Deacon

RubySpphrheart

My Husband and I just found out we are expecting our second SON! Our first son, Brett, took right up to the day he was born to name. This time around I made a list of boy names, and told him to scratch, add, and hopefully we would have a name. Well we got a name, and it's DEACON. We both absolutely love it! (We are Nashville fans, and that's where we got the idea from.) But I'm starting to worry that our last name sounds too "matchy" with it, maybe. I'm not sure what my problem is, and I really hope it's NBD. And I'd like to know what you think. Our last name sounds alot like DAY-knoll. What do you think?  

Thanks! 

wassuphoes

I personally wouldn't give a kid a name that is also a religious title/position.

I don't think it's matchy matchy, but it doesn't flow very well either.

valeriemarie24

I'm sorry to have to say this since it seems you love the name...but all I can think of are the possible things kids could say growing up, like "freaky deaky", "deac the freak" and such associations. I'm not trying to be mean at all, but being relatively young myself I know how kids/teens can be.

Sassenach1743

Does your last name start with a 'D' and that's why you are worried that it will sound matchy? I guess I'm not seeing the matchy possibility with the example you gave. If it is a matter of a double 'D' initial, I don't think that's a big deal at all.

I also think I agree with PP about not giving a name that is also a religious title/position.

Have you considered the name Declan? 

RubySpphrheart

Thanks for all the responses. 

The religious title doesn't bother us at all.  

Valeriemaire I never thought of mean associations kids could make with it But thanks for pointing that out! 

brita My last name does start with a D. And I think that's what was bugging me about it, to me it sounded "too good" together, if that makes any since.. but now I have a few other things that are going to bug me  

This naming babies part is hard! At least I have 15 more weeks to make a final decision. 

RubySpphrheart

Oops, I forgot to add Declan is a sweet name, but we have a close Cousin with the name. Thanks for the suggestion though! 

saham07

I don't like the way it sounds. Also, why are you giving him a name that is a religious title? While he is a little boy people are not going to assume that he is a clergyman, but when he is a man and introduces himself as Deacon Dayson........people will assume he is a religious man of God. The Deacons for several religions go by "Deacon Lastname" ........not fair to your son. Brett got a nice name, you can do better for ds2. Also, don't name him Elder, Father, Pastor, Bishop, or Pope

wassuphoes

RubySpphrheart said:

Thanks for all the responses. 

The religious title doesn't bother us at all.  

Valeriemaire I never thought of mean associations kids could make with it But thanks for pointing that out! 

brita My last name does start with a D. And I think that's what was bugging me about it, to me it sounded "too good" together, if that makes any since.. but now I have a few other things that are going to bug me  

This naming babies part is hard! At least I have 15 more weeks to make a final decision. 

Yeah.......sometimes things aren't about you. It's more about respect for others,and not intentionally inconveniencing your son. 

lola2bee

I had no religious association with the name but the flow did seem a little too double D for me. Hope that helps!

nurse714

I can't get behind Deacon. My father was a Deacon and he was called Deacon Last Name. Your son will sound like he is a Deacon from the Christian Church when he gets older. I think you can do better. 

BethPSU

DS has a little boy in his class (1st grade) named Deacon. It has grown on me. I don't think it's too matchup and I think it "goes" well with Brett.

Kate0034

nurse714 said:

I can't get behind Deacon. My father was a Deacon and he was called Deacon Last Name. Your son will sound like he is a Deacon from the Christian Church when he gets older. I think you can do better. 

Since you love the name so much, I HATE to agree with this... but I do. A name like this could cause annoying confusion for your (adult) son.

Cute on a kid.. Not so much on an adult.

magsugar13

Not good

4N6s

Eh. I don't think it's a good choice.

Stephaniemariebuck

I love the name Deacon, and maybe it's because I'm not very religious but I don't associate it with a religious title (But I'm a big Nashville fan like you so I mostly just think "hunky guitar player" ) If you love the name I say go with it. My daughter has a boy named Deacon in her class and none of the kids find it strange or odd...

Just my two cents. 

valeriemarie24

^^ The kids might not find it strange depending on how old they are, but as they grow older they likely will.

LNic5

Deacon Day-knoll sounds odd to me, not a fan of the double Ds

mandawest

My son's name is Deacon and I still am in love with the name.  If you love it, go for it.  It took a little for it to grow on some of my family who are used to deacons only being in churches, but don't let church deter you from using the name.  We have gotten so many compliments on it...

Reese Witherspoon also has a son named Deacon:-)

BlessedMomma07

I guess I'm in the minority here but I actually prefer Deacon to Declan.
I don't automatically think church. To me, is just like the name Christian. It doesn't necessarily mean the family is religious.

mandawest

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

nurse714

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

Seriously?

Sassenach1743

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

Jesus is a name. Deacon is a title. There is a difference.

wassuphoes

brita722 said:

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

Jesus is a name. Deacon is a title. There is a difference.

It's also extremely common for some cultures to name children after religious figures/icons out of respect. Hence all the Johns, Matthews, Marks, Lukes, Pauls, etc running around the states today. 

It is not common to name your child a religious TITLE in any culture. You might as well name him Pope or Cleric.

aliciaspinnet

brita722 said:

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

Jesus is a name. Deacon is a title. There is a difference.

Also isn't it usually pronounced Hay - Suess when used as a name?

lola2bee

wassuphoes said:

brita722 said:

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

Jesus is a name. Deacon is a title. There is a difference.

It's also extremely common for some cultures to name children after religious figures/icons out of respect. Hence all the Johns, Matthews, Marks, Lukes, Pauls, etc running around the states today. 

It is not common to name your child a religious TITLE in any culture. You might as well name him Pope or Cleric.

