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Baby names

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Original poster

How do you pronounce "Anthony"?

63 replies

Questi0ns · 02/05/2015 08:14

"AnTony" or "AnTHony"?

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MrTumblesBavarianFanbase · 02/05/2015 15:42

That's what people down thread seemed to be saying Stampy - but I see I cross posted massively.

Maybe pronouncing the "th" is just wrong then :o tbh I had always thought it was a bit Hyacinth Bucket to pronounce the "th" instead of the h being silent... But then reading the early part of the thread thought a be that's a misconception...

StampysLoveGarden · 02/05/2015 15:12

mrtumble it's not the irish pronunciation.

MrTumblesBavarianFanbase · 02/05/2015 14:21

I'm English - moved around a lot as a child, lived in ST, ST and NE (now overseas). I've always assumed pronouncing the "th" as "th" rather than "t" was actually totally incorrect! So I've learnt something by reading that it's the Iris pronunciation.

Spell Anthony, say "An-tun-ee" IMO

badtime · 02/05/2015 14:14

I'm from NI and would say Antony. Or Antnee.

StampysLoveGarden · 02/05/2015 13:55

Oh yes, as I was pressing post message I spotted my mistake. Apologies!

ha ha at excrement! I bet she's the type to dream the toilet dream, you know, where you're looking for a toilet but they're all overflowing with poo! It's a common recurring dream apparently.

WavyGlass · 02/05/2015 13:52

She's actually English, Stampy, but I suspect that marrying into my DH's large, vociferous, unapologetically working class family, with a uniformly strong irish regional accent, is making her socially anxious in some way I can't get my head around. She taught their sons as toddlers to say 'excrement', rather than 'poo'...

SwedishEdith · 02/05/2015 13:39

Antunnee pronunciation but spelt Anthony - know lots in the NW of Irish background.

StampysLoveGarden · 02/05/2015 13:34

Wavyglass, I can imagine! she probably says thigh food, river thaymes and brown thomas instead of tie food, brown tomas, river temz.

I know that some people in ireland who speak well otherwise struggle with when not to use the th!

JakeyBurd · 02/05/2015 13:28

Just thought I'd add that for centuries, the 'th' spelling in names was pronounced like a 't', So e.g. Catherine and Dorothy were pronounced Catterine and Doroty (a real 'th' sound was represented with a different symbol - think 'Ye olde'. Sorry can't replicate it here).

The pronunciation of 'th' slowly changed to the sound we know today, and it also changed in most names too - again see Catherine and Dorothy - however in some names the 't' sound remained, e.g. Esther, Thomas and Anthony.

I've heard some people try to say Es-ther, and An-thony is starting to become quite common, but I can't see it ever happening with Thomas!

WavyGlass · 02/05/2015 13:25

I'm Irish, though not from NI, and it's my dad's name - always pronounced 'Ant-ony' though spelled 'Anthony'. In the UK, the only person I know who pronounces the 'th' is my SIL, and I suspect that in her case, it's not regional, but comes from a desperate desire to appear sufficiently middle-class - I think she thinks everyone else is mispronouncing it, including the parents of a young Anthony we both know. They will say 'Come here, Antony', and SIL will immediately say 'Come and have a sweet, ANTHONY', as if she's gently leading them the right way. Grin

Interesting question, though. Is there, as I suspect, a class as well as a regional element in UK pronunciations of the name? I know three UC Anthonys, from different parts of the country, and none of whom pronounce the 'th'...

Original poster
Questi0ns · 02/05/2015 12:52

Thank you all so much! We are in London so it sounds like in the SE people tend to say An-to-ny which is positive.

OP posts:
TheWoollybacksWife · 02/05/2015 11:18

It's my DS's middle name - spelt Anthony and pronounced Ant-ony.

However I'm from Liverpool and my Scouse relatives pronounce it like the character from the Royle Family "Ant-nee"

Springtimemama · 02/05/2015 11:11

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

OatcakeCravings · 02/05/2015 11:09

AnTHonE

HellKitty · 02/05/2015 10:32

NE and Anth-un-nee. I know one, his mum wanted the 'H' so he wouldn't be known as an Ant.

StampysLoveGarden · 02/05/2015 10:32

antony.

is that name coming back in to fashion? i'm not ready for it on a baby.

ClashCityRocker · 02/05/2015 10:29

Interesting. I'd say Antony but I've known both - but the Anthony I knew was from the NE.

OwlBeeBack · 02/05/2015 10:27

Ann toe knee

Smidge001 · 02/05/2015 09:59

I would spell it with the H and say it Antony.

FlappertyFlippers · 02/05/2015 09:59

Ant toe knee

florascotia · 02/05/2015 09:52

Logically, it would be pronounced Ant-own-ee, since it originates from a Roman name, Antonius. In English spelling, the 'h' was not added until after around 1600. (Shakespeare didn't use it for 'Antony and Cleopatra' or for Mark Antony in 'Julius Caesar'.) But, as previous posters have said, there are now regional - global! - variations and preferences.

ovenchips · 02/05/2015 09:05

I think its pronunciation varies regionally in UK, while spelling remains the same. I am in the Anthony camp (NE England), my DH is very much Antony (SE).

HapShawl · 02/05/2015 08:56

However Anthony wants it to be pronounced

AuntieStella · 02/05/2015 08:52

AnTony.

But Aussie friends say AnTHony.

Marcipex · 02/05/2015 08:43

I'm in the UK, I'd say Antony.