The Importance of Naming Things
Confucius, the Chinese philosopher, once said, “The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their right names.” Names matter. They shape perception, define identity, and carry weight in how we relate to people, objects, and even ideas. In Scripture, naming is never random, it is often tied to purpose, calling, and responsibility.
With that in mind, it is striking to observe that Adam did not name his wife “Eve” until after the fall, following God’s pronouncement of judgment. Prior to Genesis 3:20, she is referred to only as “Woman,” a term rooted in intimacy and awe. In Genesis 2:22–23, upon seeing the female cloned from his own body, Adam exclaims: “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” His declaration is poetic, almost songlike, filled with wonder and joy at finding one like himself, a shared identity in a different form. The term “Woman” in this context expresses delight and recognition.
Consider the sequence of events: in Genesis 3:12, Adam says, “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.” Then, in verse 20, “Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.” This shift in naming raises a thought-provoking question: why did Adam wait until after the fall to give his wife a personal name, after the consequences of disobedience are laid bare? It’s possible that Adam, overwhelmed by love and wonder, simply never thought to name her. He had named every other creature in the garden, yet not the one who was his closest companion, the one fashioned from his very own flesh. In a way, he may have been so captivated by her, that he overlooked the significance of naming the one who mattered most.
One could argue that Adam was held partially accountable for Eve’s actions because, up to that point, she had no distinct name, she was simply “the woman.” And without a name, there is no direct assignment of identity or clear designation of responsibility. In modern terms, consider how computers function: they prompt users to name their files before closing a program, precisely because a file without a name can be lost, irretrievable. The same principle applies in programming: a coder cannot assign a value to a variable that has not first been declared. Declaring a variable is essentially naming a memory space that will hold data. Naming, then, is more than attaching a label. It defines identity, establishes accountability, and affirms purpose.
Applying this analogy to the Genesis narrative, we might say that until Eve was named, she remained, symbolically, “undeclared.” Only after the fall does Adam recognized the weight of her identity and role in the human story, giving her a name that reflected both the cost of disobedience, and also the hope embedded in God's creation plan: naming her Eve, meaning “the mother of all living.” It marks a shift from shared innocence to shared responsibility, from nameless unity to individual identity within God’s larger plan.
It’s also worth noting that “Woman” was not merely a generic label. It was likely an affectionate and honoring term, rich with emotional and relational weight. This is echoed in how Jesus uses the same word to address His mother at two significant moments of deep emotional gravity: at the wedding in Cana (John 2:4) and at the cross (John 19:26), where He says, “Woman, behold thy son.” Both moments are emotionally charged, one filled with joy, the other with deep sorrow. In both, the word “woman” carries dignity and tenderness; it is relational, not cold. Similarly, Adam’s original use of “woman” may have been a term of deep emotional resonance, born out of recognition and love. "Woman" could be seen as the equivalent of today’s endearment, sweetheart. But calling his wife "sweetheart" alone was not sustainable. She needed a name.
Building on this thought, it is important to see that while male and female are gender categories, man and woman are relational identities. "Male" and "female" describe biological distinctions, but "man" and "woman" speak to their roles, relationships, and identity within the created order. Adam’s initial reference to his wife as "woman" acknowledged not only her origin from his own body but also their relational bond, two beings in communion, made for one another. Naming her "Eve" after the fall further recognized her individual identity and essential role in the unfolding human story.
In summary, Adam’s eventual naming of Eve after the fall may suggest more than a simple narrative milestone, it could point to a deeper awareness of identity, accountability, and the human condition. And perhaps, tucked in the poetry of Genesis, we glimpse not only theology but also the emotional depth woven into the story of our beginnings.