Eunice

Eunice is the English version of an ancient Greek name, Eunike (Εὐνίκη), from the Greek elements “eu” meaning “good” and “nikē” meaning “victory, win”. It was a name given to one of the fifty sea nymphs in Greek mythology (known as the Nereids who guided sailors through dangerous seafaring conditions). However, the reason why Eunice found crossover appeal among English-speakers is owed to the Puritans. Why? Well, naming practices adopted by the Puritans after the Protestant Reformation favored lesser-known Biblical figures (it was they who dug up names like Chloe, Priscilla, Hester, Hannah and Jerusha). Naming one’s daughter Eunice, for instance, was seen as an act of modesty and probably the austere Puritan’s way of demonstrating their thorough reading of the Bible. In the case of Eunice, she is named in the Bible as St. Timothy’s mother (2 Timothy 1:5) – Timothy being a well-known disciple of St. Paul in spreading Christianity during the first century A.D. In Acts 16:1 Eunice is referred to as a Jewess, but also described as one who “believed”. This is further supported in 2 Timothy 3:15 when we are told that Timothy “from a child…hast known the holy scriptures” (suggesting religion was emphasized in the family’s household). Indeed, St. Paul describes Eunice’s “unfeigned faith” as a way of reminding us of her devout piety. Case in point: the woman named her son “Timothy” which is Greek for “Honor God”; you don’t get more straight-forward than that. It’s no wonder the Puritans found the name Eunice appealing; she was seen as a good and holy woman! The name became quite popular by the 19th century on up through the 1920s. Today, however, Eunice is seriously out of style.