People mocking my name

[Addictedtocinammonrolls]

My father is from another country, and I have a European surname which is 4 syllables long. My first name is 3 syllables. I went to a predominantly white British school where there were only 3 of us in the year group with a non-British name.
I work in education and a couple of times other adults have said to me, 'Really?! So do the kids call you Miss ___?!"
Usually I've just smiled and laughed politely but next time I'm going to say 'What else are they going to call me??"

I was in the staffroom with a couple of teachers I didn't know. A pupil came to the staff door and asked for me by name. One of these other teachers went to another 'Is that her name?!"

I was on the phone to an agency and he asked for me full name. I told him, he repeated it back to me as a question in order to express shock and then laughed. I don't know how I didn't tell him to do knr.

I usually shorten my first name so that it's not as many syllables as a whole. I'm proud of my heritage but sometimes other people make me feel embarrassed. Having lived in other countries where it was common to have a dual heritage, I felt that I blended in more. How would you deal with this?

I think your method is spot on.

Yes, that's what I said. Yes, that's my name. Yes, what else would they they call me?

Firm, polite, not inviting further conversation. If people persist and are rude, be curt in your response too. That is my name you're mocking, have you no manners? Or whatever you feel appropriate.

I have a one-off strange name. I love it and will never give it up. People can get over themselves or piss off as far as I'm concerned!

Thank you for your answer. It's good you are proud of your name, and it's amazing how people can be rude about others' names!

How strange. 3 syllables for a first name and 4 for a last isn't odd?
For example..Isabelle Kournikova ..... Martina Kardashian.. I'm just making these up but it doesn't sound mad or too long. People are strange.

I would probably just answer ,yes that is my name, is there a problem?

Surprised at this, Britain is a multi cultural society now, you'd think "foreign" sounding surnames would be no big deal anymore.

I agree, just do what you're doing. Quietly pointing out they're being ridiculous. And point out they're being rude if they persist.

They're being really really weird. 4 syllables for a name is not unusual. My very very English first name is 4 syllables.

Plenty British of surnames are 4 syllables. Pretty much anything double barrelled would be, if not more.

Is it a name with lots of consonants, or sounds not present in English? In that situation I could understand a bit of worry about saying it out loud wrong if people had only seen it written down, but as they're hearing you say it, it's just really rude.

It's not that hard to pronounce at all I don't think, it's pronounced exactly how it's spelt.
No sounds that don't exist in English, no accents or anything else.
It's true, we are a multi cultural society now. I remember feeling ashamed of my surname and wishing I could change it, which is wrong.

My first name is 9 letters and surname is 10, so sometimes on lanyards, application forms etc. It will struggle to fit on unless I use the short name of my first name. A couple of friends have joked it's a 'mouthful'

I am sorry people are so rude.

When I was a small child, nearly 60 years ago, there were several Polish teachers at our school, one had a four syllable name. Everyone from 4 - 18 got on with it without any fuss so I really don't understand why your colleagues are being so 'funny' about it when 4 and 5 year olds can cope perfectly well.

Does it sound like something rude or funny in English?

I have a one syllable name which is a word in English but also a name but is a bit old fashioned e.g. Rose (but not Rose). Kids laugh or take the piss out of it all the time. Thought I'd escaped it when I left school but even as a teacher, if the kids find out what it is, they laugh about it. No idea why.

I have a mildly unusual name and I am a bit sensitive over getting names deliberately wrong because they are foreign or "difficult ". It's just bloody rude, IMO,

My first name has 3 syllables and my surname is double barrelled so 5 syllables (English/slightly Irish so sometimes a slight pronunciation issue with my surname).

People can be really odd about it- I once answered the door to the post man and he had a proper strop at me for having such a long name and told me I should change it!

And these people are apparently intelligent, working in education? Ridiculous and rude!
I also have a 'funny,' name that people like to comment on. I hated it as a child but now I absolutely love it and won't ever change it!
I simply say, 'great name isn't it, don't think I could ever change it.'

