes me love my name more.  I never thought about changing my name because it’s a nice name, and it’s easy in English and Urdu.  In the United States of America, person is known by his last name but it’s different in my country.  In Pakistan, people are called by their middle name and their father’s name would be the last name.  Usually but not necessarily, I like to be called Danny or Danu.  

Naba Hagmhmood ESL 100 Septmber,19,2017 3rd Draft

       These are three ways to write my name in Arabic


                        A Women Who Loves Her Name
             Do I like my name of course I like my name in fact I love my name I'm the eldest in my family I have two brothers and one sister. Muhammad 16 years old Mostafa 11 years old and Naja 4 years old.
            When I was born, my father was told by his brother I have wonderful news for you got a girl with beautiful eyes. My name means wonderful. beautiful, and good news, which is what I was for my father that day. In our family no one is named my name and all my life I have only met two NABA's  that's another reason for me to like my name because, it's rare.
            I'm from Sudan and half raised there. In Sudan we Sudanese have a completely different culture from here in the U.S.  My name in that culture, and our religion Islam, it is  a name of a Surah. A Surah is a name of a chapter in the Qur'an which is the book for Islam, the book that tells Muslims the meaning of Islam and shows the rules. Therefore it is also a religious name and that is something I'm proud of NABA is my name and another way to say it in Arabic is "Khabar".

The Brazilian Chinese Name

Rafael Zhong

ESL 100

September, 06, 2017

The Brazilian Chinese Name

            Rafael Yuan Hua Zhong is my full name. My first name is a common Brazilian name. My parents chose it to baptize me with this name because they liked the pronunciation of it. Also, Rafael is an angel from the Catholic religion, which is part of the Brazilian culture the country where I was born. My middle names contains two words Yuan Hua which is a Chinese name. I do not know the exactly meaning of it, but translating to English means something special that came from far away.

            When I was in Brazil, everyone used to call me by my last name, Zhong, and is the family name as well. The reason why is because there are many people named Rafael in Brazil and the pronunciation of Zhong is strong and unforgettable in Portuguese, the first language in Brazil. When I was in Brazil, I was not known as Rafael. I was Zhong. After I moved to United States, Chicago, everyone started to call me Rafael, which was weird at the time. The only person that used to call me Rafael was my mother when she was mad at me. For example, got back to home late, did not do the dishes or did not keep my bedroom cleaned and organized.

            In my opinion, Zhong used to be a different person, but after I moved to Chicago, I changed in many ways. I stopped to be the struggling boy that I was back in the days. Right now I am proud of people calling me by my first name. Rafael is a better version of me, and I am honored to use it. 

BORN INTO WEALTH

                Tijani Yusuf

ESl 100

September 14, 2017

Born Into Wealth

            It is called Olaoluwa in my language, but in English it means wealth of God. It was a sunny afternoon as my mother told me sitting by the window, thinking of a name to give her unborn child whose due date was to be in December, at this time my father was away on his usual business, which mostly comes from the federal government. Once in a while but he worked with the state government once in a bluemoon.

            However ,a phone call from her husband diverted her attention from what she was thinking about as she heard the joyous news that her man just won a contract He had been on the project for about four months, this news struck joy as she was holding up her belly and the thought of the name came to her mind.

            After about two months, mother was in the hospital and father was outside expecting his child, and in about thirty minutes, the cry which made parents smile and give glory to God was heard .In the Nigerian culture, Yoruba the child is named after about eight days after birth in which the father and mother decide the name of the child would bear, the other members of the family give a name after putting any amount of money in a bowl.

            Father gave me “Ajibola” in English it means “he who wakes up into wealth’ and mother gave “Olaoluwa” in English means ‘weallth of God”. The name follows with an adage, which is interpreted in English as “The situation of the home decides the name”

The Girl I Am

                  In China, my name means smart and strong and it resembles a strong soldier or hero. My Chinese zodiac is the tiger, which is a king in the forest that is power and obedient. In the Chinese culture, the girl was not welcome as the boy. But in my family, I already have a older brother and I am the youngest one, so I still is my parent the cheerful daughter. Choosing the right name is important in Chinese culture. My name is Li Hui and it was given by my lovely grandfather. It includes a lot of expectation, love and thankfulness. My last name follows my father's Li. It is in Chinese culture the posterity to follow the male last name their whole life. One of the most famous and beneficent king in Chinese history, his last name is Li . Therefore Li is the biggest ethnic last name in China. So I am one of his descendants. Even it is only told in history, I am still proud of my name. 

                  I was born in summer the hottest season of the year. My mom keeps talking about this, even today. My birthday is very superstitious because it is not common to have a birthday in the summer and date and time. Therefore, I will be very distinct to other persons. Since I was little, my parents raised me as a boy, they knew I can do better than myself.  Their encouragement benefits me until today. I grow up to be a person who is confident, brave and strong. I am grateful for everything my family gave me and we grow together.

                 I got my English name Christine when I came to the US and attended the church community school. The deepest impression was I got a lot of love, sharing and help from the church. One of my coach suggested this name, and I want be a person like them and be a positive influence in the community.   

Victory

Chi Seng Cheong

            Victory expresses success, right and power. All parents want their children to be winners. My name is Chi Seng. It means children and victory in Chinese. I was born on a stormy day. My parents beat the monster to the hospital to get me out, so it was my parents’ victory. They chose my name to commemorate the day.

According to Chinese tradition, boys are better than girls. Chinese people think boys can take responsibility for the whole family. They can be the leader. Therefore, in my generation every single male’s name starts by Chi in my family, since Chi means children in Chinese, and it reminds us that we cannot forget family. Also, Chinese people have their special roles to decide names. They think it should be appropriate according to the time of birth counting accurately to the hour that can change people’s destiny.

