Ruben

Ruben is the Scandinavian and Dutch equivalent to Reuben, which is a Hebrew name borne from the Bible. In the book of Genesis, Rueben is the eldest son of Jacob and Leah, and the first born of Jacob’s twelve sons. As the less-favored of Jacob’s wife, God took pity on Leah and made her quite fertile. Poor Rachel, the favored wife of Jacob, was made barren. Apparently, God was a little spiteful that way – or else He was just trying to even the playing field. “And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the Lord has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.”’ [Genesis 29:32]. The Hebrew name Rəʾuven means ‘behold, a son’ – which is what Leah would have called out in her great happiness over giving Jacob a son. At the time of Jacob’s death, as he is preparing to bless his sons, we expect Reuben, the firstborn, to get most of the booty – not so. “Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the first fruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.” [Genesis 49:3]. Sounds good for Reuben so far, but wait; Jacob pulls a fast one on his oldest son. No blessing for you Reuben. Neener, neener, neener. Jacob refuses to bless Reuben because his oldest son “defiled” his father’s bed by sleeping with one of Jacob’s concubines while his father was out of town. Reuben’s birthright blessing was given to Joseph instead. Despite this poor lapse in judgment on Reuben’s part, he still held a prominent position among Jews as one of the Twelve Tribes of Israel and the one brother who tried to spare Joseph when the others wanted to kill him. Nonconformist Christians also adopted the name Reuben for themselves around the Reformation. It has survived among English speakers since the 17th century. The simpler spelling of Ruben is preferred by the Scandinavians and the Spanish (who render it with an accent: Rubén). Ruben is ranked particularly high in the Netherlands and Spain.