"Jessica. Present! Nick. Present! Za-sorry, how do you pronounce that?”
students who have “unique” names OFTEN face A COMMON STRUGGLE. However, there is more to these names than just mispronunciation. THEIR NAME IS THEIR IDENTITY.
Zoya [zoy-aa] Hasan, freshman, often gets questions about her name, but she thinks the 4-lettered name serves mostly as an advantage. Despite the occasional mistakes that people make when pronouncing her name, she still appreciates and values it.
“Zoya means loving and flower in Persian,” Zoya said. “I appreciate my unique name] because if you have a friend named Emma, you know [so many more] Emmas, because it’s such a common name, but there’s only one Zoya.”
Zarah [zaa-ruh] Hasan, junior, like her sister Zoya, finds value in embracing her culture through her name. The uniqueness of her name helps her see the importance in who she is.
“My name in Arabic means blooming flower and in Persian it means princess,” Zarah said. “I just like how my name is really cultural, and how it’s a part of me; it makes me me.”
Aiman [i-men] Naqvi, sophomore, shares his love towards his unique name. He believes that having a name so rare and unique helps him stand out from the crowd.
“Aiman means the righteous one,” Aiman said. “I love that [my name is] unique and that I'm the only one in the school who's named that. People can remember me easier.”
Credits:
Photo by Sreelikhi Vangavolu