My name comes from my parents and from Chinese tradition. It is unique, and includes many meanings for me. I don’t want to change my name because it was a gift from my parents. I want to accept the destiny if it is real. My name encourages me to do better and better. It will be with me my whole life.

A Special Name

In Chinese history, the name is a gift for the baby given by their parents. The name not only shows an expectation, but it also shows the whole love of parents for their baby. My name is Dongbao Chen. It is a simple Chinese name. In Chinese, it means eastern treasure. It is the name that my uncle gave to me. In Chinese tradition, the baby’s name is always given by their parents or their grandparents. However, I was given a special name by my uncle. Dong is the first character of my first name which is from my genealogy. My cousins and my younger brother and my older sister also use that character as the first character of their first name. Therefore, the story behind my name is that the last character of my first name. My family was an eminent family before the moment when the People's Republic of China was established. A civil war between the Nationalist Party and the Communist Party ended my family’s honor. When the national government was replaced by the government of the Communist Party,  the families which supported the national government also were replaced by the families which supported the government of the Communist Party. Therefore all of the rights about politics and economy of my family were canceled by the new government. After that, my family became an ordinary family. The reason why my uncle hoped that I would be a successful person to promote our family. Therefore, I like my name and I always tell myself that my name is my sign of making progress. My name has made me strive to complete anything perfectly.

The Unbreakable Pillar

Emad Abdullah

The Unbreakable Pillar

In Arabic, my name means support. It also means a pillar that supports a building. It is like the number four. It resembles my father in how he supports his family and the sacrifices that he made by coming to the United State. He works day and night to give our family home and everything we needed in school for us to be successful. He gave me this name because he thought I would be the pillar that holds our family in the future. He said, “you will be the Unbreakable pillar.”

When my parent told me why they chose my name, I turned into a whole new person in diverse ways. I became more responsible for my actions and I also became humble and caring for the people around me. I feel so blessed for having this special name because my name is all about what family is, which is supporting each other. I will try my best to be the unbreakable pillar that my family thought I would be. I would never change my name “Emad” because it is short, easy to pronounce, and I really like the meaning and the story behind it.

Family Love in My Name Haiyan yu

       I like my name because my name was given to me by my grandfather. My name is very normal it is like every week has 7 days. My name is not special to remember like you never notice if you miss a quarter. However, I still like my name. My name has a special meaning in my family. My grandfather told me it means bravely and also remember your name. However, I did not understand the meaning when I was a child.

     In China, my name means a bird that is called a petrel. Petrel lives and flies above the sea. They eat fish and fly around the ship like they company the seafaring people. They fly above the sea whatever the weather. They fly under the sun, in the heavy rain, and in the strong wind. A poet called Maksim Gorky, in his poem "The Song of the Stormy Petrel" petrels for being brave because they face the bad weather. I am the first kid in my family. My grandfather hoped I would be brave as a petrel and I could face any suffering in the future and never give up.

     My grandfather and grandmother are Chinese American; They immigrant to Chicago before I was born. No matter how far and petrels have flow, they always go back to the placed they were born. My grandfather hoped I would remember, no matter how far I went, and would not forget my home.

Olaronke Animashaun

Family Name

    My names are OLARONKE ANIMASHAUN. Olaronke  can be splitted into two different nanes which is OLA which means "wealth" and RONKE which means "i have something to cater for", so my name means "I am wealthy and i have something to cater for". This name was given to me by my grandmother because i am the first child of her favorite child.

   My surname is my biggest issue because people read so many awkward meanings to it. ANIMASHAUN is my surname which is a name that has been running down the generation of my family. ANIMASHAUN means "a cheerful giver" but people call prostitute this name because they see them as a cheerful giver,which gets me irritated because my surname is used to qualify whores.

   I am always sad at peoples first reaction when they hear my surname, its either they laugh or they ask me if i am not stingy with my body. I use to imagine why people will think everyone who bears this name has to be a whore one way or the other. When i get more pissed is when a boy tries to ask me out and says am i not ANIMASHAUN why am i  been hard to get,this gets to my soul and i wish i could strangle such person.

  In conclusion i wish i never had a surname that has such a bad tag in the society or that was used in qualifying whores. Am happy and sad at the same time. Am happy because when i get married my surname will be changed, and am sad because my other siblings who are male children will continue with this name and will continue to been identified a cheap a a prostitute.

Wrong Name by "Marcy" Marcela Skodova

Wrong Name

 

Marcela. Every time I hear my name, my heart stop. I start thinking,  I am in trouble and usually  it is follow something like this “Marcela, you forgot to lock the door!” or “ Marcela, I told you not to do it!” well, I guess my mom really liked her choice of my name. When she was a teenager, she decided she would name all of her kids with the same first letter M. The first daughter, Michaela. Three years after, she thought I would be a boy, Martin, after my dad, but it was me. I guess choosing a name in a hospital might be little stressful. My mom wanted to be original so I ended up to be Marcela. She did the same thing nineteen years after again with my brother Marek. I remember  getting a lot of nicknames before I pick mine, the one you don’t want. Stick, grass snake, wand or limb.  Marcela means a small soldier, brave and small which suits me but the sound of it does not. It is not typical name in my country, Czech Republic and most of people who I have met from uber drivers and workers at Starbucks even my friends from different countries will pronounce wrong.  That is why I use my nickname Marcy. It suit me better. My whole family call me with my nickname too, I think they don’t like Marcela either. I wish my mom would not have had the rule to name all of her children with the same first letter M. I could be Lucie, Anna or Simona. Something more colourful, prettier and happy like me.