Chivonne?!

[felicitywits]

BIL wants to call the baby Chivonne.

I said "oh Siobhan, how lovely" - but no, apparently Chivonne is 'a different name' and he doesn't like she spelling of Siobhan.

I am catsbumming but I'm an old lady - is it a name 'in its own right' or is it a misspelling?

In the name of God, no!

That's a no btw.

If I suggested Yvonne (good idea!), he'd probably want to spell it Ivonne :(

He also likes Cayenne. Like the pepper?! What does he MEAN?

He's a perfectly normal person usually. I swear.

If my Dsis tried to interfere in the naming of my child I'd be very annoyed with her.

I think there's nothing you can do. Once the baby is here you'll love it so much you'll overlook the silly name.

What does your sister think?

(personally, I am screaming NO! NO! NO! FFS NO! if you are interested)

Had to look it up myself and yes, it does appear to be a 'proper' name meaning 'God is Gracious'. Quite a few Chivonnes around actually...

Not my taste, but if your ds and her dh love the name, I think we should be a little more tolerant.

I know a Shavonne!

Dsis doesn't really like it but the baby is having her surname so apparently the deal was that BIL got to choose the first name.

Of COURSE I will love my neice whatever she is called, including Chivonne Angel, but I think she'll be judged in the future. I really do. Shouldn't happen but it does :(

(Also I hate it)

(Sorry any Chivonnes reading)

I think I'd trade the surname TBH :o
Unless his is McPant-Farter or something.

I knew a Shyvonne, so I'm used to that spelling, but I really don't take to these rather contrived-looking alternatives.

I hope he meant Cheyenne (I don't like that much either, but it's a heck of a lot nicer than a type of pepper!)

Whether it's a real name or not, I think people would just think they'd intended to call the baby Siobhan and didn't know how to spell it.

Lots to look forward to with a in the family.

Oh dear lord, no! Why not go the whole hog and call her Chiffon?

But the miss spelling and incorrect pronunciation works both ways. I used to work in a benefits office and took details of a new baby. The Dad told me she was called Sighoberhan. After he spelled it out I realised what he meant and said 'you mean Siobhan?' 'Yes' he said 'but I prefer the way you pronounce it'

I am not joking! This really did happen

Sorry, but if it's not your baby then you have to grin and bear it (and do NOT make your sister cry!).

Chivonne brings me out in goosepimples

My name is Siobhan - I love it although it is a pita to spell to people all the time. I met a chivonne in the states and she said 'Ohhh we have the same name,... Er no we don't - Siobhan isn't even pronounced chivonne (pet hate of mine when people do) it's Irish and it's pronounced shi-vaughn!

Niamh spelt Neve might be better?

Clara is lovely (Angel?!)

Chivonne will be pronounced with a hard Ch, Chiv-on, which is quite different from Shiv-orn anyway. Lunacy.

I once heard of someone pronouncing Yvonne as why-vonn-ee (might not have been true)

Huh? How are those pronunciations different?

No, no, no lottiegb Niamh is spelled Niamh! One dodgy spelling doesn't cancel out the other! If you want to give your child a Gaelic/Irish name at least learn how to spell it and pronounce it.

Ok, wouldn't do it, just aware it exists and would be more easily understood by people not familiar with Irish pronunciations.

Aubergine, which pronunciations?

Ch as in chip, Sh as in ship. Guess it would be like Sharon and Charon. Or Sheila and Cheila. Or Shane and Chane. The difference might be subtle but big enough to make a difference!

Sorry, was a bit harsh there lottiegb my niece is a Niamh and it just hacks me off when I see it spelled Neve, Neeve or even Kneave! Grrrrr

No, fair enough, I was thinking of Neve Campbell, who pronounces it 'Nev' anyway!

I'm not familiar with the rules of Irish pronunciation so have to learn each name individually. I learnt Siobhan from the singer in Bananarama (dates me).

How about Christina, Saskia, Michelle, Shannon, Francesca (Cesca), Alexandra (Sasha)?

I'm very aware that there are distinctions in people's perceptions of names beginning with Ch. My name is confused with Catherine and Caroline, not with Charlene, Chanel or Chardonnay.

The Ch / Sh confusion may matter partly because of the way people respond to their names. We are sensitive to the sound of the start of our names, so I woke up when the teacher said 'sugar' but not when they said 'chocolate', one reason I didn't become Charlie.

Awful. And she will get judged on that I'm afraid. Show him this thread!

lottie- i was referring to chi-vonne vs shi- vaughn -I'd pronounce these the same- can timagine anyone saying chivonne, starting like the ch in cheese

ch in charlene, chantelle, chardonnay are all shh sounds