Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on May 30, 2024

Jewish baby names

The basketball star and actress have given their fourth child a middle name with a very auspicious Jewish meaning.

via Rodin Eckenroth/FilmMagic

Basketball star Steph Curry and his wife, actress Ayesha Curry, just welcomed their fourth child and they may or may not have given him a very Jewish middle name.

This week, the widely beloved couple shared on Instagram a black and white photo of them holding their newborns little hand, announcing that he came early on May 10. They also shared that his name is Caius Chai Curry.

Cauis joins his three siblings: Riley Elizabeth Curry born in July 2012, Ryan Carson Curry born in July 2015 and Canon W. Jack Curry born in July 2018. Caius is a Latin name that means rejoice, glad, delight, pleased (and also a familiar one for Twilight fans its the name of one of the Volturi vampire leaders from the book and movie series).

Most people know the word chai as the Hindi word for tea, but for Jews, that word, pronounced with the Hebrew chet, is perhaps one of the most auspicious words and names. Chai means life, alive. The number 18, which is the numerical value of the word chai (chet is 8 and yud is 10), is also considered an important and lucky number, which is why many Jewish people donate and give money in multiples of $18.

The line Am Israel Chai, which means the people of Israel live a term used to refer to the Jewish people as a whole is one that you have probably seen and heard a lot since October 7. Many have also taken comfort from an Ofra Haza song called Chai, which the Yemeni Israeli singer of blessed memory sang on the Eurovision stage in Germany back in 1983. And of course, many people know of the Hebrew toast of lchaim, meaning to life, popularized by Fiddler on the Roof. Both Chai and Chaim are popular Hebrew boys names.

Its not clear why the Currys chose the name Chai or if they were aware of or intentionally choosing the name for its Jewish meaning . The couple is Pentecostal Christian and met in church when they were teens. Currys mom, Sonya who started a Christian Montessori School together with his father, has been learning Hebrew for years following a life-altering visit to Israel, so it is likely that she at least knows the meaning of the name. Curry himself also has a fascination with Hebrew. He has two Hebrew tattoos a matching one with Ayesha, which reads love never fails and one of his last name, spelled out in Hebrew letters. The Golden State Warriors playerhas even wore a hoodie with Hebrew embroidery during for the 2022 NBA finals.

Whatever the reason behind the naming choice, it is quite a beautiful middle name for their fourth and, according to Ayesha, last child.

On her site, Sweet July, Ayesha wrote about how she had been reliant on her village more than ever during this pregnancy, which includes both the people around her and in the more abstract sense my spirituality; my relationship to God; my relationship with myself. She also wrote about how being pregnant at age 35 had been different for her.

Whats been really interesting has been my doctors appointments. Im in my 30s, and so theres all this paperwork referring to the experience as a geriatric pregnancy and all the concerns that come along with that. I think theres something that needs to be more nuanced when it comes to women, their age, and conversations around having children. Many women in their 30s and 40s are going through this for the first time, and being told youre old feels alarming and wild. I think the narrative needs to be shifted a little bit, she shared. We couldnt agree more.

Mazel tov to the Curry family and congratulations on choosing such a beautiful name.

Lior Zaltzman is the deputy managing editor of Kveller.

Read more:

Did Steph and Ayesha Curry Give Their Newborn a Jewish Name? Kveller - Kveller.com

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