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Baby names

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Soliciting opinions on Pascal

28 replies

DarlingWednesday · 06/08/2017 13:08

For a friend

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HeteronormativeHaybales · 09/08/2017 22:16

In Germany it is, slightly oddly, in a similar category to Jayden et al in the UK.

mathanxiety · 09/08/2017 19:47

'How is it culturally Irish?'

About 40 years ago it was a name you would run into quite frequently in Ireland, so much so that if I met someone whose name was Pascal (or Paschal) now, I would assume he was Irish or had an Irish connection.

It is the opposite of pretentious.

Obviously it's something of an older man name now (and it rhymes with rascal).

spinassienne · 09/08/2017 16:22

It's definitely got a bit of a seventies Andrew/Steve vibe to it in French.

squoosh · 07/08/2017 14:32

The Irish Pascals rhyme with rascal rather than the more French pronunciation.

YouLookTiredDaddyPig · 07/08/2017 14:31

I have a northern accent. It doesn't rhyme with southern way of saying rascal.

It doesn't rhyme with rascal in my northern accent either. The emphasis is on different syllables, isn't it?

PasCAL
RAScal

Anyway OP I'm not a fan of the name.

OhOhDearling · 07/08/2017 14:22

There's an RC saint Paschal en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paschal_Baylon.

It's a nice name. Unusual in this country without being too peculiar.

DarlingWednesday · 07/08/2017 14:18

That chameleon is cute

I don't think she speaks a word beyond GCSE french, but likes that it means "passover"

OP posts:
CabernetSauvignyoni · 07/08/2017 10:12

I just think of this little guy...

Soliciting opinions on Pascal
FrancisCrawford · 07/08/2017 09:43

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Puggsville · 07/08/2017 06:59

Pretentious. Just call him Jack or Dan

AnneofGreenGablesAgain · 07/08/2017 06:56

Lovely but I think old in French terms - maybe similar vintage to Francois? I don't know but perhaps a French person will be along with the facts.

AnneofGreenGablesAgain · 07/08/2017 06:55

Irish Hmm

SuperBeagle · 07/08/2017 06:54

math Why/how is it culturally Irish? Confused

Fruitboxjury · 07/08/2017 06:54

Have you asked a French person what the name Pascal is like in French? E.g. Is it a classic like Thomas or is it a bit outdated like Keith (no offence to anyone called Keith!)?

It's not for me at all, there would always be confusion over whether the name was for a boy or girl (despite the "e") and I don't have any good associations for the name either.

It doesn't feel like a name that a child would like to have to be honest.

mathanxiety · 07/08/2017 06:45

It's much more Irish, culturally speaking, than French. I knew a few Pascals in university in the mid 80s. Rhymed with rascal - no French accent necessary.

I was going to use Pascale as DD1's middle name - she was due on Easter Sunday, but then she was a week late so I went with my other option.

SuperBeagle · 06/08/2017 21:46

It's my dog's name (he's a boy - emphasis on the first syllable, not the second).

The only person I know with the name is a girl named Pascale, with the emphasis on the second syllable.

I obviously like it, but I wouldn't use it for a child unless I had French connections.

Notmyrealname85 · 06/08/2017 20:27

Could shorten to Cal? Fab name!!

Sophronia · 06/08/2017 17:26

I love it!

DarlingWednesday · 06/08/2017 14:14

Would the school nickname/shortening be Paz?

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Jooni · 06/08/2017 14:08

I like it in theory. I can't quite imagine a little boy called Pascal, but maybe that's just because it's unusual. I do think it sounds quite distinguished for a man, without being too posh/pretentious.

squoosh · 06/08/2017 13:34

Common enough name among middle aged men in Ireland. I wasn't aware of a Jewish connection, I just think 'Easter'. Can't say it's a name I'm keen though as any Pascal I've ever met has been a dweeb.

'From the Late Latin name Paschalis, which meant "relating to Easter" from Latin Pascha "Easter", which was in turn from Hebrew פֶּסַח (pesach) "Passover". Passover is the ancient Hebrew holiday celebrating the liberation from Egypt. Because it coincided closely with the later Christian holiday of Easter, the same Latin word was used for both. The name Pascal can also function as a surname, as in the case of Blaise Pascal, the French philosopher, mathematician and inventor.'

MikeUniformMike · 06/08/2017 13:29

I'd say it was French in origin.

DarlingWednesday · 06/08/2017 13:25

She's not French, but she says she's/the name is Jewish? Says Pass-Kall

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Shadow666 · 06/08/2017 13:19

I was thinking you're going to get loads of people asking if your friend is French.

Orangebird69 · 06/08/2017 13:18

I'm a southerner and I don't pronounce it similar to rascal either.