Names and their meanings – discover exactly how your name is affecting you

Names and their meanings can affect us on three different levels - how a name sounds, it’s origin of meaning and it’s numerological meaning.

Firstly we react to the sound and look of a name either in a positive or a negative way. For instance the name Mother Teresa conjures up a very different feeling from the name Adolf Hitler. Leonardo DiCaprio will evoke a different response to Attila the Hun. However that’s partly because of our associations with the people who have that name and what we know about them.

If we look at names that are less well known, see how they make you feel; Marcia Bratt, Cecil Simpkins, Ella Grace, Jack Coulton. Some names simply sound harsh, others sound soft. Some sound weak, others strong.

How do you feel about your own name? Have you ever wanted to change it? If someone tells you their name you will react on some level to how the name sounds and that may cause you to make certain judgements about that person. Perhaps that’s why so many celebrities change their name. They need the name to be memorable but also they want it to sound like the name of a movie star or a great singer and so on. They want the name to conjure up a certain image.

Some names are just more forgettable than others and that’s no good when you want casting directors and the like to remember you. Some stars were born with great names, others made them! Elvis Presley was born with his name, Elton John changed to his from Reg Dwight…Lady Gaga chose that name in preference to her birth name of Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta. I can see why. Lady Gaga is short, different and highly memorable. Her birth name not so much! John Wayne changed from Marrion Morrison. Just as well, I mean who can imagine a tough cowboy called Marrion?

Names and their meanings – the actual meaning of a name based on its origin.
This applies to surnames and obvious examples are names like Smith which originates from Blacksmiths and Carpenter which is self-explanatory. Other names have changed through the centuries so that their original meaning is not so obvious. For example the name Richards which derives from the two elements of 'ric' and 'hard', and translates as "powerful ruler".

Then there are the ‘meanings’ one finds in name books, such as ‘Matthew means Gift of God’ and ‘Sophia means Wisdom’. Those name meanings are all well and good but they don’t actually have any bearing on how the name will affect the person it is given to.

Names and their meanings – the numerological interpretation.
For me this is the most fascinating area of the meaning of names because it delves into the innermost depths of a name. It’s an ancient system based on the fact that each letter of the alphabet has a numerical equivalent. For instance the letter A corresponds to the number 1. The letter Y to the number 7. The letter K to the number 2. Taking any person’s full birth name we can apply the correct numbers to each letter of their name and after specific calculations we can interpret the meaning of the final numbers that are relevant to them. This will reveal many things about their personality, their path in life, what career they are best suited to and much more.

Numerology has been used since ancient Egyptian times and has stood the test of time. Numbers are vibration, like everything in our world, and that energy affects us whether we believe it or not. The fact that our names have meanings that shape our personalities explains why people often change in themselves after they change their name. It also explains why most parents go to so much trouble when choosing a baby name. Perhaps on some subconscious level they sense that the name they choose for their child’s life is more important than we know…