What’s In A Name? – Students share stories behind their unique names

GBHS students like Chiyoh and Koki share significance of their unique names.

Despite the classic names we hear on a daily basis in our American culture, there are always those names that stick out from the rest in one way or another.
   Whether a person is introducing himself for the first time, or you happen to hear an unusual name during roll call (usually accompanied by a substitute teacher stumbling through the different syllables), there is something about a unique name that intrigues us, even if it is nothing more than spoken phonemes or letters on a piece of paper.
   We decided to seek out some of Granite Bay High School’s most uncommon names.
   Chiyoh and Koki Arai, Kenny Kenny and Uriah Volinsky were chosen to share their stories of how their names came to be.
   So how exactly does one come up with the names Chiyoh and Koki?
   “My parents own Mikuni,” Chiyoh said. “When my grandpa first opened Mikuni, they were doing really (well). Then they had trouble and they weren’t doing so (well). But right when they were struggling…I was born, so my grandpa thought there were going to be a thousand customers. So they just named me ‘a thousand sheep’ (in Japanese).”
   Koki’s story is less imaginative.
   “I’m just named after my grandpa,” Koki said. “(Koki) means ‘light and happiness.’”
   However, Chiyoh and Koki are not the only ones in their family with unique names.
   “(Our) little sister’s name is Chisay and (our) brother’s name is Kayji. KJ for short…for Americans,” Chiyoh said.
   As distinctive as the Arais’ first names are, Chiyoh and Koki have surprisingly common, American-sounding middle names. Chiyoh’s middle name is ‘Sharon’ and Koki’s middle name is ‘Paul.’
 “We have them just in case we want to change our names (someday),” Chiyoh said.�
   As one can assume, uncommon names come at a price– misspellings and mispronunciations.
   “(People) always call me Cookie,” Koki said. “And they always spell my name wrong and add an ‘e’ to the end.”
   Chiyoh also is no stranger to name mispronunciations.
 “They mistake (my name) for Cheetoh…They never actually know until I spell it out for them.”
    Although Chiyoh and Kokis’ names have no actual relation to food, they assured us that being named after a food may not be as bizarre as one might think.
      “In Japan right now, it’s popular to name your child a fruit name,” Chiyoh said. “So ‘Strawberry’, that would be a cute name in Japan right now. My cousin’s friend is named Strawberry.”
***
   The name ‘Kenny’ by itself may not be that extraordinary of a name, but the full name Kenny Kenny surely is far from ordinary.
   “My dad wanted to name me Thomas, but my mom didn’t like that name…so somehow my dad decided to name my first name Kenny…No one else (in my family) has the first name Kenny,” Kenny said.
   The common reaction that Kenny Kenny receives when people first learn his name: “ ‘What’s your first name?’ ‘Kenny.’ ‘What’s your last name?’ ‘Kenny.’ ‘No, I asked for your last name.’”
   Although the double name is sure to cause a bit of confusion at first, Kenny does not see the scenario as being anything negative.
   “I’ve really never had a problem with it, it’s something you just get used to,” Kenny said. “It’s really just my name. That’s just it…I like my name.”
***
   While some names are passed down in a family for generations and some are pulled out of the blue, there are also those names, such as Uriah Volinsky’s, that are drawn from and inspired by outside sources.
   Such as a book.
   “It’s in the Bible,” Volinsky said. “Uriah was a Hittite and he was married to a beautiful woman named Bathsheba. David, the king at the time, decided he needed to get rid of (Uriah) because (he wanted his wife),” Volinsky said. “So (David) sent Uriah to the frontline of the battle where he fought valiantly and died.”
   But wait, there is more.
   Uriah Volinksy’s middle name, Nathaniel, also has a special connection to the biblical story of Uriah.�
   “David married Bathsheba and then a prophet named Nathaniel came to David and told him his son would die because of what he had done,” Volinsky said. “And that’s why my middle name’s Nathaniel.”�
   Uriah’s three brothers, Josiah, Caleb and Jacob, also have names that can be found in the Bible.�
   “And my dad’s name is John…He’s (named after) a disciple,” Volinsky said.
    “I really like my name. I used to really not like it because everyone had a normal name and I felt like I wasn’t normal because of my name,” Volinsky said. “I felt really distant from people because everyone would (have the names) ‘Justin’ or ‘Adam’ or ‘Brittany’…I always wanted the name Justin or something because everyone has it.
   “But (when I was younger, my name was) the one thing that made me stick out in a society where everyone was the same…(My name) makes me stronger, and it may be one of the reasons why I don’t care what people think…it was part of God’s plan.”
   People all around the world change their names for various reasons, whether it be an act of rebellion or to take on a more traditional name. But would any of the people behind the names featured in this article do the same?
 “What’s the point in changing it?” Kenny responded.
   The Arai sibilings also see it as unnecessary.
  “It’s my name…I’m not embarrassed by it,” Koki said. “It sets me apart from other people”
   Chiyoh also believes that a name, while not everything, can help make an individual more unique.
   “I think it’s kind of dumb when people change their names,” Chiyoh said. “Because if it’s something their parents wanted to name them, keep it (because it’s) your own unique self…(don’t) change it to a common name.”
   However, Uriah would not be opposed having a different name under special circumstances.
   “I heard that when you die you get a new name actually,” Volinsky said. “In the Bible it says that God gives you a new name. It’s really cool.”
   While a name doesn’t make the person, your name can give you a sense of self and identity.
   “Names are a part of peoples’ personalities. The name given to you on earth kind of changes who you are,” Volinsky said. Depending on the name the parents gives the child, (that child) could have a totally different life if they were a ‘Chris’ instead of a ‘Steve.’ I think somehow (a name) could change the course of someone’s life.”