I am a miraculous gift from God and my name proves that. What makes it so fitting is that my parents struggled to have a baby and were overjoyed when they found out they were pregnant, and with twins at that. Later in the pregnancy they found out there were complications with my sister, and thanks to me we were born eight weeks premature. Not knowing if we were going to survive, our names reflect how our parents felt.

Mikaila has always just been “my name” in a way. I know that sounds odd, but I’ve never had to share my name with anyone I know or have been compared to other people with the same name, it’s always just been me.

Mikaila, which is derived from Hebrew and Hawaiian origin, means “Child of God” or “Gift from God.” I grew up in a religious family, my mom was raised a Christian and is a pastor’s daughter and my dad was raised Catholic. My parents loved the biblical meaning behind my name, but that wasn’t what originally drew their attention to the name. My mom first came across my name from a popular show when she was in high school called “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman” where the main character’s name was Michaela. My mom fell in love with the name and character so there was no doubt that she would give that name to one of her children. They didn’t quite like the spelling from the show so they did a little more research and came across the Hawaiian spelling and meaning.

The name Mikaila, even with all of its different spellings, isn’t the most popular name out there, but it hasn’t gone unheard of. There are around 135 different spellings of my name,  and I was only 1 of 66 babies given the name Mikaila in 2004 (“What Does the Name Mikaila Mean”). It’s not a name where 5 people turn their heads when they hear their name called, but it is a name that’s butchered by substitutes and spelled differently every time I go to Starbucks.

My twin sister on the other hand has a very popular name, Emma. Growing up as a twin our parents did everything they could to make us feel like individuals. You’d never realize how many times you get one birthday or Christmas present to share or even the same gift until you’ve been a twin. As much as we were individuals we’ve never been drawn apart from each other. In a way, whether intentional or not, I believe that our parents named us these two very different names as part of making us feel more like ourselves rather than as one person.

A name isn’t just something you are called, it’s what makes you who you are as a person. Even when I am struggling to figure out who I am apart from others and what my purpose here is, I have to remember that I was put here for a reason.

Works Cited 

“Mikala - Hawaiian Origin, Meaning, and Numerology of the Name Mikala.” All Baby Names, n.d., www.allbabynames.com/m/BabyName/Hawaiian/Mikala.aspx. Accessed 12 Feb. 2024. 

“Popular Baby Names.” Social Security Administration, www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/babyname.cgi. Accessed 11 March 2024.

Wattenberg, Laura. “This Name Has 135 Different Spellings.” Namerology, 28 Apr. 2023, https://namerology.com/2023/04/26/names-with-the-most-different-spellings/ 

“What Does the Name Mikaila Mean? - The Meaning of Names.” Names.Org, n.d., www.names.org/n/mikaila/about. Accessed 12 Feb. 2024.