In fact, it isn't even that unique, as it was the 478th most popular name in 2004, a mere year from my birthdate ("Popular"). When these situations arise, I feel like I have to change myself to become digestible to others and comply with their mispronunciations. Despite the thoughtlessness of others, I love my name. I love how it looks on paper, I love the nicknames my parents gave me, I love how my first and last names are both five letters, I love how it emulates my mom's name, Anita, and I love its connection to my culture. 

In Hindi, Anika is associated with the goddess Durga. Durga encompasses the spirituality of water (“Durga”). I would spend hours at the beach near my house in California or on vacation in Hawaii; my favorite memories took place near the water. In this way, my childhood memories and the significance of my name in Hindu culture are all interconnected. My name is also common in Sri Lanka, where my mom is from. Anika means "brilliance of stone" in Sinhala (“Anika: Name”). Sri Lanka, or Ceylon, is known as the "Gem Island" and is the capital for precious stones. As a child, I loved looking at my grandmother's Sri Lankan jewelry and heirlooms, which have been in our family for generations. Each piece of jewelry and precious stone has its own story and connects me to my ancestors. 

Interestingly, Anika also means grace in Swedish and elegant in Arabic (McNamara). Despite doing ballet my whole life, I am neither graceful nor quite elegant. In Sanskrit, Anika means army or soldier, which is also anything but close to my personality (“Anika - Girl's”). I find it intriguing that I do not relate to the definitions of my name from other cultures, but I strongly connect to the Hindu and Sinhala definitions. Growing up with the interweaving of my name and culture, the two became connected. Therefore, I self-identify less with the definitions of my name from other cultures.  

I love that my name encapsulates my Hindu and Sri Lankan heritage in distinct ways. The intertwining of the definitions of "Anika" and my culture has created memories that have forged my identity. The bond between my heritage, family, and name outweighs the mispronunciations and lattes with Monica scribbled in sharpie.

Works Cited

“Anika - Girl’s Name Meaning, Origin, and Popularity.” BabyCenter, Ziff Davis, n.d., www.babycenter.in/babyname/1005259/anika. Accessed 11 Feb. 2024. 

“Anika: Name Meaning, Origin & More: MyloFamily.” Mylo, Blupin Technologies, n.d., mylofamily.com/parenting/babynames/meaning-of-anika-62. Accessed 11 Feb. 2024. 

“Durga Puja: The Story of the Goddess and Her Incarnations.” The Indian Express, WordPress, 7 Oct. 2019, indianexpress.com/article/parenting/learning/durga-puja-the-story-of-the-goddess-and-her-incarnations/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2024. 

“Popular Baby Names.” Popularity of Name Anika, SSA.gov, n.d., www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/babyname.cgi. Accessed 12 Feb. 2024.