בראשית, פרק ל״ח, פסוק ד׳

The birth of a second son in Judah's household brings a subtle shift in the family dynamics, particularly regarding who claims the right to name the child. While the firstborn was named by his father, the responsibility for naming the second son falls to his mother. The primary approach among commentators is that this change reflects an ancient custom where parents alternated the privilege of naming their children, with the father naming the first and the mother naming the second [הדר זקנים, ברכת אשר על התורה, אלשיך]. However, this strict division is somewhat surprising when looking back at earlier generations. In the family of Jacob, for instance, Rachel and Leah named almost all of the children without following an alternating schedule with their husband [ברכת אשר על התורה].

Beyond the act of naming, the name itself carries deep significance. Commentators offer two distinct perspectives on its meaning. One approach views the name as an expression of strength and vitality, describing a powerful and mighty individual [ביאור שטיינזלץ].

A contrasting perspective connects the name to a state of profound sorrow, pain, and mourning. This association with grief is understood in two different ways. First, the name serves as a tragic foreshadowing, hinting at the deep mourning the father would eventually experience over this son's untimely death [פרדס יוסף]. Alternatively, the name reflects the mother's own emotional turmoil at the time of the birth. She had realized that her husband named their firstborn by reversing the letters of the word for "evil," driven by a lingering fear that her own nature and background were flawed. This painful realization caused her immense distress, leading her to choose a name for her second son that captured her profound sense of sorrow [אלשיך].