Wednesday, March 03, 2010

Fearless Females Prompt 3

March 3 — Do you share a first name with one of your female ancestors? Perhaps you were named for your great-grandmother, or your name follows a particular naming pattern. If not, then list the most unique or unusual female first name you’ve come across in your family tree.

As my first name is fairly unusual, I was surprised to discover many years ago that I actually did have several ancestors with the same name. One of my maternal 6th-great-grandmothers was Miriam HALL (1757 - 1823), who lived in Mansfield, Tolland County, Connecticut and Duanesburg, Schenectady County, New York. Her mother was Miriam WOLCOTT, of whom I have no information.

I was not named for any of my ancestors. My parents liked the name and picked it from the Bible. When I was nine months old, my parents and I traveled to Michigan from our home in Alaska to spend time with my parents' families for Christmas. I met my great-grandmother, Lillian Fern (STRONG) HOEKSTRA for the first time.  She loved the name Mary so much that she used it as a nickname for herself. She asked my mother to change my name to Mary, but my mother gently told her that I was already used to my name, and since Miriam is the Hebrew variation of the Greek Mary, it was nearly the same thing.

For more on the Fearless Females Blogging Prompts, visit The Accidental Genealogist.

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