Beaumin Gabriel

One thing we’re often asked is “where did you come up with Beaumin’s name?” or… some other similar question. Here I will tell the tale. 🙂

First, you must understand that my grandfather, my father, and I all have the same initials, B G S. So, of course, I wanted to carry on this tradition. In fact, I’m pretty sure I told Stephanie about that before we were even married. Anyway, choosing a name is never easy, but it’s all the more difficult when you have only B-first names and G-middle names to choose from. 

We looked at all the baby books, name lists, and every source we could think of. On occasion we thought we’d found a first name we liked, but it never really seemed right. Middle names were a bit easier, so we did have a few of those we liked, but the actual middle name would depend on the first name, of course.

Near the end of the pregnancy, we were starting to feel desperate to choose a name. Stephanie pulled out a list she’d written down several months prior. Among the names on the list was “Beaumin.” We talked about it, sounded it out, played with combinations, and suddenly decided it was the right name. But where did it come from? Turns out, Stephanie knew I (and my family) liked the idea of the name “Beau,” and she’d just been playing with the name and came up with “Beaumin.”

After deciding that we really liked this name, I started doing more research and discovered that Beaumin is actually a real French name, most often found as a surname.

One website in particular had a pretty good description of the name:

Origines du Nom : Beaumin

Le Nom Est Porté Dans Le Finistère. On Le Rencontre Comme Toponyme à Plédéliac (22), Où Un Lieu-dit S’appelle L’Allée Des Beaumains. Sens Incertain, Mais On Peut Penser à L’adjectif ‘beau’ Précédant Le Nom De Personne D’origine Germanique Main, Min (racine Magin = Force, Puissance). Reste à Savoir Si L’origine Géographique Du Nom Est Bien Bretonne, Car Il Est Tentant De Faire Le Rapprochement Avec Balmain (voir Ce Nom).

http://www.keskeces.com/noms-famille/beaumin.html

My friend Kathleen was gracious enough to provide a solid translation of the text, since my French is very, very rusty:

Origins of the Name: Beaumin

The name is from Finistère (a region in Brittany). One comes across it as a toponym in Piedeliac or a place-name called Alley of Beaumains. Meaning uncertain, but one might think it’s the adjective “beau” (beautiful) preceding the personal name of Germanic origin Main, Min (root Magin = force, power). It remains to be seen if the geographic origin of the name is truly Breton, because it is tempting to make a connection with Balmain (see this name).

So, there you have it! The origins of Beaumin’s name! 

For the record, we like the idea of saying his name means “handsome and powerful,” but a more literal look at his name means “beautiful hands” and has ties to Arthurian legend. No matter your take, we’re proud of the name and our son!

It’s my pleasure to announce that my son, Beaumin Gabriel has arrived!

He was born on Friday, September 19, 2008 at 9:03 AM PDT. He weighed 9 pounds 10 ounces and was 21 inches in length.

Mommy was amazing and had him naturally, as we’d planned and hoped to do, no drugs.