As most of you probably already know, we welcomed our daughter “Clara Anne Cokkinias” into the world on July 8, 2019.
What you may not know is some of the extra little “fun facts” – like the story behind her name.
We kept it *mostly* a secret until we shared her birth announcement on Facebook.
Since the name Clara isn’t super common (but of course not unheard of), we have received a lot of questions about it the past couple of months – (How did we come up with it? Is it a family name? Etc.)
I feel like I answer that question of curiosity at least several times a week….so I thought hey, that just might be fun to share on my blog. While some may choose a name just because they simply heard it and liked it, my choosing process was honestly pretty deep.
Leave it to me: The over-thinker and the over-explainer. I couldn’t just hear a name on TV and go with it unfortunately. My mind just doesn’t work that way, though I sometimes wish it did. It would certainly make my life easier…LOL.
Now, I must also say I’m just doing this post for fun – not to convince anyone who may not like the name or visa versa. Amazingly, we have actually received ALL positive feedback on it (which is great), but personally, I still would have chosen this name even if we hadn’t.
I am just answering a common question we get that I think has kind of a meaningful backstory to it. I personally enjoy “names” and hearing about how other people choose theirs, so if you also find this kind of thing entertaining, read on:
I wanted something somewhat unusual and unpredictable. I wanted it to be beautiful, feminine and classic….yet not overly popular. I’ve always been a bit against the grain. I’m not really trendy, and I always try to go for “slightly different.” However, with a name, I was adamant that I didn’t want to do anything “weird” in order to achieve that. It was a hard middle ground to find. In all honesty, when it comes to names, I’m super picky. Thankfully, my husband Kyle was on board with the name pretty quickly.
…..And between Kyle and I, we know a lot of people. I was born and raised in Ohio and here in TN, I have met countless people from all over the state …..and the world. I also come from a massive family, which is constantly growing. It’s getting fairly close to impossible to find an attractive name that hasn’t already been used multiple times by some fairly close family members, friends or acquaintances in one way or another….and that is certainly okay, but I was kind of up for the challenge:
…..*Drumroll*….we actually know ZERO little Clara’s, besides our own.
I always knew about the name “Clara,” but didn’t really think of it as my future daughter’s name until probably 3-5 years ago. I heard it somewhere again and *bam*…..I started liking it. Then, I started loving it. I found myself loving that it was old-fashioned, yet could still be modern. In my opinion, it has a timeless feel, which is important to me. Old names tend to come back around every 100 or so years, and I decided, “Clara,” was well overdue for a comeback since it peaked in popularity in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.
An extra cool bonus: it’s actually a really old family name that goes way back through the generations……but it is not currently a “new name” in the family. My Clara’s great-great-great-great Grandmother on my mom’s side of the house was “Clara.” Her daughter, and my Clara’s great-great-great grandmother was, “Ethel Clara.” Additionally, it was used a couple other times way back in our family history. With that said, I felt like “Clara” would be a cool nod to my mom and my late Grandmother (though neither of them have “Clara” in their name). Anyone who knows me knows that my mom means the world to me….and my Grandma was a big inspirational figure in my life as well.
Additionally, Kyle’s sweet Mom is “Rebecca Anne”… and I also absolutely adore my mother-in-law. “Ann” is also the middle name of an aunt who is very special to me. To top it all off, it also made me think of our awesome pastor’s wife, “Miss Anne.” I just have a lot of great “Anne” associations in general, and loved/still love the flow of “Clara Anne.” I tried other middle names with Clara, and kept coming back to “Anne.”
When I say “Clara Anne,” I think of both of our families.
Also, I felt that it sounded like a strong, yet sweet name. I pictured a kind, goal-oriented woman. I pictured “Clara Anne” looking great on a resume. To me, it had just the right balance and versatility for a driven Southern country girl – sounding both down-to-earth and intelligent. It also didn’t hurt that it made me think of inspirational people like Clara Barton (founder of the Red Cross) and the fictional, but inspiring, character from “The Nutcracker.” I also love its meaning of, “bright and clear.” As soon as the Dr. laid her on my chest, I knew I had chosen the right name. Weighing in at 6 lbs, 1 oz, she was born tiny….but so strong!
Also, it isn’t of any secret that our last name is long…..and most people don’t know how to pronounce and/or spell it. People will forever mess it up, so giving her a long first name that can also easily be messed up just didn’t seem like a kind thing to do. I wanted a first name for her that has an obvious traditional spelling and pronunciation, though I am fully prepared that it will still get botched up. 😂.
(There are a couple other personal reasons I chose this name).
Ultimately, I think what we name our children is very important and shouldn’t be taken lightly. Their name is with them their whole life. We cannot guarantee we will choose something they will love, but I can certainly say I sure tried. We of course all have different tastes and styles, and there isn’t ANY name in the world that EVERYONE will love. We all have our own opinions. This was our choice though, and I have to admit I really love the story behind it. I would absolutely go with it all over again.
So for those of you who have asked/may still wonder how I landed on this particular name…….there it is.
What about you? What made you decide on your baby name(s)? What are some of your favorites? Let’s create a fun discussion. Sound off in the comment section below! 🙂