names - Source for parents having ruach hakodesh when naming a child?

I remember hearing that parents have Ruach Hakodesh when choosing a name for their child.

What's the source for this idea? And do the sources discuss what this actually means? (If a parent gives a non-jewish name, does that still come with ruach hakodesh?)

Answer

There appear to be multiple sources for this, and I don't want to "hog" things, here. One (or two) source(s) from here:

The Ari taught that Jewish parents are imbued with Ruach Hakodesh, a spark of the "Holy Spirit," when they name their children. The name they select is invariably the true description of the neshama, or spiritual essence of their child.

The Talmud expresses this same concept in terms of character (Yuma, 83b); a Jew's name accurately reflects his or her essential character. The clear implication; when parents name their child, they are given a prophetic glimpse of their child's neshama, or "spiritual essence".

The original source for the teaching of the Ari is here and reads:

ונמצא כי כאשר נולד האדם, וקוראים לו אביו ואמו שם אחד העולה בדעתם, אינו באקראי ובהזדמן, כי אם הקב"ה משים בפיו השם ההוא המוכרח אל הנשמה ההיא, כמש"ה אשר שם שמות בארץ

Regarding non-Jewish names, Yiddish names, "new" names, etc., see this article, as there are various halachic opinions for each scenario.

Regardless of the halachic opinions mentioned some things to consider:

• Esther and Rus and non-Jewish names. They are used frequently.


• The Talmud has numerous Aramaic, Greek and other "weird" names, etc. - Yanai, Unkelos, Sa'adia, Mar ...



• Likewise, Yiddish names abound - Zissel, Shainah, Mendel, etc.