Where did the name "Doula" come from?
Servant by Choice
Legend has it that a group of women were talking about childbirth and childbirth classes, and the person who helped the mother deliver, but was not the midwife. An old Greek woman interjected, "That's the Doula!"
It makes sense if you know the passage from Deuteronomy 15. It discusses the bondservant who would be set free after six years of service.
The bondservant indeed was free to go but could also choose to stay and dedicate the rest of his life to service. To signify this, the master would pierce the bondservant's ear with an awl against a door post and the piercing would indicate that he was a servant for life, by choice. In Greek, this word signifying servant by choice was called the "Doulos," or Doula in the feminine.
Thus, the term Doula has become the name of the person who happily serves the family by choice and is there for them to help them transition to parenthood, or add another member to their growing family.
Services: Christ-Centered Doula Support, Childbirth Classes, and Training.
The Law Concerning Bondservants
“If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you.
And when you send him away free from you, you shall not let him go away empty-handed; you shall supply him liberally from your flock, from your threshing floor, and from your winepress. From what the Lord your God has blessed you with, you shall give to him.
You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today.
And if it happens that he says to you, ‘I will not go away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you, then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your female servant you shall do likewise.
It shall not seem hard to you when you send him away free from you; for he has been worth a double hired servant in serving you six years. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all that you do.