Everyone has a name.

We have names for others to identify us and so that our lineage can be referenced. Our parents give us our forenames and surnames (first and last names) and are either patronymic or matronymic (meaning that our name is derived by either our father, male ancestor, mother, or female ancestor).

Almost every name has a story behind it, parents carefully select the names for their kids. They look in to meanings and different spellings in hopes of finding the perfect one.  

Darius Rubianes is a RHS Junior and has two middle names. His full name is Darius Jaguar James Rubianes; his first two names are from his mother and his last two are from his father.

There was a lot of thought put in to his name by his parents. He was named after King Darius the Great, the luxury vehicle company Jaguar, and was given his father’s middle name; James.

Eunbin Jang just recently became a part of the Ripon High tribe and is the newest addition to the Junior class.

“My name is a traditional Korean given name which is similar to a Chinese name by the logic of creation,” Jang explains.

Each syllable of her name has a corresponding Chinese character. “Eun” meaning “faith” and “bin” meaning “shining”. So the literal translation of her name means “shining faith”.

Freshman Ernest “Ernie” Eusebio shared that he was named after his grandfather on his dad’s side (which makes his name patronymic). His name is derived from the Germanic word eornost meaning ‘serious’.

However, if you get to know Ernie Eusebio, you’ll know that he is actually quite the jokester. Individuals with this name tend to be kind hearted and, for lack of a better term, earnest.

‘Haven’ is a name with an English origin and means ‘a safe place’. Individuals with this name tend to be intellectual, easy-going, and adventurous, just like the RHS junior Haven Fasani who was named after one of her parents’ favorite worship singers.

“When [your] dad and I had been dating…our favorite singer in the worship group was a lady named Haven. We loved hearing her sing and loved her name,” Fasani’s mother shared. “We told each other that if we got married and if we ever had a daughter together, that we wanted to name her Haven.”

This article is part two to Gracyn Taylor’s article “Behind the Name”. Click here to read more.