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Original poster

Baby name spelling (help)

85 replies

lemonnmeringuepie · 18/07/2018 05:31

We are expecting in October, and have both a boys and girls name picked.

The girls name we love is Joely (pronounciation Jo-lee) feel free to say if you don't like it, but we do, and it has stuck!

The only thing we're struggling on is the spelling.

I LOVE Jolie - but reminds me of Angelina (who I can't say I'm a big fan of) - I think it's the most gorgeous spelling but from unbiased point of views, is it a bit stupid to use this spelling if we don't want the Angelina connotation, or does it not matter?

Or Joely - which I don't think looks as nice.

Opinions on spelling more than welcome, thank you!

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HJL2506 · 18/07/2018 06:58

I prefer Jolie. I think Joely looks more masculine and at first glanced looks like Joey. Jolie looks more pretty. Although she's a huge actress, i didn't immediately think of Angelian Jolie. Congrats!

fridacakehole · 18/07/2018 06:23

My youngest DD is Joely and we love it. She is often mistaken for Jody or Julie but this is quickly rectified! We (and most people) pronounce it Joe-Lee but one friend has always pronounced it Joel-Lee.

CaitlinsYellowSocks · 18/07/2018 06:11

I prefer Joely as a spelling, and I'd be more likely to guess the pronunciation correctly.

Despite Angelina, my first instinct would be to read "Jolie" as being pronounced like the French word for pretty. Or possibly like "jolly"! It doesn't look so much like a name to me.

Bezm · 18/07/2018 05:44

To pronounce it as rhyming with me, you would need to spell it Jo-Lee.
Anything else would be pronounced 'li' as in i for ink.

Copperbonnet · 18/07/2018 05:38

If you use Joely I would pronounce it Joe-ly (as in Richardson)

If you use Jolie, I would pronounce zhoh-lee as in the French for very pretty.

I’m afraid I wouldn’t think of Joe-lee for either spelling.

I’m sure people would learn soon enough but she’ll always have to explain on first meeting someone.

Alternatively why not spell
it not spell it Jolee?

AnotherOriginalUsername · 18/07/2018 05:38

Joley?

Secretlifeofme · 18/07/2018 05:37

What about Joelee or Jolee? I like the name but I agree that Jolie us the prettiest spelling. It's a shame about Angelina.

Candyflip · 18/07/2018 05:36

I would not pronounce either of those spellings as Jo-Lee. But I don’t really know how you would spell that. Where is it from?

User24689 · 18/07/2018 05:35

I really like it, although I would pronounce Joely differently to Jolie. I think of the actress Joely Richardson which I have always pronounced like 'joe-e-lee' whereas I would say 'Jolie' like 'joe-lee'.

Having said that, I like both pronunciations!

RedPill · 18/07/2018 05:34

Could you try Joleigh?

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