Shiphrah

I wasn’t really sure how to choose a Jewish name for myself. My given name, Sara, is very Jewish already but I wanted a different name that would mark this moment in my life. 

I asked the Rabbi a year ago to tell me how people normally choose a name.

 “Google Jewish names.”

Sure. Ok. But how else?

“Choose a name based on someone you admire or a Jewish woman in history that you feel connected to.”

Hmmm. Ok. But I don’t know many of the historical stories yet. 

“Whatever you choose, make sure the name equates to bad-ass and strong!”

Geeze. That’s a lot of pressure!

I tried to google names and it felt so very strange. I thought about the women I knew in Jewish history and I decided I didn’t want a typical name like Rebecca or Lea or Ruth or Rachel. So I stopped trying to find a name and hoped I would hear a name organically and that it would be The One. 

And that is exactly how it happened!  The (at the time) senior Rabbi was teaching a Torah interpretation class as part of the Intro to Judaism classes I participated in. He spoke of two women, Shiphrah and Pua in Exodus 1:15-21. Both women were midwives to the Hebrew people during the time that the Hebrews were enslaved in Egypt. The Egyptian Pharaoh was concerned that the Hebrews were multiplying too quickly, so he ordered Shiphrah to kill all of the male babies as she delivered them. She decided to disobey Pharoah and along with Pua, found clever ways to avoid the orders of Pharoah. 

She is credited by many as having prevented the genocide of the Hebrew children. She is also one of the earliest examples of civil disobedience at a time when that was unheard of. Other accounts I read also discussed her refusing the sexual advances of Pharoah at a time, again, when that was not accepted. 

To make it even better, it is uncertain if  Shiphrah was an Egyptian who was tasked with seeing to the needs of the Hebrew Mothers, or if she was actually Hebrew and was being ordered by the Pharoah to care for her own people. So whether born a Hebrew or not, she was an ally to the Hebrew people and important to Jewish history. 

So to recap:

 *Shiphrah was a strong independent woman 

*She helped and saved babies

 *She stood up against injustice

*Whether born a Hebrew or not, she decided to align with them and preserve their future.

*Translated to English, the name Shiphrah means “improved” or “beautiful.”

It suits me just fine!

 שִׁפְרָה‎‎