What’s in a Name
ChatGPT created image of gold, jade pillars in a modern style.
Do you know the meaning of your name? Who named you and why did they choose that name for you? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, I encourage you to find out!
My name is Minjoo Bayers. Here is the story of my name.
Following Korean tradition, my paternal grandfather named me. He passed away when I was very young, and I never got to ask his intention behind my name. However, my maternal grandfather made an interpretation for me. I was born 김민주 金珉柱 Kim Minjoo. Names were traditionally given in hanja (Chinese characters).
金 김 - my maiden name, means “gold”
珉 옥돌민 - can mean “precious stone,” “jade,” or “beautiful stone”
柱 기둥주 - means “pillar”
➢ My maternal grandfather’s interpretation of my name:
“the pillar that holds the gold and precious stones together.”
When I immigrated to the US, I had to get a medical check-up to be able to attend school. The doctor, a Korean woman, recommended that we adopt English nicknames to help us assimilate. So in school I went by Jane, and everywhere else I remained Minjoo. The general rule was that if you spoke to me in Korean, you would call me Minjoo, and if you spoke to me in English, you called me Jane.
When I was about 20 years old, I became a naturalized US citizen. There was an option to change your legal name and I added Jane as my legal middle name.
Jane is a female Hebrew name meaning “YHWH is gracious.”
When I got married, I became a Bayers, which comes from Europe (could be German Bayer or English Byers).
Soon after, I was attending a group through The Allender Center and there were 2 other Janes. So I went by Minjoo in the group. Dr. Allender was one of the first few non-Koreans that called me Minjoo. A few years after that, I chose to go by Minjoo in most places.
Have you ever played the game Mad Gab? It’s a game where one person reads seemingly random words on a card, and the other players try to figure out what phrase it sounds like. For example, a card might say “Wander Her Womb Hen” and you say it out loud until you figure out that the phrase is “Wonder Woman.”
Can you try to figure out what “Miami Ninja Bears” is supposed to be? The answer is within this post!
ChatGPT created image of “Miami Ninja Bears”
—a group of sleek, cyberpunk-styled ninja bears striking martial arts poses against a neon-lit Miami skyline.