Do I tell her?

If she's a close friend I'd ask her if she knows the English meaning of the word Saline. You could suggest maybe changing the spelling to Salene or Saleen so it's not as bad.

I think you should say something. Get into the mind of a 5 year old learning phonics
Mum to be is picturing
s leen
what people will read it as is
say line
They are different words entirely. That's before you factor in that Saline is actually another word with a meaning in it's own right!

@03cg73 I've only had time to read the first and last pages, sorry.
So if someone else has already made this point, I apologise.
What struck me as soon as I read your opening post, was that by telling us the name your friend had chosen for her little girl, it is such an unheard of name that surely this is somewhat "outing"?
Whatever Mumsnetters think about the name, and whether you should/should not have revealed it, it only takes someone your friend knows being on this forum, (or even your friend herself), to know exactly whom you are referring to in your post.
Just a thought......

Candida is a name though.

It’s no worse than Candida ….

distant friend, stranger or otherwise. Tell her! It’s the right thing to do.

Please say something.

I'd mention it and suggest she looks at Salina, which is as Greek name or Selena.

Yup, I too would tell her.
As personalised blanket ( presumably!) going to waste is far better than a life-time of her DD having such a strange name to live with.

I was about to post exactly this. As a Fifer it's Sah-lin to me.

I’ve lived in England for 30 years and London for 10 and I would never have made that connection tbh.

Maybe just say, 'oh you may be better spelling it Celine, as saline is a wound cleaning fluid over her!' Just be honest and explain! She'll probably be thankful. Good luck! x

Ffs🤣. I have had a rubbish day and this thread made me laugh.

.

Only prob is that the pronunciation of salt solution, saline in spoken english is different to the name.
Is every1 going to be mispronouncing this little 1’s name all her life?
Surely the parents-to-be, have other names they like? I had lists & didn’t make up my mind which names to use until I’d met the little person f2f & got to properly know them.

Non English native here. I would have appreciated being told. When my eldest son was born we excitedly told my mother in law our choosen name. I was very proud of it, it was a strong biblical name and I thought she'd like it. Her response? 'No no - you cant call the baby that, they will pick on him at school. You better choose a different one'. 😅
She is not from the uk either but different country/culture to me. I am glad she told me, in her culture that name might have resulted in name calling. My son was more likely to have peers from her culture than mine here in the UK. She had raised 6 kids here in the UK, she clearly knew her stuff.

I changed his name straight away to our second choice and her response was 'Yea - me like that one, that one much better'. She was right.

Moral of the story, tell her, so she knows. They might still go with it as their cultural reference might outweigh the UK association. Which is all good. But at least its an informed choice.

Depending on the accent, the name Torfàe (not 100% sure on the spelling) can sound like Toffee to the British ear. One of the French/Swiss girls doing an exchange visit to my school. She ended up with the nickname 'Bon-bon' instead which she quite liked 😁
Obviously she didn't have to live in the UK very long, so best to help a child who lives here permanently from teasing. That kid with that triple barreled first name mentioned in about 2010 in England was a bit much tbh. Parents should not impose bizarre titles or give label the kid might be picked on for.

Yes, I would say something. In a polite way. If this had happened to me, I would actually be a bit annoyed if people had kept quiet. I actually think Celine is a beautiful French name but it’s okay to tell her “Hey, look by the way, the spelling that you’ve chosen would mean wound wash over here. It’s a gorgeous name - have you considered spelling it Céline?”

Yes this, or perhaps Selene!

Saline is salt water. It's not TOO bad but wouldn't be my choice.. However!..
As a nurse the one name which always makes me cringe is Melena!

Yes, you need to say something.

It's not just a wound wash - it's a nasal spray. It's what goes in IV fluids. Every adult this child meets will immediately think nasal spray.

I have a cousin named Celine but pronounced Saline. I never noticed until just now that it sounds the same as a salt water solution!

Not sure if there's a SOLUTION lol

I would. I do remember a friend of mine telling me that my daughter's nickname meant something rude in a different language, and I was annoyed, but that was quite an obscure language that no one I know speaks here (my friend doesn't speak it either but apparently always googles proposed names and nicknames to check they don't mean anything rude anywhere!). I think it's different if she's going to be growing up here.

Don't be a drip. Tell her.