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What’s in a presidential candidate’s name?

Sandi Teets
Published: June 27, 2008

A naming of a child is one of the first things expectant parents think of when they find out they are going to have a baby. Many names are names handed down from family members.

You may be a Jr. or a, III. Many names are chosen because the parents have put a lot of thought into the naming of their soon-to-be-born child. Sometimes they are named after states, cities, flowers,
birds, biblical names or maybe even the place where your parents first met.

But I can assure you that a lot of thought is put into picking a baby name. You want to know what the name means, if it’s a name that will suit your child or maybe shape his or her future.

So this idea came to me that I should look into the meanings of our two presidential candidates’ names.

It took me about a week to get to the root origins of each name and I did my research well. First we’ll start with John (gracious, follower of God and the longest living apostle) Sidney (a wide open
meadow, or island in southern waters) and McCain (coming from the English, and Irish, meaning strong). Now we’ll get along to Barack (a Lightning bolt) Hussein (a son Islam or the newer and nicer
sounding meaning “little handsome one”) and Obama (a Muslim name, no clear meaning that I can locate, but it is Muslim in origin).

And Barack is a Jr., so the apple can’t fall from the tree. If you know what I mean.

I don’t know about you, but my feeling is that your name pretty much defines who you are. It’s the first gift your parents give you and it stays with you forever.

So if I was basing my vote on the meaning of a name, I think I would go for the gracious, wide-open space and not the lightning bolt that is a son of Islam, even if it also means handsome. Being
handsome is not a qualification for being president.

If it were, we’d have George Clooney or Brad Pitt in the White House.

You make your own decision. I will say one thing: Both of my dogs are deathly afraid of lighting and you know what they say. Dogs have a sixth sense about things and lighting is not good!

SANDI TEETS

Manassas

Reader Reactions

Posted by ( What's in a Name? ) on June 29, 2008 at 4:48 pm

The best part about Ms. Teet’s research is how she picked out the info that suited her case and left out what didn’t.

For instance, yes, Barack means lightning bolt. What she didn’t tell us is that it’s actually Hebrew. Here’s the rest of what the website (I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’s one she unearthed in her week-long search) has to say:

“This biblical name was recently rescued from obscurity by Senator Barack Obama, who has given it a smart, stylish, and ambitious association.“—Parenting.com

Oh. My.

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Posted by ( zcxnissan ) on June 29, 2008 at 1:24 pm

Ray whatever you have been smoking, it’s not working anymore. LOL Chris Cummings

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Posted by ( willow703 ) on June 29, 2008 at 1:09 pm

Sandi’s parents probably didn’t name her
Sandi, more likely Sandra or Alexandra.
Some say Darrel is a weird name, but my name doesn’t define me. While researching my mother’s ancestors, I found a man named Preserved Fish Austin. What does his name say about him?

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Posted by ( Rafterman ) on June 29, 2008 at 1:42 am

I’m wondering how this person has a right to vote.

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Posted by ( mrbill ) on June 28, 2008 at 11:34 pm

what’s in a name?an eternal question. the last time I saw sandi teets ,I was at the beach.

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Posted by ( Kirk Johnson ) on June 28, 2008 at 7:14 pm

I can only hope that the letter writer is just having some fun pulling our chain. I realize there really are people dumb enough to think that a name equals destiny, but that letter is just a little too earnest and a little too over-the-top to be real.

I hope.

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Posted by ( What's in a Name? ) on June 28, 2008 at 6:56 pm

Ms. Teets and her musings in this paper have been a source of amusement for some time, but today she has outdone herself.

Even assuming that the premise of your letter is correct, that Barack Obama’s name portends great misfortune for the United States, you should remember that Barack Obama’s name was GIVEN to him. By his parents. Children don’t select their own names.

Or perhaps you would prefer that he changed his name as he moved into adult hood. Something that wouldn’t be so offensive to your moral sensibilities.

Is Barry O’Bama better for you?

O’Bama….McCain…both appear Irish enough. Barry is certainly Irish in origin. In fact, I’d go so far as to suggest that Barry O’Bama is more Irish than John McCain.

But, alas, if Barack Obama had changed his name to Barry O’Bama, his opponents would be trashing him for trying to hide is “Muslim” background.

They guy can’t win. Oh…I take that back. He will—in November.

Oh, one more thing, Ms. Teets: shame on your parents for spelling Sandi with an “i.“ Didn’t they realize that most people would never take their daughter seriously if they spelled her name with “i”?
Shame on them for not taking their baby-naming responsibilities more seriously!

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Posted by ( raywilliams ) on June 28, 2008 at 2:54 pm

Chris, when Bill Clinton appears on TV, my dog wags his tail in a very approving manner which I interpret to mean my dog’s sixth sense understands this man’s greatness. When John W. McBush appears on TV my dog gets his old play toy and whines sadly which I interpret to be his sixth sense understanding John W. McBush is old, frail and mentally unstable as Karl Rove alluded to in 2004. Has your dog even seen a picture of Abe Lincoln? I do give McCain points for proclaiming today the 12 million illegals here are “God’s Children” and should be treated as such.

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Posted by ( jVA ) on June 28, 2008 at 2:48 pm

I am stunned by the moronic content of this letter.

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Posted by ( openmind ) on June 28, 2008 at 2:02 pm

Can you believe this person has been a secretary for a local school’s PTO?

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