When I was born, my parents named me Barbara Louise.
Sometime in my youth, when I expressed discontent with my name, which I had looked up and found "Barbara" to mean "foreign" or "strange" and "Louise" to be a feminine of form of Louis and, of course, Louise was also my mother's first name (neither of which pleased me at the time), my mother somewhat offended, told me that she had named me after her best friend. I am not sure if the friend's name was "Barbara" or "Barbara Louise". I do not remember further conversation. I wish I had known much earlier that I had been named for a good friend. I wish I knew something about her and what made this friend special. My mother was 17 when I was born. I assume her friend, Barbara, was also a teenager. They were probably in high school together. I am not sure when my mother left high school or even if she graduated. She might not have because of me. We sure never talked much, did we?
Some say that people think that the name "Barbara" is "classic mature formal upper class natural wholesome strong refined simple serious nerdy . I am not sure how much of that might apply to me.
I never learned to particularly like my name, nor it's variants. I certainly am not a "Barbie" or a "Bobbie". Some say that "Barbara" can also mean "exotic" which for some reason sounds more appealing, except I am in no way exotic - which implies beautiful and interesting. I am rather peasant-like. But Barbara also means "Barbarian," which I think some might think applies to me. I am certainly not lady-like, refined, cultured, and/or educated.
A very few have called me "Barb" and it was usually kindly meant and I liked it maybe a little better than "Barbara". It may have even fit. I can think of a person or two would think so. "a point or pointed part projecting backward from a main point, as of a fishhook or arrowhead; an obviously or openly unpleasant or cutting remark."
Other Barbara's:
Barbara may have become an popular name in early ties because of St. Barbara an early Christina martyr who was tortured and killed for her faith. She is the patron saint of armourers, artillerymen, architects, mathematicians, miners and the Italian Navy. St. Barbara is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, venerated because their intercession is believed to be particularly effective against disease.
I don't recall many Barbara's that I have personally known. There was Barbara Fair, who went by Fair (or maybe Faire?) and there is Barbara W. both of them a gracious and lovely women of faith.
One can find famous Barbara's. One of my favorite famous Barbara's is Barbara Bush. Despite being wife of a president of the United States and under public scrutiny, she was delightfully herself. She loved being a wife, mother, and grandmother. She didn't get a new and super expensive outfit for every occasion. She had a sense of humor and self-deprecating wit. She supported literacy. Mostly I just liked that she didn't try to be something she wasn't.
If I had named myself, what would it be? Well, I gave my daughters some of my favorite names. I would have liked an Elizabeth, too. I don't think I really fit them, though. Don't think I could quite live up to them. I think that Deborah might have come close to suiting me, although I cannot see myself as a Debbie or even a Debi. I have a wonderful daughter Debi and I cannot see me matching that as well.
What is your name? Does it suit you? Why were you named that?
