Portuguese Jewish naming conventionsThis is adapted from Edgar Samuel's "Naming Children after the living or after the Dead" JHSE XXII based on his own research on Sephardic family history in London. He notes that although it died out in the nineteenth century it continued in Amsterdam until the war.USUAL CUSTOMS(1) Children are named after their forebears.(2) The first child of each sex is normally named after its paternal grandparent.(3) The second child of each sex is normally named after its maternal grandparent.(4) Younger children are named after their uncles and aunts, usually in order of seniority or after other close relatives.(5) When the customs obliges both parent and child to bear the same name, they will do so - it is common for a father to have the same name as his father (and daughter the same as her mother)(6) a posthumous son is name after his father. NAME CHANGE TO AVERT DEATHIn the event of illness prayers (the minor rogativa) are said in front of the open Hechal, if the illness was desperate the major rogativa was said and the person given a second additional name: the most usual are Raphael, Hayim (life), Hezekiah for men, Hannah and Sarah for women.Some other 'Sephardi' communities avoid naming a child after a living person as do Ashkenazim. An additional Sephardi custom was to give names after the day of birth or circumcision: Shabbatai on Saturday; Menahem, 9th of Ab; Rahamim, Yom Kippur; Mordecai, Purim; a festival, Yom Tob. A girl born on the fast of Esther, Esther. A name could also be based on the week's Parasha: Noah, Phineas; Isaac, vayera; Moses, shemot. A child born on Shabat Nahamu could be called Nahamy or Nehama.Notes these customs have no particular grounding in Jewish Law and are not peculiar to Sephardi Jews. They are folk customs and are similar to customs in other traditional societies. It would be interesting to know if Portuguese gentile naming customs are similar ...