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Original poster

Thoughts on Bette?

56 replies

SemperIdem · 30/12/2020 12:53

Came across it on a Netflix programme I’ve been watching and thought it was quite different to all the soft sounding girls names popular at the moment.

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Cressie2 · 18/01/2021 22:11

Wow. Some people on here are so horrible! Stick by your guns @SemperIdem

Smallonesaremorejuicy · 18/01/2021 19:03

Bette Davis said her name was prounouced Betty in an old film doc I saw . I think if you prounouced it Bet it is harsh & people will get confused in how to say it .

Bluesername · 18/01/2021 18:58

Bête noire.

I'm not particularly keen on Bette, but it would be OK as nickname for Elizabeth, Beatrice or Bethany.

Pinkstump · 18/01/2021 18:45

I love it, classic without being overused. If she wanted to change the pronunciation to Bett(i)e when she's older, she could do that too.

TheSmallClangerWhistlesAgain · 18/01/2021 18:36

@MondeoFan

I like Bet, Bette, Betty whichever spelling you choose. It's a nice name. I met a lady years ago called Beatta. I'd never heard of it before
Beata/Biata/Beate is a relatively common name in Germany and Poland. It's the Slavic version of Beatrice.
MillieEpple · 18/01/2021 18:23

Its ok. I quite like names that are stronger too so it does have that going for it

MondeoFan · 18/01/2021 18:14

I like Bet, Bette, Betty whichever spelling you choose. It's a nice name.
I met a lady years ago called Beatta. I'd never heard of it before

TheSmallClangerWhistlesAgain · 18/01/2021 18:10

Really close to the French word for both "stupid" and "beast".

Cressie2 · 18/01/2021 13:06

Lovely but Betty is much better and she wouldn’t need to correct everyone on the spelling once she was older.

SuitedandBooted · 17/01/2021 21:33

I love it. Unusual but not trendy. Class.

I don't see why people would struggle, and if they're not cultured enough to have heard of either Bette Davis or the Divine Miss M, that's their loss!

My passions were all gathered together like fingers that made a fist. Drive is considered aggression today; I knew it then as purpose.

Bette Davis

Onlinedilema · 17/01/2021 08:45

It’s a no from me. A lifetime of mis pronunciation and mis spelling. Don’t forget we are moving to a era of communication via email etc where people will have to decide what a name says without hearing the owner pronounce their name and that makes it awkward. I think of Bet Lynch too.

Standrewsschool · 16/01/2021 17:37

I love it. Unusual but not weird.

Roberta268 · 16/01/2021 17:32

Horrible. Bête (pronounced the same way) means “beast” or “stupid” in French. I’d go for Betsy or Elizabeth instead.

babbaloushka · 14/01/2021 19:19

I know the show, the ballet one, and I think her name is Elisabeth with Bette as the NN

PetraRabbit · 02/01/2021 15:03

It's a good strong name. People will learn to say it properly- it's hardly difficult to say. Not my personal taste but I like anything original so for it!

Calmondeck · 01/01/2021 07:58

I have a colleague Bette (Dutch) who pronounces it Bett-a. So I wonder whether the European tendency would be to add the a sound (for pronouncing the e). Either way, strong choice.

partyatthepalace · 01/01/2021 01:57

I quite like it. I would call her Elizabeth nn Bette though, as it doesn’t sound like a full name to me. Liz is a rare nn these days, if you start w Bette that’s what she’ll be called.

MimiDaisy11 · 31/12/2020 11:58

I like it but think like others some will think it's Bet and others will pronounce it Betty. I think though it doesn't have to be a big deal. Some people just get used to being called by different names.

Enko · 31/12/2020 10:53

I like it. I think Bette Midler or Bette Davies both good associations

PoodleMoth · 31/12/2020 10:12

I think Middler but I like it. Much prefer it as a full name to Elizabeth as a full name as I really dislike a lot of the shortenings. Beth seems to be the more common shortening these days where I am.

FestiveStuffing · 31/12/2020 03:16

I like it. I do think 'Middler' and don't know why. Might give it a Google 🤔

MercyBodle · 31/12/2020 03:11

I like it. Rather cool I think. I think it works well as a stand alone name, not just a short form for Elizabeth.

Ukholidaysaregreat · 30/12/2020 19:13

Love it! Strong name!

sandandso · 30/12/2020 19:11

Agree @ChristmasJumpers. I guess the thing is, we don't know how well our children will deal with a tricky name. I'm fine with it all now, but felt very self-conscious about my name growing up. For that reason I've been very cautious naming DC, just in case. (Well, cautious in the sense of choosing easy-to-pronounce, uncontroversial names. I don't mean we all have to give our children top 10 names.) I figure there'll be challenges enough, so I don't want to give them another.

ChanklyBore · 30/12/2020 19:10

I like Bette, and I agree about nice, strong names.

What about Bettina, if you’d consider Elizabeth but want to avoid Liz.

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