F/U to Abel

UrbanHippieMama

Thanks for all your opinions on Abel in my last post!  I think I'm coming around to it.

Here's my question this time: If we have a girl next (I don't even know if we're going to have more kids), her name will be Jael.  I know it's stupid to limit a name this time for a hypothetical future child, but I love the name Jael and would be sooo sad if we couldn't use it. 

Do you think Abel and Jael are too matchy?  They sound really different, but they look so similar.  WDYT?

alliejo725

Hmmmm...

So I have several thoughts.

I've always liked Jael. I thought she was a kick-ass character, driving a peg through that king's head and all, but a couple things have put a huge damper on the name for me.

1. It sounds like a trendiegh Jay-name.

2. It's the name of one of the Phelps daughters (Westboro Baptist Church; "Most Hated Family in America").

I also think it is just a little too matchy for comfort with brother Abel.

I sympathize, though, 'cause it's tough when you love a name...and because it's tough finding obscure biblical women ('cause isn't that your thing? Using different biblical names? I feel like I recall that from your Abel post).

I can only suggest the few I can think of off the top of my head.

Zipporah (Moses' wife)

Keturah (Abraham's second wife)

Arah (one from the random lists, and I'm pretty sure it's a man's name, but it's a family name for me)

Drusilla (Felix's wife)

Hadassah (Esther's Hebrew name)

Hephzibah (a queen, meaning "my delight is in her")

You could use Jael if you opted for Abram (Abraham's original name) instead of Abel. Not so matchy that way.

jenna0627

Honestly you are thinking too much.

I think that both names are great and you know for sure that Abel is going to happen you have no idea if you will have more children let alone a girl. Even if you do have a girl I don't think they are too matchy and would use them both.

starlight8323

No disrespect, Jenna, but I don't think there is such a thing as overthinking names. Naming a human is an important job. No matter what you decide in the end, at least you considered all the pros and cons of using each name.

That being said, yes, I think the names are too similar to use both. If it were me, I would not use a secondary name if it meant not being able to use a higher-ranked name in the future.

still_a_bride

Yeah I think they are a little too similar.  If I were you I'd probably just go with Abel since you don't know for sure you'll have another child and if you do, you don't know if it will be a girl.  However, I don't love a name THAT much, so it's hard for me to understand not using a name now because of a possible future conflict.  Let us know what you decide!

ZTACRYSTAL

I think they are a bit too matchy. If I loved Jael that much I wouldn't use Abel right now. If I had a second son instead of Jael, I would name him Abel. But thats just me.