Naming Ceremonies

So what's a naming ceremony? 

Right off the bat, if I'm completely honest, I don't love the term 'naming ceremony'. I like to think of it as a welcoming ceremony and it's best to say, they aren't limited to babies; they can be for older children too. 

I wish naming ceremonies had been more well known when my daughter was younger. My husband and I felt like we missed out somewhat as we didn't feel a Christening fitted with our values and beliefs and so as we watched our friends and families have their children Christened, we didn't have an alternative. A naming / welcoming ceremony would have been perfect.

The ethos of a naming / welcoming ceremony is to welcome a child into a family. This may be when they are born, adopted or another life occasion you would like to celebrate. The ceremony can genuinely include anything you wish, but generally they contain; promises from guardians (alternatives to god parents), meaningful poems / passages of words, perhaps a ritual (for example a candle lighting by parents) and heart felt words from the parents.

And it doesn't have to be completely non-religious. Religion can be included to any level you wish. Remember, this is your ceremony and has to be right for you.

You may like to tie a naming ceremony into a child's birthday party and as there is the freedom to make the ceremony look however you wish, you may chose to include party games with other children to describe the elements of the ceremony. Let's have fun with it! Be creative!

So what is the celebrants involvement?

Celebrants would meet (face to face or virtually) with the family (this might even be before a baby is born!) to find out about the family and guardians for the child and their wishes for the ceremony. The celebrant would then write a completely bespoke and creative ceremony for the child; contacting the guardians if required. This would then be sent to the family for proof reading before the big day. On the day, the celebrant would be at the ceremony to conduct the wonderful words lovingly crafted between the celebrant and family to welcome the child. 

Naming / welcoming ceremonies are a fantastic chance to bring all your loved ones together to celebrate your child and make commitments to them for the future.