I think this might be changing. Isn't that the same issue with Cohen? It's a Jewish religious title but now a name. I'm not saying it's right or wrong just that names evolve over time. They are organic not static.

Sassenach1743

lola2bee said:

wassuphoes said:

brita722 said:

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

Jesus is a name. Deacon is a title. There is a difference.

It's also extremely common for some cultures to name children after religious figures/icons out of respect. Hence all the Johns, Matthews, Marks, Lukes, Pauls, etc running around the states today. 

It is not common to name your child a religious TITLE in any culture. You might as well name him Pope or Cleric.

I think this might be changing. Isn't that the same issue with Cohen? It's a Jewish religious title but now a name. I'm not saying it's right or wrong just that names evolve over time. They are organic not static.

Cohen is mainly a Jewish surname which was derived from the descendants of the ancient priests of the temple in Jerusalem. To bear this name is to indicate that your patrilineal ancestors can be traced to these priests. Just as Deacon is meant to be an occupational surname for any number of service positions within the Christian church. These are titles.

You either are born into a family with the given surname of Cohen, which came from the ancient priests, or you give your service to the church and are given the title of Deacon. There is a respect to be shown, no matter if you are religious or not. This is a chance to educate yourself and understand that these titles/surnames actually mean something. It's not about being cool and trendy.

Using biblical/Hebrew names in honor of your faith and/or family (e.g. John, Paul, Matthew, Luke, Mark, Aaron, Jacob, Isaac, Joshua, Sarah, Ruth, Leah, Naomi, Mary, etc.) is a completely different thing altogether.

Sassenach1743

aliciaspinnet said:

brita722 said:

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

Jesus is a name. Deacon is a title. There is a difference.

Also isn't it usually pronounced Hay - Suess when used as a name?

Yes. I believe this is popular in the Spanish and Latin cultures. I cannot explain why, because I am not of Spanish or Latin heritage, but it is widely acceptable to use names like Jesus (Hay-soos) or Angel for boys.

In fact, I've never met anyone with the name Jesus who was not of Spanish or Latin heritage.

mandawest

Whoa....sorry.  I honestly didn't mean to start a rude debate.  My main point was, give people the benefit of the doubt.  If you love the name, use it.  Don't worry about whether it is a title or whether a celebrity used it. 

Jesus, Spanish pronunciation, is the same in the bible as it is for someone's name.  Maybe I shouldn't have compared it to that, but it was my first thought.  Didn't mean to step on so many toes...

wassuphoes

mandawest said:

Whoa....sorry.  I honestly didn't mean to start a rude debate.  My main point was, give people the benefit of the doubt.  If you love the name, use it.  Don't worry about whether it is a title or whether a celebrity used it. 

Jesus, Spanish pronunciation, is the same in the bible as it is for someone's name.  Maybe I shouldn't have compared it to that, but it was my first thought.  Didn't mean to step on so many toes...

No one was rude to you. 

And, this debate started quite nicely as far as why Deacon is an inappropriate name for a child. So 

astrat017

Holy I've known lots of kids named deacon. It's very common here Could be that I live in Canada where we don't have a lot of church deacons. Maybe some Bible Belt areas might be more sensitive to it? I'd think about your area and what connotations people around you would give it. It's a nice enough name to me.

saham07

mandawest said:

Do people also get confused when someone introduces themselves as Jesus?

not even close to the same comparison.....Jesus is a name . Deacon is a title. If someone named their child Doctor, Captain, Queen, General, Judge you are confusing people in your child's adult life (I tried to leave out religious titles because it doesn't matter...a title is a title)

whatevs89

I actually like the name but because I know the history that makes it out. I am in no way religious but I do try to respect others and I find it very offensive and selfish to name your kid a "cool" name just because you are not religious. The same goes for Cohen. I feel like if you truly didn't know then that is one thing but once you learn the way people view that name and that it isn't respectful then you discard it. Period. If you know better then you do better.

kmvisioli

I go to a church that has deacons, but I do still kind of like it as a name. I don't think it would be confusing to introduce as an adult - if you're a deacon at your church, most people there probably already know you anyway.

wassuphoes

I like that I was warned for using "Foul and obscene language" But it's totally cool to name your kid a religious title. That's apparently not as offensive as an F-bomb in an adult conversation. 

If you want to name your kid an offensive name, maybe you shouldn't be offended by language. Ovary up.

apriljoy32

We should all totally take name advice from someone with the username "wassuphoes". Classy, I must say.

wassuphoes

apriljoy32 said:

We should all totally take name advice from someone with the username "wassuphoes". Classy, I must say.

By all means, make fun of my username instead of criticizing my comments. I'm sure the latter is far more taxing an endeavor.

apriljoy32

"Taxing an endeavor".....the most eloquent thing I've read by you. Congratulations

wassuphoes

apriljoy32 said:

"Taxing an endeavor".....the most eloquent thing I've read by you. Congratulations

Then you haven't been reading.

saham07

kmvisioli said:

I go to a church that has deacons, but I do still kind of like it as a name. I don't think it would be confusing to introduce as an adult - if you're a deacon at your church, most people there probably already know you anyway.

outside of his church....in the world.

macchiatto

I agree with the majority here for sure; you can do better. 

bbluemoo

I also love the name deacon.

And I don't think anybody where I am would automatically associate it with the church. I grew up in the Anglican Church and I don't even think that they would assume right away either. For the record, I can't remember ever meeting any deacons who introduced themselves as Deacon Last Name...

I think it's all about where you live. Naming your kid deacon if you live in the Bible Belt? Maybe reconsider... But where I live (in Canada), people just aren't very religious at all.