What’s in a Name?

Two and a half hours old, puffy from the c-section
with eye ointment running down his face...I knew he
was Felix the moment I took this picture.

I’ve been meaning to write this post for a while, since so many people ask how I came up with Felix’s name.

For a few years, Oliver was my favorite boy name and I was sure I’d use it if I ever had a son. But then I realized the name was jumping 10 – 20 spots on the popularity charts every year. At that rate, I figure it’ll be in the top 10 by 2013, and I really didn’t want my son to have a common name. But I still loved it, so it never came off my short list.

When I found out I’d be adopting a Hispanic boy, (which I was told would never happen, by the way), I was pretty sure I wanted a name that paid respect to his heritage without branding him “Mexican”. Even though a large part of the US population is now at least part Hispanic, discrimination does exist and we know that sometimes, people aren’t called back for job interviews or housing based on their names. I thought it would be unfair to disadvantage my child with a name that’s only associated with Hispanics. I also wanted a name that was uncommon but easy to remember and had a predictable spelling.

Many of the classic Spanish names I love sound great in Spanish but pretty awkward in English, like Alejandro, Ariel (Ah-ree-EL) and Ernesto. Other names like Ruben and Oscar met the not-obviously-Hispanic requirement, but just don’t work with our last name.

So, that brings me to “Felix”. I have no idea where I got the name! I don’t know anyone with that name, and I wasn’t reading baby name books, so I really don’t know. I just remember standing in my parents’ kitchen, getting out my iPhone and adding it to my short list. I did some research on it later, and it turns out that at least 5 popes have been named Felix, so I knew the Hispanic requirement was covered. It also means “happy”, which I liked, and the X is pretty cool too.

When May 14^th arrived, my list was down to Oliver and Felix. I decided I’d see what the baby looked like before deciding. I knew instantly he was Felix, but waited about 24 hours for a couple of reasons. First, I wanted to make sure the adoption was going to happen, and I didn’t want birth mom to feel like I was “claiming” him within hours of birth, if that makes sense. Second, I was pretty sure no one was going to like the name, and I needed time to get totally used to it myself. I remember waking up in a fog that first night and thinking, “I can’t believe someone gave me a baby and I’m naming him Felix!”

The second day, the infant coordinator brought the baby back from a visit with birth mom and said she (birth mom) really wanted to know what his name was going to be. I told her it would probably be Felix, and she immediately started gushing about how much she loved it. And she’s not one to fake loving something. That was the little vote of confidence I needed, so I told her to tell birth mom that his name was, indeed, Felix David. (David is my dad’s middle name, and a safe alternative in case baby ended up hating his first name.) It was around that time I put him in his first non-hospital outfit and started to believe he really could be mine…

Fast forward to today, and I’m happy to say we get compliments on his name all the time. We also haven’t met another Felix, although we’ve been noticing them in pop culture, like the female contestant on Master Chef and the Austrian astronaut who’s going to skydive from space. But most importantly, I feel like the name really fits him. I couldn’t be happier with my choice, and I highly doubt he will ever choose to go by David instead.