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Original poster

Pronouncing baby's name wrong

234 replies

MrsLeighHalfpenny · 15/10/2017 07:58

Friend has had a baby girl - Anaïs.

Lovely name, but they pronounce it Annay, and not An-eye-ees.

I saw it written down before I heard them say it, and said “I love the name Anaïs” to the grandmother (also my friend). She told me that that’s not how it should be pronounced.

Should I explain what a diaeresis is for?

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spiderlight · 16/10/2017 19:18

She'll be old enough to watch 'The Amazing World of Gumball' in eight years or so and then she can set her parents straight Grin

HappyClappyDinosaur · 16/10/2017 19:15

I think it's a beautiful name as An-eye-yees. I'm sure there was an advert for the perfume with the pronunciation?

NauticalDisaster · 16/10/2017 19:11

I would cringe every time they said their daughter's name! Having said that, there is not a lot you can do to change their pronunciation.

LorelaiVictoriaGilmore · 16/10/2017 16:05

So awkward. Would irritate the hell out of me. But I think you're just going to have to keep your mouth shut op! And hope that eventually enough people get it 'wrong' that eventually the parents start wondering...

CoraPirbright · 16/10/2017 13:45

Oh dear! I am not sure that this information will be particularly welcome!! Is there a closer relative you could discuss this with who could diplomatically bring this up? They are just making themselves look a bit ignorant tbh and poor child! To have to constantly explain...

Tanaqui · 16/10/2017 13:26

Way back in the 80s there was an advert where it was annay annay- someone linked to it years ago on a similar thread (it maybe the first link on this thread but I don't have the data to check).

MulberryMoon · 16/10/2017 13:22

I heard Noel Gallagher's daughter's name pronounced A - NAY - iss by her co- presenters on a programme she presented.

DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen · 16/10/2017 13:19

Apparently the original French names should have dots.

SumAndSubstance · 16/10/2017 13:15

On a related note, isn't Noel Gallagher's daughter called Anaïs?

I hadn't thought of that when I chose him as a random example of a man called 'Noel'!

Noel the name should have the dots too

As a pp said, the two vowels in the name 'Noel' should be pronounced separately, but it still isn't pronounced like 'the first Noel'. The man is more like 'No-ull' and the Christmas one is like 'No-elle'.

TatianaLarina · 16/10/2017 13:15

Noel is a masculine French given name derived from noël, meaning Christmas. The actual feminine form is Noelle, but in English-speaking regions Noel is sometimes used for females as well. The original French spellings are Noël and Noëlle

If you look at the list of famous Noels, most are without the diaeresis, if included it implies the name is pronounced Nowell not Nole.

Noelle doesn’t need a diaeresis because the spelling does the work of the symbol. Just as Björn is rendered Bjoern without the umlaut.

Heratnumber7 · 16/10/2017 12:49

Noel the name should have the dots too.
As should Noelle.

SoupDragon · 16/10/2017 10:26

Why would you pronounce it differently at Christmas time?

Because it's spelt differently. Noël compared to Noel

TatianaLarina · 16/10/2017 10:07

Surely the difference between Noël, which is the French word for Christmas, and the name Noel, which derives from it, is obvious? (Cf the diaeresis).

PandorasXbox · 16/10/2017 10:05

Maybe they know but prefer to say Annay?
Personally I’d keep quiet I think.

MulberryMoon · 16/10/2017 09:47

Actually it was pronounced An-AY-iss

MulberryMoon · 16/10/2017 09:39

I would say An-eye-ees.
I've heard Noel Gallagher's daughter's name pronounced An-AY-is by her co-presenter

TonicAndTonic · 16/10/2017 09:31

The pronunciation is An-eye-ees. But if the parents are calling her Annay, then I guess that’s going to be her name (poor child)

^This. I would always instinctively say An-eye-ees, but I wouldn't go telling the family they are wrong, all you will get is conflict and they will carry on pronouncing it the way they like.

MontanaSkies · 16/10/2017 08:51

The First Noël and Noel Gallagher are pronounced differently. But in both examples there's an extra vowel syllable in there (however slight). You don't just say "Noll" and ignore the "e".

On a related note, isn't Noel Gallagher's daughter called Anaïs? Not sure how they pronounce it though.

Allthecake · 15/10/2017 21:58

The polite thing to do here is pronounce the kid’s name the way the parents want it pronounced. It’s really none of your business and you’d just look like an arse (imho) trying to correct them. Their kid, they choose the pronunciation, just like you’d choose yours. As a pp said parents can spell and pronounce a name any way they like.

SumAndSubstance · 15/10/2017 21:40

Seriously? You would pronounce Noel Gallagher's name like No-elle?

Heratnumber7 · 15/10/2017 21:20

No. They are pronounced the same, because they are the same word.

SumAndSubstance · 15/10/2017 21:10

Doesn’t everyone pronounce the first ‘Noel’ differently to ‘Noel’ Gallagher? I presume that is what the pp means.

Heratnumber7 · 15/10/2017 21:04

I’d pronounce Noel Nole but if it was in relation to Christmas, I'd pronounce it No EL

Why would you pronounce it differently at Christmas time?

MollyHuaCha · 15/10/2017 20:15

The pronunciation is An-eye-ees. But if the parents are calling her Annay, then I guess that’s going to be her name (poor child).

LittleWitch · 15/10/2017 20:07

I would pronounce Anais as Ann eye eess too. However, having been at school with a Deirdre (pronounced Deedra), I’ve spent years being corrected as everyone else pronounces it Deardree. Deedra is much nicer IMO.

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