To not know how to deal with this (name issue)

[mytwoblackandwhitecats]

I have a first name that is similar to another better known name, a little like Hannah/Anna. Mine isn't as common as those examples though.

All my life I've been plagued by being addressed as the wrong name! People see it and assume it is its slightly more common variant.

At any rate - how do you deal with people constantly getting your name wrong? I ignore it if I am unlikely to see the person again - in hospital waiting rooms for example, but it does grate as it isn't my name!

Then when you do correct people they keep getting it wrong. I keep just saying 'correct name' with a smile but it does annoy people; I'm sure some of them think I'm actually called the more common name!

My name LOOKS very similar to the other one written down but are pronounced very differently.

How do you deal with it??

[mytwoblackandwhitecats]

Nower!?

I hate the Starbucks thing. Never get mine right. And I really, really don't understand it - it really isn't hard to pronounce at all! Just unusual!

[TryingToBePractical]

I have a name with 2 common spellings. think Claire/Clare. i have the version with more letters. I would say that about 75% of the time people spell it the wrong way in emails, even if replying to an email I have sent with my name in both the address and the signature. It did not used to bother me, but just recently (aged 45) i have started to think it is really quite rude if they have the correct spelling in front of them in the email i sent that they are replying to. Even some of my colleagues do it. It is not as though my spelling is uncommon. If anything i think it may be the more used spelling. I keep meaning to ask someone with the other spelling whether the same thing happens to them in reverse to quite the same extent.

[itsmeitscathy]

My name is similar to a well known male actor, same surname but spelt differently. However, my first name is a different name entirely...although it sounds a bit similar. It drives me mad, especially when officials get it wrong when it's written down in front of them! my Starbucks solution is to give a fictitious name, I go through the doctors assistants, I'm on pond at the moment. :)

[littlepeas]

Oh I get this loads too - I use a diminutive of my name that has a more commonly used, longer version - so many people use the longer version despite never being told to. It used to really bother me, now I just answer to it.

[ebwy]

I'm betting StrawberryCheese is a Carys or a Cerys!

it took my mother 4 returns to Studio Cards in the 90's (or maybe late 80's) to get a personalised mug with a pink fairy on it with "Carys" printed on it instead of "Gary" as a gift for someone!

My son is Arwyn. His name should be "Arrrrr" (like a pirate!), then "Win"
His nursery teacher can't pronounce it. So none of his friends do and now he thinks his name is more like "aaah-win" too. grrrrrr!

(yes, this can/will "out" me, but I don't care)

[tabulahrasa]

"'Hannah, could you pass me that?'
'Sure, it's Anna though!' (friendly smile)
'ooh ... Annie, that's unusual!'
'It is, yes, but it's Anna.'
'Ann-ah' (each syllable pronounced deliberately) right!'"

Mine goes

'Hi I'm Dione'* quite often followed by a blank look and then a repetition of my name up to about 3 times then..
'Ooh that's unusual'
'yeah, it's a greek goddess, nope I'm not greek (because that's usually the next question) my parents just didn't want me to have personalized pencils, lol'

Then the next time they have cause to use my name or meet me again they call me Diane, I correct them and they say something like oh yes, sorry.

Which is fine, except this goes on for sometimes years - it's like they just have this big blank spot and forget that we've had this conversation every week, you'd think they might remember eventually that they keep getting my name wrong, but, no it's like it's brand new information every time

I also get my name changed to Diane in emails despite my name being in my email address and I sign off with my name.

So, I end up just answering to Diane instead, it just saves all that wasted time repeating myself...but I don't like Diane, I like my name :(

*It's not Dione and Diane and the Diane name is actually spelled completely differently to my name, but the wrong sounds are similar if that makes sense.

[Greyhound]

I worked for a while with someone who kept calling me the wrong name. I found this very offensive, especially as he was only the other person in the office! It irritated me like fuck as he would tell people my name was 'Cathy' (not my real name) when I am called 'Kate' (also not my real name) and they would ring up and ask for 'Cathy'.

I ended up deliberately ignoring him when he called me 'Cathy'. He never did get my name right and I was glad when I left the company and did not have to work with him anymore.

[educatingarti]

Well - as I was saying before - at least you are not regularly addressed as Ms Freak. Not just anmnoying but actually rude of itself!

[HenI5]

Greyhound hard to fathom someone like that

I have the less usual spelling of a short name and I don't really mind when people I don't know plump for the more well known spelling. It does grieve me though when people I've known all my life get it wrong and when people who are long standing correspondents email the incorrect spelling - particularly as my email address is my initial and surname

I ignore the issue as the sound is the same and I reckon if they can't be arsed to read what I write to them, pointing it out isn't going to change anything.

[Wibblypiglikesbananas]

Tell me about it! My name ends in IE, could also be a Y and I am CONSTANTLY correcting people, despite my email address containing the correct IE spelling. How stupid do you have to be not to check properly? Especially if the person you are addressing's name is right there in front of your very eyes??!! I've started writing back with the sign off name-IE (in caps) and if it's a persistent offender, I highlight the IE and then refer them to my email address. If that doesn't shame them into addressing me correctly, well, in a work context, I wonder what else they make mistakes with quite frankly.

