Son of the right hand, born for the south: a storybook starring Benjamin

Son of the right hand — and of the south

Benjamin comes from the Hebrew Binyamin. In the Book of Genesis he is the youngest of Jacob's twelve sons and the second child of Rachel, born on the road near Bethlehem. Rachel named him Ben-Oni, "son of my sorrow", but Jacob changed it to Binyamin, and that is the name that stuck for three thousand years.

The usual translation is "son of the right hand" — the hand of strength, honour and favour. But the Hebrew yamin also means south, because to someone facing the sunrise, the right hand points south. So Benjamin can just as truly be read as "son of the south", which makes it a rather fitting name for a boy growing up in Australia.

Because Benjamin was the youngest and most cherished son, the name has long carried a sense of a much-loved child. In English it spread after the Reformation, when parents turned to Old Testament names, and it has never really gone out of fashion since. Benjamin Franklin made it a name for the curious and inventive; Big Ben in London is widely said to take its nickname from Sir Benjamin Hall, who oversaw the bell's installation.

In Australia, Benjamin has been a steady favourite for decades, regularly appearing among the most popular boys' names in state birth registers. It is the rare name that a grandfather and a kindergartener can share without either seeming out of place.

The youngest-son story has left a mark on other languages too. In French, le benjamin simply means the youngest child of a family or the youngest member of a team, and Spanish and Portuguese use the word the same way. So if your Benjamin happens to be the baby of the family, his name already says so in half of Europe.

Ben, Benji, Benno and friends

• Benjamin — The full name — for the cover, the school roll, and the moment in the story when the hero has to be brave.
• Ben — The everyday short form most Benjamins answer to. Short, friendly and easy for little siblings to say.
• Benji — Softer and more playful; a favourite with toddlers and grandparents, and it suits a cheeky sidekick role.
• Benny — An old-fashioned pet name that has come back around — warm and a bit mischievous.
• Benno — A thoroughly Australian twist, in the same spirit as Robbo or Johnno. It is what his mates at footy or cricket training might shout across the oval, and a story can use it the same way.
• Benj — A one-syllable nickname older brothers and sisters often land on when even Ben feels too long.