Would you mistaken these names as other names?

[emjan]

1. If someone introduce himself as Jason, would you mistaken it as Jackson? (maybe you hear wrongly or cannot remember the name after some time)
   
   
2. Would you mistaken Jason as any other name?
   
   
3. If someone introduce himself as Alan, would you mistaken it as Aaron or Ellen?
   (maybe you hear wrongly or cannot remember the name after some time)
   
   Thanks

[TanteRose]

no to all three questions

[27inmyhead]

Not really. Why?

[nooka]

Well my dh is a Jason (along with many many others born in the early 70s) and my FIL is an Alan. I don't think I've ever noticed anyone misnaming them. I guess you have to look at the relative popularity of the name, I'd be way more likely to mistakenly call a Jackson Jason than the other way around as to me Jason is very mainstream while Jackson is fairly unusual.

I don't really think that Jackson sounds that like Jason to be honest. The Alan confusion is even more surprising to me - Aaron and Alan start with a very different sound 'a'/apple and 'a'/air, while Ellen although a bit more similar is obviously a girl's name.

Forgetting names is not anything to do with the name though, that's just people being forgetful in my experience.

[LittleBearPad]

You're very unlikely to mix up Alan and Ellen as the latter is a girl's name.

I wouldn't mix them up. Why?

[SavoyCabbage]

Jenson maybe. If the person was a small child I might think it were more likely he was called jenson than Jason.

Alan does sound like Aaron. And Ellen is you are from New Zealand or S.A.

[nooka]

But surely Alan is A-lun whereas Aaron is Air-ron?

[emjan]

Just to add, I mean if the introduction is through speech only. The other party does not see the name spelling on paper.

[BikeRunSki]

As long as the other party wasn't mumbling, I don't see a problem.

[GlitzAndGigglesx]

Not with those names no, but I did meet an Aaron who pronounced it air-on so I spent ages calling him Eren

[MackerelOfFact]

No I wouldn't.

However if someone introduced me to their baby Jason or Alan I would probably be thinking to myself 'Have they actually called their baby Jason/Alan? Did I mishear?'

[AuntieStella]

Well, I suppose anyone can mishear a name.

But you examples don't seem to be terribly closely confusinpbke names.

(air-un is the traditional Church pronunciation, and the invariable one for people over 40ish. I've never heard it any other way in RL)

[Gdydgkyk]

It could unintentionally happen.

[TheCowThatLaughs]

It could happen, my name is nothing like Jackie, and someone thought I had introduced myself as that. I just corrected them though, so it was a bit of a non-event

[FishCanFly]

Jason and Alan are very popular names, can't mistake them

[reuset]

No, I don't think they're similar enough to mistake

[reuset]

But no if you're thinking of using for siblings. An Alan and an Ellen would be too similar.

[WorldsBiggestGrotbag]

No to all three. I would be very surprised if someone introduced themselves as Alan and it was mistaken for Ellen as I'm guessing the person introducing themselves would be male?

[MuddyWellyNelly]

OP, is English not your first language? I ask because of a couple of sentence structures you've used, and your concern over pronunciation also hints at it. This could be why you are concerned but most posters don't seem to think it's an issue.

I don't think there is much risk of mis-hearing in the way you describe. But the only Aaron I've known was at school, he was American, and his name was pronounced Ah-rin, not Air-ron. So I guess if that's what you mean, it's a tiny bit possible it could be mixed up with Alan. Not that likely though.

[MrsHathaway]

No problem with 1 or 2.

As for 3, I'd be very surprised to meet an Alan under the age of about forty, so I might think you were pronouncing Aaron the American way as some people do in the UK.

I have hearing problems and rely on lip reading to support my listening to people talking.

[Zakken]

I could imagine some potential confusion between Alan and Ellen if the name was mentioned, let's say in a telephone conversation. And possibly Alan and Aaron with its ambiguous pronunciation. But many names are misheard in daily life and it usually gets cleared up quickly enough.

I don't think Jason and Jackson are easily confused.

[WinterOfOurDiscountTents15]

More than once when I've said Alan on the phone the other person has heard Anne. Perhaps I have a weird speech impediment though?

[emjan]

English is not my first language. I am choosing a name for myself, preferable easy to pronounce and no confusion. I am living in Singapore. Thanks everyone for the replies.

[MitzyLeFrouf]

The best way to find out is to go to Starbucks and see which name they call out when your coffee is ready.

[Pastamancer]

Sam? Short and simple