Lois Meads had the help of her eight-year-old son Drago when it came to naming her and partner Rhisiart Griffith’s new baby boy – and they were stunned by the choice
A mum who let her toddler pick out her newborn baby’s name has said her family were shocked by his choice.
41-year-old Lois Meads’ two-year-old son Iesu Maahes got his name after her eldest, Drago, eight, suggested they call the family’s new addition “baby Jesus”. Lois and her partner, Rhisiart Griffith, 36, wanted their son to be involved and liked the Welsh for Jesus – Iesu – despite not being religious. His middle name, Maahes, comes from the Egyptian god of war.
The couple are over the moon with their choice and love the fact that Drago was involved in helping name his little brother. Lois, a freelance photographer from Ruthin, Wales, explained: “I was speaking to Drago and said ‘what should we call the baby?’
“He said ‘I think we should call him baby Jesus’. I was like, hmm. But we wanted him to feel included. In Welsh it is Iesu. I have never heard anybody called it. Everyone thought we were insane.”
Lois and Rhisiart, an artist, couldn’t decide on a name for their son when they decided to involve Drago. The parents knew they couldn’t name their baby Jesus, but they liked the Welsh language version. Lois said: “Rhisiart really liked it straight away. He likes shocking people.”
Lois picked out Iesu’s middle name through her love of Greek gods and mythology. They said their family were shocked by the choice but couldn’t have been happier when he was born on March 9, 2022.
“He’s such a character. I couldn’t imagine him with anything else,” Lois said. The couple say lots of people speak Welsh in their town, adding it will be interesting when Iesu hears people using his name to swear.
“People say ‘Iesu’ – like ‘Jesus Christ’,” explained Lois. “Rhisiart would say it if he stubs his toe. Everyone is quite shocked by his name to start with. I see them process and then say I have never heard that. I have got quite a lot of unique names in the family.”
