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AIBU?

To think i know how my childs name is pronounced?

242 replies

crappymummum · 08/05/2011 14:36

So my friend says she has just had an in depth argument with one of her friends who i happen to know over my daughters name.

DD is called Luisa.Not Louisa but LuiSa as in emphasis on the S not the soft sounding s in Louisa.I think the name originates from Germany but is widely used in Spain.
My DD was born in Spain (we are now back in the UK) so i liked the thought of a Spanish name, especially as we planned on staying there for some time.My Aunt is Spanish and also called Luisa.

Apparently this argument started when the lady started arguing with my friend when she was pronouncing it correctly saying no its Louisa,it's stupid etc and how it is just an alternative spelling but pronounced the same etc etc.

This is becoming a bit of a problem as i have noticed friends/teachers etc calling her Louisa...even receiving invites to parties with Louisa on.

Should i just let them get on with it for an easy life for my daughter and just accept that Louisa is what she will be called?

AIBU to be really bloody annoyed about this woman?

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belgo · 08/05/2011 14:38

I think you are fighting a losing battle tbh regarding pronunciation. . I would pronounce it Louisa, but it;s worth encouraging people to spell it correctly.

Goblinchild · 08/05/2011 14:38

Her name is important, I'd insist on it being spelt and pronounced correctly where possible (as in not refusing an invite because they got it wrong)
The staff in my school have always made an effort, we have a lot of unusual or non-English standard names.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:40

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

MmeBlueberry · 08/05/2011 14:40

You've got a lot of years ahead of you in dealing with this. Personally, I wouldn't make too much of a fuss. It will be a very bloody battle.

You use non typical pronounciations and spellings at your peril.

CoteDAzur · 08/05/2011 14:41

Is the difference between two pronunciations just the accent?

florencedougal · 08/05/2011 14:41

lol i often get my surname mistake for my christian name and visa versa

i just smile and nod now

Samjam10 · 08/05/2011 14:41

I know that you are right but you may be fighting a losing battle with lots of people. I wanted my son to be called by the full version of his name. Invariably known by the abbreviation. I've given up (he's 10 and prefers the short name anyway).

saffy85 · 08/05/2011 14:41

YANBU I hate it when people do this with my name- call me something similar which is not my name (think Laura/Lorna). It's irritating as hell.

How old is your DD? You may find she's more than happy to correct other people who get her name wrong- I always was although I'm more diplomatic nowadays

GwendolineMaryLacey · 08/05/2011 14:41

YANBU but I can't believe you're surprised. So I would correct people and keep correcting them till it sinks in but no point getting arsey. They will learn.

HecateQueenOfTheNight · 08/05/2011 14:41

I have the same problem. Nobody knows how to pronounce my children's names. I don't mind that, they're not your typical british names but I hate it when the school rename them. especially my eldest who normally gets an a changed to an e but he regularly gets renamed Gareth - not his name!!!!

The only thing you can do is to correct people.

"Her name is not louisa. It is a different name. LuiSa."
And perhaps explain where it's from - that it is a common spanish name, the country she was born in.

And say that it is not an alternative spelling, like jane or jayne with a y - but a different name, and what they are doing is like taking someone called Ben and renaming him Ken. cos they sound really similar and have practically the same letters in them.

ZZZenAgain · 08/05/2011 14:43

with that name I don't think correcting pronunciation all the time is going to work I 'm afraid. I frankly don't believe you will get many people pronouncing it Luis- SA in the UK. They'll spell is Luisa when they register how you write it but I am sure she will mostly get called Louisa

hocuspontas · 08/05/2011 14:43

Weirdly I would have thought it was pronounced LuiSHa if I didn't know better.

GrendelsMum · 08/05/2011 14:44

Um - I can see why people in the UK are finding it difficult to pronounce correctly. It is pronounced quite differently to UK words, with a fairly unfamiliar 'i' and 's' sound to it. (I'm sitting here pronouncing it to myself, but my DM is Spanish). I'm afraid that you may just have to pronounce it correctly yourself, and accept that a fair number of English people are not good at making the effort with foreign words / names.

TrillianAstra · 08/05/2011 14:44

I thought this was going to be one where you had spelled it wrong too, or deicided to call Siobham "Shobban" or something :o

YANBU, you have chosen a different name, it is spelled and pronounced differently to Louisa.

tabulahrasa · 08/05/2011 14:44

I'd keep correcting them because you're right, but not because she's your child, just because that is indeed how it's pronounced, lol

belgo · 08/05/2011 14:45

My children all have two names - the english pronunciation and the flemish pronunciation. I don;t mind that at all, in fact I encourage english people to pronounce the names the english way because none of them can ever pronounce the names correctly in Flemish.

GrendelsMum · 08/05/2011 14:45

For what it's worth, my mum had an infuriating habit of talking about all my friends by the Spanish version of their names.

overthemill · 08/05/2011 14:46

so is it loo-sa? Or lo-ee-sa? Interesting a lovely name.
I think its imoortant mainly cos a name defines you to a certain extent. I am so fed up with people asking me if i'm sure when spell out myunusual, surname!
And my dsd now pronounces her name completely differently when in school/with friends as she does at home. She has anglicised it. She says its easier, her choice i guess.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:46

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:46

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:46

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:46

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:46

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:46

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

fluffyanimal · 08/05/2011 14:46

Roll your eyes and ignore, and accept the fact that as your daughters name is unusual, people will misspell or mispronounce it. Not worth getting annoyed over.

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