[ItsDinah]

I have a similar problem to the OP with my first name. I cope with it in 2 ways. One, I decided I enjoyed having an alias. A sort of stage name ,very enjoyable with annoying salespeople who keep repeating your first name. Second,if I really want someone to get it right I introduce myself by saying my name is a bit unusual/some people find hard to pronounce,explain why my family lumbered me with it,spell it,slowly, and then say "and it is pronounced,,,,," . Since deciding to revel in an alias I don't always notice if people call me the wrong name.

[Mckayz]

I am often called a completely different name that sounds similar. I tend to miss my drinks if I go in Starbucks as they aren't shouting my name.

[gutted2014]

What annoys me is when I write about DS eg in a letter/email/text/on FB using the correct spelling of his fairly common name & people still get it wrong eg

'So pleased with Johnny*, he got an award today'
'Well done, Johnnie'*

Grr

Although, people also often mispronounce my fairly unusual married surname (maiden name was even more uncommon, only members of my family have it in the UK). This works in my favour when cold-callers ring up & ask if this is Mrs Smyth? I just say, no, I'm sorry it isn't (well, it isn't, that person doesn't exist, it's Smith!) and off they pop

*No real names were used in the writing of this post

[mytwoblackandwhitecats]

Dinah - I HATE the "other" version of my name! Loathe it!

[greenfolder]

i had a colleague called Julia, and was constantly called Julie by a number of people.

it irritated her beyond belief and made the rest of us laugh.

[PersonOfInterest]

Your colleagues sound easily amused greenfolder.

My MIL got me a personalised key ring for Christmas with the wrong name on. The 'a' version of an 'e' name. DH assures me it was a genuine mistake. We've only been together for 14 years...

[Snatchoo]

This thread would be soooooo much better if I knew what the names were! I'm dying to know what they are!

My name is easy to spell and say, I only ever have a problem with phone conversations tbh. HOWEVER, I have more people asking me to spell my surname since I changed it to one of the most common names from a name belonging to only two families in the UK!

[Eatriskier]

I know how you feel. My name is a common but not the most common spelling of my first name. My surname was often misspelt. I've married twice into odd names too which means generally a piece of mail with my full name spelt correctly is a form of celebration!

So we decided no, the kids won't go through that. Their surname is odd enough so we will make sure their names are spelt 'normally'. At 3.7 and 21m they've both had mail misspelt to them.

I don't think it's possible to win this game.

[mytwoblackandwhitecats]

Strangely enough my girls' name of choice is anna, always has been :)

Surely you can't get anna wrong !?

[Eatriskier]

mytwo i have cousins called Hannah and Anna on the same side. It can cause countless issues when just talking face to face. When the youngest was named I thought there could never be an issue. As the years have gone on however...

[FelixFelix]

My name begins with X and is Greek. Often mentioned on here as being a bit posh (I'm far from it). I'm guessing people will work out what it is from that!

I have always been called all sorts of random names. Constantly have to spell it out for people and they still get it wrong. I can't be arsed to correct anyone now so just go along with whatever they say. I often get called Sandy, and the weirdest one I've had is Hyacinth (?!). It doesn't bother me at all though.

I didn't realise I'd afflicted my DD with this problem until I took her to the doctors for the first time and she got called 'Sylvia' by there separate people when her name is actually Sylvie oh well!

[Brittapieandchips]

My name can be pronounced a few ways, I have the harder sound, but everyone seems to use the softer sound. To make things worse, I have a lisp, so when I'm tired I struggle to pronounce my own name. Sigh. This was, of course, noticed at school by bullies so people copying how I say it is extra painful, even though they are doing the right thing and copying me.

I have two nicknames, both of which use the 'hard' sound, so why people can usually call me that, then fail to just add the easy bit at the end I have no idea.

Still, I gave the kids unusual names that sound like popular names. Dunno why I did that...

[NinjaLeprechaun]

So we decided no, the kids won't go through that. Their surname is odd enough so we will make sure their names are spelt 'normally'. At 3.7 and 21m they've both had mail misspelt to them.
You can't win that game. My daughter's name is Megan. Nice, simple.
She gets Meghan; Meagan; Meaghan; and people frequently pronounce it Meegan.

I have one of those impossible to spell or say last names, and my family likes to collect and compare. It's something of a mark of honour to get a 'new' version.

[Bunbaker]

I think this thread should be ready by all parents wanting to give their children alternative spellings to mainstream names. I think they underestimate how much it pisses people off to have to constantly correct the way other people spell their names.

Where I live the local dialect means that the H is dropped at the beginning of words. I have a friend called Ellen and whenever she introduces herself she says "my name is Ellen without an H" because she knows that everyone assumes she is called Helen.

[Bunbaker]

"Surely you can't get anna wrong !?"

You can round here because they drop the H.

I have a friend with a daughter called Hannah, but my friend pronounces it Anna.