To ask if you’ve got a name people say wrong do you correct them

[Tellmelies65]

My two both have Arabic names that are often said wrong. I’ve asked them why they don’t correct people who say their names wrongs they have said they can’t be bothered anymore. Is this common that people give up correcting people? I have a name that’s very common so have never been in that position.

I did when I was younger

But now I feel bad because I really struggle with certain things or cba to remember so I don’t correct anyone any more.

I also discovered that the pronunciation varies according to the region of the country it comes from, which doesn’t help.

I really wish I’d been given an English name.

I have a Welsh name, and I always correct people if they get it wrong. Same for my children's names.

My name is Sian, (can't do the circumflex) and I have met a fair few people who insist it is Sigh-ann, and have even called their children that. No it bloody isn't. You re just trying to impose an English system of pronunciation on another language.

I judge them, and not in a flattering way!

Often mispronounce mine but I rarely correct people. Like your kids, can’t be bothered with the awkwardness, and some people just really struggle with unfamiliar names. I do appreciate it when people take the time to check if they have it right.

I correct them every single time

I used to. My name can be pronounced 2 ways, but mine is the slightly more uncommon variant so would always be called the other one at school, which I would correct. I correct people on the phone (Virgin or Drs etc.) However, my neighbour I've lived next to for 10 years calls me by neither pronunciation and has instead made up her own version and I don't correct her for some reason, she's just too lovely. She knows how to spell it, but that's it lol

Drives me mad! I have an Irish surname with a very clear letter sound in it which people ALWAYS pronounce as a different letter .. WHY? I refuse to answer to it

I actually sorta anglicise the pronounciation of my first name now and have done since not long after I started uni iirc. It's Arabic and fairly unusual. Vast majority of people here in the UK will never have heard it before and it has an Arabic 'ah' sound in it that most British people don't seem to be able to recreate properly - as even some of the people who have shown real interest in pronouncing my name correctly seem to really struggle to make that sound 'aH' as in how 'Ahmad' should be pronounced - i.e..mot 'aa-med' with 'aa' as in aardvark which is how most British people seem to pronounce it. So I get a lot of people pronouncing the 'ah' in my name like that too as 'arrrr' almost. To anglicise the pronounciation ineffectively make the 'h' sound nonexistent and just say an 'a' sound. This makes it easy for British people to say. I introduce myself like that. I only say it 'properly' now if people inquire as to where the name's from and authentic pronounciation and that kind of thing which is basically once I've made friends with someone anyway. I do also go by a shortened nickname which is sort of shortened version of the anglicised pronounciation of my name, which is what most my friends call me anyway.

We have picked an Arabic name for DD but it's one that British people can pronounce fairly authentically in its correct form. It can also be shortened easily to a number of easily pronounced nicknames. The nursery staff all pronounce it correctly and call her by her name and the nicknames interchangeably. Easy pronounciation was something that we did consider important in naming her. Having said that, I do love my name and I don't get angry if people mispronounce it or anything of course, but it is a bit of a pain all the same.

I’m not Emily, or Amelie, or Emma. And I really dislike ‘Em’.

[quote pinktransit ]Mine gets mis spelt quite a lot - rather like Anne with an e versus Ann without an e (I have the e equivalent).
If it's by email it annoys me - my name is in the email, twice in the sign off. There's no excuse for not spelling it correctly. I'll let it go once or twice, and then spell their name incorrectly by missing the last letter off their name.
Dear Mik, or Dear Hanna normally works quite well :)[/quote]
Ooh this is a good idea, I'm going to try it!
Like you it really irritates when people misspell my name when it's typed in front of them. It's just rude.

I tell myself they may be dyslexic but...

When it comes to mispronounciation, if they make an effort to get it right I usually let it go. If they don't, I'll correct them.

Unfortunately both my names tend to get mispronounced and misspelled all the bloody time.

I have a name that looks like/is spelt like a common french/English name, but I'm Scots and the pronunciation is quite different.

Problem was I mostly lived in England growing up and the English generally can't pronounce it accurately.

It should be an "ahh" sound on the first vowel whereas the English would normally pronounce it as a "Er" sound, the last vowel is also much shorter whereas the English pronounce it "eeee"

Strictly speaking to pronounce it properly requires a rolled r or alveolar trill which the vast majority of English speakers really struggle with.

I don't bother correcting if I am unlikely to meet or deal with the person again, but if they're going to be in my life then yes I'll try and ensure they know the correct pronunciation. But I don't push the rolled r as I know that's difficult.

Ex could never pronounce the r but his mother (welsh) could do it no problem.

Where I did get annoyed was a Dickish teacher who tried to tell me I was pronouncing my own name wrongly and corrected me! Parents put her straight at parents evening but she was an annoying twat at the best of times! Fairly sure it was a racism issue with her as we had a few foreign kids in that class and she anglicised their names too

But yea if it's just eg a call handler and they've seen my name written only I understand it's not their fault and just go with it

Since moving back to Scotland though it IS nice to mostly have it pronounced correctly rolled r and all!

My surname is a relatively uncommon (to the point of uniqueness in the UK) Italian one. It's not hard to say, but trying to grasp it from it's written form can cause some confusion. However when it does, people almost invariably ask either "how do I pronounce that" or "I hope I got that right", which gives me a chance to put them straight. Normally there's relief that it's quite that straightforward.

Being brutally honest over 45 years of it, I've kind of lost the energy to worry.

On the plus side though, it's been a boon in interviews, as that tiny exchange almost always leads to "oh, where's that from" which gives me a minute to deliver a lecture on it's origins and meaning. Not bad if you need a confidence boost and to show off your personality.

Don't ever shorten my first name.

I did prepare a clip from "Inspector Montalbano" where he introduces someone with my surname on my phone to demonstrate pronunciation. However, since then, it seems face to face interviews aren't a thing .

It depends. If it’s someone I’m going to have to deal with a lot I do correct them but not if it’s just in passing.

If it sounds broadly right (it won’t be totally right) then I just leave it. It’s short but tricky because a rolled r that most people can’t do. My mother actually calls me a related but not actually my name as she can’t say it. Think Jean/John (but female and Middle Eastern). I don’t mind as long as they have tried.

@Namechangeme87

Hi not ho 😂😂

That’s weird, as my phone has started randomly typing ‘Ho’ instead of ‘Hi’. I wonder if it’s because it’s Christmas?

I have an unusual name and it is often pronounced wrong. The spelling doesn't help either! I sometimes correct, sometimes I don’t. I almost feel like i would embarrass the person if I correct. (Although I feel more embarrassed that they think that is my name!)

However I would like to add - I do find it rude when people get ‘short’ with you for pronouncing their name wrong. We are all human and if I’ve not heard your name before I may get it wrong! So when they ask for my name back I say it quickly and get equally short with them when they say my name wrong 😉

I don’t mind people pronouncing my name wrong, but I do mind when they LAUGH at it because it’s foreign.