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Help[Opinions] Shem
I am studying covenants in the Old Testament, and just read a chapter about the importance of Noah's son Shem as the only righteous firstborn son in Genesis (other than Abraham) and as a kind of prototype for the whole nation of Israel...yada yada. I won't bore you. But it made me really think about the name Shem for the first time. It means "name" which is significant in itself.
When I hear names like Clem or Jem, I think of the tall, quiet, sturdy Mennonite farm boys here in my home of the rural Midwest. Shem has that same positive association for me.
Of course, it's common for the Mennonites/Amish/&c around here to use the more unusual biblical names. It's hard for me to imagine a non-religious couple naming their son Shem.
It has a really similar feel to the short, soft sound of Seth. But it also kind of sounds like "sham" or "shame."
How do you like the name? What are your associations? Do you see it as usable and in what circles?
When I hear names like Clem or Jem, I think of the tall, quiet, sturdy Mennonite farm boys here in my home of the rural Midwest. Shem has that same positive association for me.
Of course, it's common for the Mennonites/Amish/&c around here to use the more unusual biblical names. It's hard for me to imagine a non-religious couple naming their son Shem.
It has a really similar feel to the short, soft sound of Seth. But it also kind of sounds like "sham" or "shame."
How do you like the name? What are your associations? Do you see it as usable and in what circles?
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It sounds really odd to me. The fact it means "name" is unsettling, as if the fact that it's at the root of the word "semite".
Funny, actually not funny story. Some friends of my grandparents had named a son Shem and a daughter Abigail outof eccentricity, which in Italy and especially at the time were utterly bizarre names. Enter the 1938 racial laws, and Shem and his sister had the hardest time proving that they had received these names because of their father' eccentricity, and no, they were not Jewish.
Funny, actually not funny story. Some friends of my grandparents had named a son Shem and a daughter Abigail outof eccentricity, which in Italy and especially at the time were utterly bizarre names. Enter the 1938 racial laws, and Shem and his sister had the hardest time proving that they had received these names because of their father' eccentricity, and no, they were not Jewish.
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I like Shem. I actually had never even noticed it until I was telling a friend of mine how my 7 year old said we should name a new baby a short name with an e in the middle to match his and his sister's names (this is a coincidence, btw, didn't set out to do that!). My friend suggested Shem as a joke!
But it has a lot of warmth to it, and a sweet sound. I'd agree with your association, and it's a nice one. For me it's on the opposite side of the spectrum from Seth, which is one of the coldest and nastiest sounding names to me, with a very harsh sound!
I can see Shem usable by any religious people, not necessarily very conservative ones. It has a sort of crunchy feel to it too.
But it has a lot of warmth to it, and a sweet sound. I'd agree with your association, and it's a nice one. For me it's on the opposite side of the spectrum from Seth, which is one of the coldest and nastiest sounding names to me, with a very harsh sound!
I can see Shem usable by any religious people, not necessarily very conservative ones. It has a sort of crunchy feel to it too.
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I don't like the sound of it at all, and its associations are purely biblical and therefore not to my taste. The biblical names I enjoy are the ones that have been so well used in English for so long that they've pretty much shed their original associations, but Shem isn't like that. And, come to think of it, I also dislike Noah.
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I absolutely love Shem. It's short and strong, but it doesn't sound harsh. It's way better than Sam, Sem or Seth, or any similar name. It's an uncommon Hebrew name, so of course you'll always have the biblical association, but that doesn't bother me personally. It would strike me as a bit odd if atheist parents had a son called Shem, but people would get used to it.
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The covenants of the Bible make for a really good study topic =)
I haven't thought much of the name Shem in today's world. I think I like it though.
If I was to hear it in real life, I would assume the parents were religious. My only association with it is the Bible character. Unfortunately, it kind of leaves itself open for a Shamu reference if the child was larger...
I haven't thought much of the name Shem in today's world. I think I like it though.
If I was to hear it in real life, I would assume the parents were religious. My only association with it is the Bible character. Unfortunately, it kind of leaves itself open for a Shamu reference if the child was larger...
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I'm in agreement with your image of it. Quiet sturdy farm boy from a religious family. I don't picture it on the son of non-religious people either (although it could conceivably be hipster because I'm under the impression that many people can and would use any name they think sounds cool without much regard for whether it means something particular to someone). And it does sound sort of hushing, and ever so slightly untrustworthy. I don't personally like it.
This message was edited 1/12/2016, 7:40 PM
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I like Shem. It's short and sweet and I actually think unusual enough amongst the religious that use by a non-religious person wouldn't be too weird. I don't have any associations with it beyond the Bible and the meaning is pretty snazzy.
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