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Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think I can pronounce my DD's name how I like?

44 replies

GetDownYouWillFall · 14/01/2010 12:15

My DD is called Naomi, both DH and I pronounce it Naomi, but my mum says this is wrong and always pronounces it Naomi. Mum looks after her 2 days a week so sees her often. I feel like we should have the right, as paretns, to be able to choose how it's pronounced.... but now I have this nagging feeling that I've picked a name that will cause confusion / anxiety as she grows up??
Friends pronounce it both ways too.

It will be interesting to see how she chooses to pronounce it as she gets older. At the moment she just calls herself "Mimi"!!!

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KittyNotVengefulAnymore · 14/01/2010 12:20

I pronounce it the same as you... and I would say as her parents it is your choice, no one else's.

However, when you have a name that can be pronounced in different ways then you are going to encounter that. Your DD will get used to it as she grows up and I doubt it will faze her too much.

Btw - I love the name Naomi!

Original poster
GetDownYouWillFall · 14/01/2010 12:25

thanks kitty, that's kind of you

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Iklboo · 14/01/2010 12:28

I pronounce it Nay-omi (long o sound). As it's been said, some people pronounce it different was and your DD will soon tell people how she prefers it to be pronouced.

It's not like you've said 'Her name is naomi but we pronounce it Dave'

RolandButter · 14/01/2010 12:29

nayomi

thumbwitch · 14/01/2010 12:30

My DH has a friend whose wife is called Naomi - DH and his mum pronounce it Ny-omi so you've another possibility there.

Up to you how you pronounce it but someone will always pronounce it differently, however hard you try and even if you correct them. Probably a good idea to learn to let it wash over you now...

Original poster
GetDownYouWillFall · 14/01/2010 12:31

I'd like to see my mum's reaction if we said we prefer to pronounce it "d-aa-v-e"

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Original poster
GetDownYouWillFall · 14/01/2010 12:33

yes we've heard "ny-omi" too thumbwitch, it never really occurred to me there could be all these different pronunciations! As you say, she will just have to get used to it (or as i suspect, call herself mimi!)
I just knew we should have called her Carys. Grrrr

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4andnotout · 14/01/2010 12:42

I pronounce it like you too, I love the name naomi, it's so pretty,

Fwiw my dd2 is called Elana-Rose which we pronounce Ehlana but my nan calls her Eelana and a lot of the parents and children at school call her Alana, I don't really mind now, although it still drives me shanny when bil calls her Lana!

maxybrown · 14/01/2010 12:42

No, call her Dave, that is much funnier. You must try and remember to tell her that one when she is older I think you should tell your Mum (with a very serious tone/face) that due to all the differnt pronunciations, for now, you will just call her "dave" then when she is a bit older, and can deide herself, you will consider going back to naomi

I worked with someone called naomi and we all said it differently, depending on how strong our accents were too made a difference!

cory · 14/01/2010 12:48

You can choose how to pronounce her name; you cannot however dictate to other people. It may also be that she prefers some other pronunciation when she grows up. Ds intensely disliked the abbreviation of his name used by his family, and has never used it since he became old enough to decide and I don't use it either. Possibly tough on his Mum, but children don't stay little forever. She got her own back by being completely incable of pronouncing his son's name, to the point where we have compromised on a nickname for her personal use. Anything works as long as you don't get upset about it.

AMumInScotland · 14/01/2010 12:50

I think when there's different ways of pronouncing it, it's up to you which one you use. I would try to pronounce it the way you had told me it, but I wouldn't be able to guarantee to always get it right, so I think you have to accept that you'll always get a variety of pronunciations from different people.

Cheeky of your mum to tell you that you're doing it wrong though!

MrsChemist · 14/01/2010 12:50

Eventually she will chose for herself anyway. I have a name that can be pronounced two ways, and most people ask which I prefer. As it happens, I have no preference, so people just go with whatever they think is right.

Lancelottie · 14/01/2010 13:00

We have an Alexandra and a Francis, with one set of northern and one set of southern grandparents, so a choice of long or short vowel. Ho hum. It doesn't seem to bother anyone too much!

woahwoah · 14/01/2010 13:12

I have a Naomi, and I pronounce it the way you do!
The version that irritates me is Ny-omi - where did that come from? We lived in Scotland for a while and virtually every Scot pronounced it Nyomi, even when we had just told them her name! It irritated me that her nursery teacher got it wrong, because she saw her so often, but for casual acquaintances I just ignored it. I was never sure if it was to do with the accent, or whether every Naomi in Scotland pronounced it that way.
An elderly member of my family wanted us to change her name (!) because she thought it was too hard to pronounce. But she did get used to it eventually.
I think it's a nice name, with a lovely meaning, and the people who matter will get it right eventually. Oh, and my daughter called herself Mimi too! Though she grew out of it.
Just don't get me started on the ways people spell it!

wizbitwaffle · 14/01/2010 13:38

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

serinBrightside · 14/01/2010 13:45

My mum is Irish and says Name-y.

Just to confuse you all even further.

MrsMattie · 14/01/2010 13:47

I would say Nay-oh-mee. Have heard Ny-oh.mee, too.

Original poster
GetDownYouWillFall · 14/01/2010 13:47

woah - that's funny that your Naomi also used to call herself Mimi! An easier way to pronounce the name for little ones I guess!
I also dislike Ny-omi, interesting that the scots seem to all pronounce it that way.
We have also encountered the weird spellings, the most common being noami, including some of the staff at her nursery.

wizbit- Leeza is awful

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Original poster
GetDownYouWillFall · 14/01/2010 13:49

oh, and my MIL says No-meee which I HATE! Thankfully i don't see her that often!

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MadamDeathstare · 14/01/2010 13:51

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

AMumInScotland · 14/01/2010 13:57

I would have said Ny-omi automatically from seeing it written down - I think it's the default pronunciation up here!

But I would try to remember to pronounce it your way once I'd heard how you said it

MissMarjoribanks · 14/01/2010 14:01

at Dave - but could be worse - my Dad couldn't pronounce his sister's name when he was little - so called her 'Fred'. It stuck - the entire family call her Fred and she's now in her 50s. Her DP calls her by her actual name, causing severe confusion when we're not sure who he's talking to.

johnthepong · 14/01/2010 14:03

Im called Naomi!

I prefer to be called nay-oh-me

I cannot stand ny-omi. Ive been called many many different versions of my name!

FabIsGoingToBeFabIn2010 · 14/01/2010 14:04

Well I have pronounced it the way you have typed in your op and I don't see a difference. I say it Nigh-oh-me.

Original poster
GetDownYouWillFall · 14/01/2010 14:08

johnthepong, Naomi, (), but do you prefer
nay-oh-me OR nay-oh-me.

We say the latter, my mum the former.

ny-omi is vile, you are right

congrats on an excellent name!

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