Hollywood is a long way from Puritan New England, but Left Coast celebrities are harking back to an old tradition: biblical baby names.
Consider Robert De Niro’s son Aaron; Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin’s little girl, Delilah Belle; Annie Potts’ Isaac Harris; and Albert Brooks’ Jacob Eli.
Not to mention all the Elijahs, Hannahs and Jacobs in Beverly Hills preschools. Judith Tropea, author of “Classic Biblical Baby Names,” says she thinks the trend shows that people want names that are “meaningful, spiritual and have lasted through the course of time.” Tropea has some suggestions that go way beyond the obvious in scriptural appellations.
For her:
Damaris–a woman who listened to Paul as he preached about Jesus in Athens.
Elisheba–wife of Moses’ brother Aaron.
Zipporah–given to Moses as a wife.
For him:
Aeneas–a paralyzed man healed by Peter in the name of Jesus.
Gaius–a popular name among Christians in Rome.
Zuriel–a Levite ruler during the exodus from Egypt.