Kaya Cassidy Cunio Salem
We liked the sound, rhythm and meanings of Kaya Cassidy. We wanted a name with some uniqueness but not
jarringly so. We wanted to give her a flexible name; to let her
choose her favorite name as she grows older (maybe she'll like the name KC or
Casey some day...)
Kaya
Initially the name came to us as a word from a beautiful South
African Song. The song says that "you carry your
home in your heart". "Kaya" means "home" in Zulu and Chidigo (a
dialect spoken in parts of Keny and Tanzania).
It is a Ghanaian name meaning stay and don't go back. On the coast of Kenya, the Miji Kenda people
refer to their sacred forests as
Kaya
(also see this article).
In Indonesian, it has three meanings: prosperous, a type of
coconut milk and egg spread for bread, or resembling something
(e.g. kaya bapanya - resembling the father). In Swahili, Kaya means "shellfish".
In Tagalog (Philipino) it means "can do". In Turkish it means
"rock" --- something stable and indestructable.
It was the name of a 6th century Korean kingdom. The name survives in the
name of twelve-stringed instrument (kayagum) developed there. In
Japanese, it means summer night or the name of a type of Yew tree.
"Kaya" is also an old Bob Marley song that we love.
"Kaya" means enlightenment in the Rastafari dialect. In the Hopi
language, it means "elder little sister".
Kaya Anne Kozaneck Muller has created a nice web page of Kaya's
meanings.
(from Anthea Robert)
Kaya in Malay means mighty / wealth / great / power / rich. It is also a name
for a delicious red/green Nonya jam (pandan,egg,coconut & palm raw sugar). It is less orgasmic then chocolate yet Kaya jam is still yummy
to the converted. You can buy it from most large oriental grocery stores.
Finally, to the Australian aborigines, Kaya is a name for a spear.
(from Christien)
In Sanskrit, Kaya is one of the words that refers to a body, or a
form. In buddhism it specificallyrefers to the three bodies in which
beings manifest (trikaya). The Dharmakaya is the enlightened
manifestation. The Sambogakaya is a step down from that, I think kind of
like an energy body, not quite enlightened, but not as bound as humans. The Nirmanakaya is the manifest physical form.
Cassidy
From the Celtic, meaning "clever, quick one" or
"ingenious." To us, it's reminiscent of the open
country of the west. We like the nickname "Cassie."
The Grateful Dead played a great song called Cassidy
about Neal Cassady, a creative and unique character, a
free-spirit.
Cunio
Cuneo is a small town in Northern Italy where some of Sue's ancestors are
from. Somewhere between Italy and America, the spelling was changed to Cunio.
Salem
This name is originally from the Middle East via Germany and
England. Its meaning is "peace."
