Names -Y, Z, A, for Girls and B, C, D, E for Boys

GIRLS

Yentl - Yiddish, form of the French nickname Gentille, meaning "noble" or "aristocratic".

Zuleima - derived from the Semitic root 'slm' meaning 'peace'.


Acacia  - Greek, from 'akakia' which is derived from 'akis' meaning "thorn". The acacia tree is also known as the thorntree or whistling thorn. However there are other meanings associated with the acacia tree besides its etymology that makes it a good source for a name. The acacia is associated with the tree of life in Egyptian mythology. Its bark is used to make various types of incense used in rituals, such as those to ward off demons and evil spirits and to please the gods. Some consider the acacia tree to be the burning bush seen by Moses in the Bible and acacia was the wood to be used for a table in the tabernacle of the Hebrews and to make the ark of the covenant. Some believe the crown of thorns worn by Jesus at his crucifixion came from the acacia tree. The acacia tree provides a home for various animals, is used as timber in building or as firewood, and it is used to make paper, specifically the kind of paper on which Bibles and dictionaries are commonly printed and tissue paper because of its softness. The tree spreads fast and is difficult to eradicate - which can be either a positive or a negative. It is a positive as it helps protect against erosion but a negative only in the sense of competing with native plants in a region that it is not native to, which is not necessarily seen as a negative by everyone, but some in ecology do see it this way. The acacia is a miracle tree, in a way, for how many beneficial things it provides to us and other lifeforms. It has chemical compounds which protect it from pests and grazing animals, and the alkaloids in them have psychoactive effects in humans, and are therefore used to produce drugs for treating certain types of mental illness. The properties of these are "powerful immersive experiences; often described as a total loss of connection to external reality and an experience of encountering indescribable spiritual/alien beings and realms" though in smaller amounts they may produce lesser psychedelic experiences and hallucinations.


BOYS

Bezaleal -Hebrew, meaning "in the shadow of God" where shadow means 'protection'. This is also spelled Bezalel and Betzalel.

Caelum there are two Latin words spelled like this, one meaning sky or heaven and the other meaning chisel. However, it may simply be an alternate spelling of the Scottish name Callum, which is a form of Columba, which is Latin in origin, and means "church dove".Caelum is the name of a constellation in the southern sky.



Normans who conquered England, about the time of Roger Deramis

Deramis - One of the funner names I've researched. I 'believe' I got this as the surname of Roger Deramis, mentioned in the Domesday Book. A little research turned up his name as de Ramis and his origin as one of the Normans who came to England with William the Conqueror from Northern France. Rheims is a city in northeastern France, and de Ramis could very well mean that Roger was 'from Rheims', as French surnames often work that way. Rheims is an old city. Before the Romans conquered Gaul there were many tribes who lived in various parts of the country and allied themselves with some and fought relentlessly with others. Rheims was settled by a people called the Remi. There is even a legend that the Remi were founded by Remus, one of the mythical founders of Rome. He was one of the sons of Rhea Silvia, whose name comes from the name of the goddess Rhea, an earth goddess. The meaning of her name is uncertain, but the Greek 'rheo' means "to flow" and "era" means "ground". Another way to look at the meaning of Deramis is that the city of Rheims for a long time was the place where French kings were crowned. The Remi who lived in this area were good horsemen, living in the part of France near Belgium, in the Ardennes forest and near the Meuse and Marne rivers.



Elam - Sumerian name for an ancient civilization in eastern Iran. Elamites called their country Haltamti. According to the Bible they are descended from Elam, son of Shem, Noah's eldest son. The Persian name for this place is Susa and the Old Persian name is Hujiya. Other names are Susiana, Huz, Xuz. There seems to be some connection between the name Susa and Susan.