Parents pick out meaningful names for their children in hopes of brighter futures for them.

In Indonesia, a name is like a prayer, carrying hope for who children will become when they grow up.

But adding to the list of unique Indonesian names is one particular couple, who decided to name their newborn son "Google", after the world's most popular and powerful search engine.

Seorang bayi di Rawalumbu, Bekasi, diberi nama Google. Orang tuanya menyebut agar anaknya bermanfaat seperti Google. https://t.co/6kJNVj055O

— kumparan (@kumparan) June 24, 2019

Google stands out from other tech companies

Google was born on Nov. 30, 2018 to Indonesian parents Andi Cahya Saputra, 31, and Ella Karina, 27.

Google has a sister, but she isn't named after another tech giant, which makes Google unique.

According to Indonesian media platform Kumparan, Andi first got the idea of giving his child a tech-inspired name when his wife was seven months pregnant.

Microsoft, iPhone, iOS and Windows were some other names that were in the running before settling on Google.

Speaking to Kumparan, Andi shared that they had also considered traditional religious names.

But when his son was born, Andi decided instead to give him a name from the world of technology.

"I hope Google will be a leader and a useful person to others"

However, people close to Andi had reservations about the name Google, including his wife Ella.

She referred to her son as "baby boy" for the first three months when someone asked her for the baby's name.

Andi's father also objected to this unusual name, and asked Andi to give him a last name for administrative purpose when they were having Google's birth certificate issued.

Andi declined as he believed that the essence of the name would be altered.

"I told my father, ‘Pak (Father), Google has a great meaning, because I hope Google can help many people, become a useful person to others."

Getting used to it

The name Google started to appeal to people after a while, including Ella.

"I hope my son will be a leader who leads many people, who is useful to many others," she said, as quoted by Kompas.

Andi said he is still surprised that his son's name went viral six months after his birth, and admitted that he still receives criticism for it.

Some speculated Andi named his son Google just to get financial compensation from the tech giant.

But there have been no reports yet of Google contacting Andi regarding his son's name.

A growing trend

Andi and Ella are not the first couple to give their child unusual names in recent years.

There are babies named after online payment company Go-Pay, as well as Pajero Sport, a car produced by a Japanese automobile manufacturer.

Gifts were sent to these babies from the companies, presumably for the free marketing.

As Grab and Go-Jek continue to expand in Southeast Asia, there might even be babies named after them soon.

Top image from Kumparan