This is really odd. When I was married my first name was three syllables and my surname four. And I have two middle names! I don't think anybody ever even noticed let alone commented on it being long.

Is it Greek? We had a teacher in school whose name was Mrs Papadato. We found it funny for about a week in Year 7 and then got over it. Your colleagues sound immature and rude.

That’s the same length as many names, such as Elizabeth Richardson. Unremarkable. People are so rude.

These days with double-barrelled surnames I wouldn't have thought it was unusual to have 4-syllable surnames? I knew someone with 2 x 3syllable surnames, double-barreled. And 3 syllable first names is not weird in any way?

Bernadette Rostankowski is not 'funny' (although bernadette Rostankowski-Wolowitz is ) I suppose.

i think you are handling it correctly. It is in no way 'funny' or unusual to have a long, or even foreign name in the UK in the 21st Century.

Pull them up on it. Every. Time. You can be nice "Yes, its an amazing name isn't it?" or you can be more direct "Is there a problem with my name?". I think it's interested that the young persons you teach seem to have no issue with it at all - just the adults.

I had a work colleague with a name like Maximillian Witherington-Cooper - I bet no-one ever mocked his name to his face. He was quite a young man and wore it well, I doubt he'd have allowed anyone to mock his name either.

Defend your name - its the shopfront of your life. And if any company cannot put all your name into their systems - challenge them on it too!

I've moved around the UK a fair bit and in most places it's fine but in some less diverse workplaces (southwest of England, small town in the southeast and Northern Ireland) there were really outdated attitudes from a surprising number of people and casual racism around foreign sounding names. Protests about how difficult names were to pronounce when they really weren't. Suggestions of changing first name to "something people would find easier to say". Didn't encounter this in Liverpool or London, or big university cities.

Be proud of your name and your heritage OP and absolutely turn it back on rude people.

Bloody hell people are so rude.
No advice as I've a short and boring name, but I'm sorry this is even a thing for you.
People are so crap with this kind of thing.
When the area I live saw loads of easten European people move here for work, (educated, intelligent and very good people) there were some dramas over names in my workplace. One women on my team who I became very good friends with, before I'd met her the staff had told me her name was very long and they nicknamed her "kay", her name... KAROLINA! That super difficult to say name. Rude idiots.

(Not entirely related but this was a team of all women and Karolina is exceptional beautiful, she was also very educated etc, so I did think it was jealousy, just picking at her over little things. Possibly also racism, but more likely more jealous of this blonde goddess she is.)

It's incredibly rude. People possibly dont realise how offensive it is. Not an excuse, it's an indication of how limited their life experience is.
I would respond, yes, it's a standard "heritage-country" name and then wait for a response or walk away.

I know! It's no longer than saying 'Emily Penelope' or 'Adrian Alexander'.

So there must be a xenophobic element to it - the idiots are commenting on the name(s) sounding different / 'foreign'. Agree with sticking to a deadpan, 'it's my name - what else would people call me?' It's really pathetic when people do this shit.

My name has the same number of syllables as yours. To avoid outing myself it's something like Katrina McAllister. Nobody has ever suggested my name is a mouthful. The only difference is that it's Scottish, not Eastern European.

I have an unusual name and a double barrel surname.

It's only other adults who panic and want to anglicise your name. Kids really don't care.

I usually just say, no that's my name and I'd prefer that. Or No I don't shorten it except for very close friends and family who call me by my nickname.

Does my head in!

My surname is as far as I am aware British. It's unusual, but not difficult.
I got used to having it mis-pronounced. I got used to having to spell it on every occasion. I even got used to spelling it, whilst watching people write it down incorrectly. What really amazed me was the number of people who asked me if I was sure that was how my name was spelled! Erm yes fairly certain I know how to spell my own name!
Yes, I did take my DHs name when I got married 😁
Some people are just very strange.