Giving meaning to our names

The public naming of a baby is a rite of passage around the world – and the name we are given becomes inextricably part of our being.

It was the naming ceremony of Addingham vicar Andrew Tawn’s nephew, Dylan, that gave him the idea for a book of name prayers.

Guests were invited to bring a poem or picture to go in an album as a memento of the day, and Andrew wrote an acrostic prayer, using the letters of Dylan’s name.

Soon he was doing the same for children baptised in his church, St Peter’s, and was also receiving requests from his congregation for prayers for their parents and friends.

Andrew spent much of his spare time composing name prayers in his head, often while out walking on Ilkley Moor. When the letters and words fell into place, he says it felt like finding a prayer.

Naming And Blessing is an alphabetical collection of more than 500 name prayers, which include the top 100 baby names in Britain and America and the top ten names from each decade of the last century. With each name there’s a brief explanation of its origin and meaning, and every prayer is written as an acrostic, with the opening letter of each line spelling out a name.

In his foreword, Bishop David Hope writes: “The genius of this book is that Andrew Tawn, while in no way compromising the Christian tradition – rather the more confirming it – has nevertheless produced a collection of prayers which can be used so very easily and readily by a much wider range of people than simply the committed Christian.”

Of course, the first name you’re likely to turn to is your own. Well, I did, anyway. My name is derived from the old German meaning ‘universal’, which I remember from a key ring I once had.

My name prayer is: Even he who made the entire universe, Maker of all life and everything that is, May he make known his love for you, And abide with you, your Lord Emmanuel.”

This is a lovely, and quite moving, book. You can dip into it as a resource, a collection of prayers or simply out of general interest in names and their meaning. The imagery of the prayers, often drawn from the meaning of the name or a verse from the Bible, is reflected in a series of striking illustrations by Pat Schaverien.

At £15, it’s a bit pricey, but it would make a sweet gift or a handy resource for expectant parents trying to choose a name for their child, for godparents, friends and family to offer at a Christening or other baby-naming ceremony, for ministers to personalise baptisms, confirmations and weddings, or for anyone praying by name for someone.

As Andrew, who is director of training of curates in the Bradford Diocese, writes: “This book is not meant to be read from cover to cover. Rather you are invited either to scan the book for the names you are looking for, or else browse in a more leisurely way and let the prayers recall to you the people you know who bear these names.”