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Original poster

How would you pronounce Louis?

116 replies

Yibs · 20/02/2022 08:52

I'm a bit stuck as I love this for a baby name, but I have a name where my entire life I've had to correct, or begrudgingly ignore, my name being pronounced wrong.

I had a Mrs Louis teacher in school (pronounced Lewis)
One of my brothers friends was Louis (pronounced Lewis)
And in a job I had a few years ago I worked with a Louis (also pronounced Lewis!)

Dh never heard of this and says that it's pronounced Loo-ey which is how I want the name to be pronounced, but feel like there will be lots of people like me who have heard it pronounced Lewis more often than not

I want to pre-empt this by calling him Louie. I know a Louie who is in his early 30s now and I've known him since he was like 12 so it doesn't look odd to me, and it just takes the pronunciation issue out but my mum is saying it looks made up and weird.

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CousinQuandary · 20/02/2022 09:46

My DS is Louis. He’s named after Louis Armstrong so it should be pronounced “Lewis” but we usually call him “Loo-ee”. The only time I call him “Lewis” is when he’s in trouble.

But, when asked how it’s pronounced, I say you can pronounce it either way, which people find a bit disconcerting.

Preg19 · 20/02/2022 09:38

Louis is pronounced Looo ee! I have a 1 year old called Louis and we always preferred the traditional spelling of it, so far only one person has read his name wrong and that’s the nurse calling him Lois 😂

SoupDragon · 20/02/2022 09:37

Louis is Louie.

If you go with "Louie" as the spelling you are setting him up for a lifetime of misspelling as everyone will spell it incorrectly. Most people will pronounce Louis correctly and spell it right though.

Peachtoiletpaper · 20/02/2022 09:36

I would pronounce it Louie. Went to school with one who pronounced it Lewis, no idea how his parents intended it though.

Another lad, same area, had a French background and his parents wanted Louie, it was fine, I don't think he had many problems.

Agreed that having a Prince Louis will probably make it less likely to be read as Lewis so you should be ok with the spelling. Both nice names though.

Luredbyapomegranate · 20/02/2022 09:35

.. Your mum is right it does look made up and weird, and it renders a distinguished name very undistinguished.

FizzyBizz · 20/02/2022 09:34

Loo-ey

FizzyBizz · 20/02/2022 09:34

It IS a name that has two pronunciations in common use. But I wouldn’t let it put you off using the classic spelling of Louis for ‘Loo-eh’. He might have to correct people, but it’s not a huge issue. Louis is so much nicer than Louie.

TenoringBehind · 20/02/2022 09:33

Lou-ee

Luredbyapomegranate · 20/02/2022 09:33

In the Uk it’s pronounced Loo-ee as it is In France . If you want Loo-is then that’s written Lewis like the surname.

It’s true that people have mispronounced it, but because of Prince Louis I don’t think mispronunciation will be a problem in your son’s generation.

I wouldn’t personally spell it Louie, there’s no need and it’s a misspelling / a bit illiterate.

FeedMeSantiago · 20/02/2022 09:32

I have a relative called Louis in his 70s - he pronounces it like Lewis.

If I met a younger Louis, I'd assume Louie, like Prince Louis.

georgarina · 20/02/2022 09:31

I would pronounce it Lou-ee

In other parts of the world though it would be pronounced Lewis

CakesOfVersailles · 20/02/2022 09:29

Louis is loo-ey for sure (unless we are talking about American cities)
Lewis is Lew-iss

I would avoid Louie - that is in for a lifetime of spelling mistakes.

ThroughThickAndThin01 · 20/02/2022 09:28

I’d say Lou ee.

I much prefer the Louis spelling over Louie.

hiraffe · 20/02/2022 09:23

Prince William & George also have Louis in their middle names

drybird · 20/02/2022 09:23

I have a Louis - pronounced the French way (Loo ey) and we are forever correcting people including teacher who call him Lewis regardless 🤦‍♀️

tintodeverano2 · 20/02/2022 09:23

Lou-ee

Although I know someone called Louis that pronounces it Lewis.

ShippingNews · 20/02/2022 09:20

It will help that we have a Prince Louis ( Loo - wee) so most people should know that this is the proper pronunciation.

Skyeheather · 20/02/2022 09:20

Both - I used to work with a Louis and he pronounced it Lewis. Before meeting him I would have said Loo-ey.

I think if you choose this name for your baby he'll have a lifetime of mispronunciation.

hiraffe · 20/02/2022 09:18

gorgeous @Sally090807

TwoLeftSocksWithHoles · 20/02/2022 09:17

According to the internet, where every fact is triple checked and there is never any false information...

Over in France, Louis is pronounced Lou-EE. The American way: Lou-ISS. According to People, the “s” in His Royal Highness Prince Louis of Cambridge's royal baby name is silent, and we should all be saying his name the French way.

DarleneSnell · 20/02/2022 09:17

Lou-ee. I think he'll end up correcting people sometimes but not that often, it's quite well-known.

I'd definitely go with the proper spelling, changing to a phonetic version will look like you didn't know how to spell it.

LosingTheWill2022 · 20/02/2022 09:17

I remember being taken aback that Louis Armstrong used "lewis" pronunciation and the city of St Louis. So I've always thought it was an American thing.

BennieAndBert · 20/02/2022 09:17

Loo-ey. However, Americans tend to say Loo-is (as in St Louis) and I suspect that pronunciation might be becoming more popular here as well. No matter though- it’s an easy correction if anyone gets it wrong.

oviraptor21 · 20/02/2022 09:16

Loo-ey is the standard pronunciation for Louis. I think you'd be fine using that. Anything else and the child will be forever having to correct or confirm the spelling.
It's unfortunate that a few people pronounce it Lewis when there's a perfectly good spelling for that.
The Louie spelling is used by one of Donald Duck's nephews.

Sally090807 · 20/02/2022 09:16

It’s Louis as in Louis Vuitton, that’s my dogs name

How would you pronounce Louis?