Laurent?

Some people have no aptitude for sounds not in their mother tongue, or won't hear the difference between Lorr-ON and 'Laurent'.
Not all of us studied French at school, and even if we did, we'd have been taught how to say words the way the teacher said them.

I think a lot of people thing that Gaelic, Gaeilge and Welsh are dialects of English, or that their pronunciation is interchangeable.

I wouldn't be surprised if some of the Gaelic/Gaeilge/Welsh pronunciation/spellings posts are made by non-speakers who speak a regional scottish/irish/welsh dialect, or by people who are scottish/irish/welsh by blood or birthplace only.

It's not about being stupid - most English people can't pronounce the French "r" correctly for example, and will say the vowel sounds differently to a French person even if they try their best, so of course the name will sound different. Whether or not this matters or bothers you of course is a different matter

No, sorry, I wasn't very clear in that and unfairly merged those who are unable to make sounds with those 'delightful' people who just decide that somebody else's actual name isn't important at all.

I was calling the latter people stupid, not the former; although I would still also reserve the description for people who genuinely seem unable to grasp that other languages are not just dialects of English and appear astonished to find that there are significant differences - the sort of folk who think that Welsh people only speak it as a 'hobby' or to be awkward, or that Spanish people speaking Spanish in Spain are somehow doing it deliberately to annoy them.

It's not about being stupid - most English people can't pronounce the French "r" correctly for example, and will say the vowel sounds differently to a French person even if they try their best, so of course the name will sound different. Whether or not this matters or bothers you of course is a different matter 🙂

I like it. I know two…but both are French.

whats with making it sound as if English people are too stupid to pronounce an unfamiliar name?

A huge amount of them are, though - whether genuinely unable or too arrogant to see why it matters in the first place.

So many people with foreign (or Welsh/Scottish/Irish) names will tell you that people they know very well and work with/see often simply don't bother, or will find a more familiar 'equivalent' and arbitrarily decide that will be fine instead.

Even when learning a foreign language - and not just one word - so many native English speakers will merrily ignore the basics of pronunciation and treat it like a slight variation of English. For example, take the basic word 'ich' in German: only a small proportion of native English speakers will even attempt to say it properly, with the majority going for 'eek' or 'eesh' and reckoning that 'that will do'. I'm talking about those actually learning/studying the language - not just those with a phrasebook on holiday at Oktoberfest.

@MiladyBlue , I don't think it's a girl's name, just saying that someone kept posting that it was.

Laurence Shaw or something is fine. He'll probably be Laurie anyway.
Laurent Shaw seems a bit naff.

@DeeCeeCherry , OP asked for opinions. It's a lot more relevant to the OP, assuming she's in the UK, how it's said here than that it might be pronounced in a variety of ways in France or Canada.

Go for Laurent if you like it. Its my brother's name. I also have a Xavier relative. & I dont have an English name either. Some of these thread comnents are ridiculous, whats with making it sound as if English people are too stupid to pronounce an unfamiliar name? & Are you really that afraid of difference? I find that mostly people do try at least to pronounce names correctly. If anyone mispronounces my name I tend to correct them nicely. But mostly people will just say 'oh, how do you pronounce your name?' & I'm absolutely fine with that.

With Laurent the 1st part I pronounce as 'Lohr' (soft R) then for the rest of name, sound comes from the back of my nose somewhere - only way I can describe it. But in shock news - just like UK, not everyone in France has same accent. Then there's the French diaspora. & I found Canadian French an eye-opener to say the least. So you arent exactly going to get 1 universal accent and pronunciation anyway.

It's not as well known or as nice as Laurence.

How about ..
Clement
Grant
Scott
Walter
Vincent
Roland
Clive
Clifford
Richard

It's a girl's name in France but a boy's name in England

Aaaaah, I see - thanks!

My French college is a Laurent and gets called Laurence 90% of the time.by English people. So if Laurence doesn't work, then he is likely to be called it anyway.

It's a girl's name in France but a boy's name in England 🙂

If pronounce it
Lau (law?) like the sound at the beginning of Laura.
On but slightly longer than on more 'ohn'

Kind of like croissant!!

Not explaining myself well here! 🤦🏻‍♀️🤣

But I like it!

I suppose Lorenzo could fit the bill pronunciation-wise, but might sound a bit of an odd choice if you have no family Spanish or Italian heritage!

Laurie or Lance .
Laurent is awful.

One beginning with the SH sound! Tongue twister

Ah, OK!

How is Laurence a girl's name? Was that meant to be a joke?

Best tell Laurence Fox

I'm not trying to fish for personal details, but I am wondering what surname would clash badly with Laurence, but not at all with Laurent?!

Thankfully my school mate Lorne was never called a sausage 😂 (we were at school in Scotland).

For shame; their patter was seriously lacking

Thankfully my school mate Lorne was never called a sausage 😂 (we were at school in Scotland).

Lorne is the name of David Dickinson's wife. And a square Scottish sausage.

I went to school with a Lorne, nice guy so I have positive associations with name!

We were invaded by the Normans...

Might a not-french Laurent be pronounced Low-rent?