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Do you have a name that is often mispronounced?

114 replies

JimbosJetSet · 08/06/2012 08:26

...And does it annoy you? Or do people frequently mispronounce your DC's name?

I really like the name Louis for a boy. But I am wondering if we, and then him, are going to spend the rest of his life having to correct people when they pronounce his name with an 's' on the end... Are we condemning our future DS to a life of being irritated every time someone says his name wrong?

OP posts:
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LadyLillyWilliamSnowflake · 08/06/2012 08:29

I have a name that everyone lengthens to Katie and lots of other variations without realising it (I know, that obviously tells you what my name is, but it's only my first name).

I also got used to it and even answer to it now so my conversations go:

Someone: Katie what do you think about ............
Me: Oh yes I agree....... wait, did you just call me Katie???

Blush
SillyBeardyDaddyman · 08/06/2012 08:31

Yep. My name is Russian and I get lots of wrong pronunciations and spellings!

RobinSparkles · 08/06/2012 08:32

Do you not like it spelt Louie? It would solve the problem then as people would pronounce it Looee instead of Lewis.

everlong · 08/06/2012 08:32

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

tabulahrasa · 08/06/2012 08:35

Yep, no-one who has seen it written pronounces it right and no-one who has heard it can spell it. It's fairly irritating.

I wouldn't think it would be an issue with Louis though, it's not that uncommon a name.

melliebobs · 08/06/2012 08:37

I gave up wanting to call dd Laila cos I just know people would pronounce it ley-la. when it's spelt and is actually lie-la

RobinSparkles · 08/06/2012 08:39

You see, I would have always said that Louis was without the S sound like Louie and Lewis was the one with the S sound, until a friend's DS had it as a middle name. I automatically wrote it down as Lewis and she corrected it to Louis.

SecretNutellaFix · 08/06/2012 08:41

Lots of people drop the final "A" in my name. Pisses me right off.

munchymonster · 08/06/2012 08:42

I can't pronounce my own name Sad (Have a lisp)

SecretNutellaFix · 08/06/2012 08:43

I don't think there would be as many mispronunciations of Louis as there might have been ten years ago thanks to Louis Walsh on the x-factor.

Louis is a French name and the S is not pronounced, Lewis is English and the S is pronounced

PurplePidjin · 08/06/2012 08:51

My name (the shortened version I'm known by) begins with P and ends with Y. It's a fairly usual, if not overly popular, name and is commonly written in another context.

I have frequently been called Polly and Poppy and even, once, Pammy Hmm

I assume it says more about the other person and their lack of brain cells than either me or my name!

BenedictsCumberbitch · 08/06/2012 08:55

People often say my name with an e on the end instead of an a, it drives me nuts.

cory · 08/06/2012 09:29

Invariably (both me and dc)- because I'm foreign. Even dh can't really pronounce my first name.

Doesn't worry me at all- I just feel there are now two different pronunciations of my name. Dd uses an English diminutive of her name when she is out and about. Ds just accepts the two pronunciations.

But I think Louis is pretty safe due to X Factor.

Spicysalamander · 08/06/2012 09:32

Yes my name is often mispronounced and misspelt and noone understands when I say it (it's only 4 letters too). I give a fake name in Starbucks to save problems and hated being in a new class at school as it was often messed up on the register.

I wouldn't have thought Louis would have too much problems though, maybe he'd need to spell it but it's certainly pronounceable.

BadRoly · 08/06/2012 09:35

Yes and it is hugely irritating after a while. I am a Carolyn - pronounced Carol-in. Not Caroline. I am ok with strangers etc but I have one brother in law who has known me for 17 years and still insists on calling me Caroline Angry

SPsFanjoHarboursDeadCats · 08/06/2012 09:38

I don't but my son does. His name gets pronounced differently all the time. It's my fault though Blush

I named him Kailum which is pronounced as Kay-Lum. But as the name Kai is now popular he is often called Kai-Lum.

At the time of naming him I though spelling it like that would work as Kaitlin does. If had known Kai was going to become popular I wouldn't have named him this Grin

He also gets called Callum a lot.

FarelyKnuts · 08/06/2012 11:01

Yes.. Both my name and my DDs name seem to be unpronounceable to people at times. Can't say it bothers me much. I like having an unusual name and just politely correct people. It also means I rarely need use my surname which I dislike intensely :o

Kittenkatzen · 08/06/2012 11:17

Yes I have this problem....frustrating as my name is unusual, but really not difficult to pronounce - it's said exactly as it's spelt, but I still get called Caroline/Carly/Charlene/Colleen on a regular basis. Stood in Starbucks for 10mins once whilst they shouted for "Colin" to collect a drink!

On the OP though Louis is definitely "Looee", not "Lewis"

BlondeBluebird · 08/06/2012 11:19

Yep I have a Welsh name and now live in England..I am asked every single day if i have spelt my own name wrong and dont get me started on having my name called out in the dr's etc.

BlueberryPancake · 08/06/2012 11:20

I am French and people don't pronounce my name correctly and I don't mind. It's an unusual name (Josee) and it's pronounced Jo-sey but most people say Josie. I don't mind at all and never ask for it to be pronounced correctly. It doesn't bother me (I quite like Josie!)

ipanicked · 08/06/2012 11:31

Yes AND it's a 4 letter really simple, quite boringly normal name!

Which lead me to conclude when naming the DCs, that if people can't pronounce the most straightforward of names, there's no point even taking it into consideration Grin

BlueChampagne · 08/06/2012 13:22

Yes - it's annoying but I wouldn't change it. Agree with everyone who has said that Louis should be without the s sound and Lewis with.

MagdalenaAlec · 08/06/2012 15:02

Not mispronounced at all, but always shortened even by people I have just met: no English speaking person is apparently willing to say the 4 syllables, they always stop after the first two. Funny thing is that Magdalena is already a shortened version of the awfully long hyphenated name my parents have given me.
Alec sometimes gets "Al-eeeck"..

Louie is a bit weird to me, I think it is always better to use the "regular" spelling.

OhDoAdmitMrsDeVere · 08/06/2012 15:11

My surname is mispronounced ALL the sodding time.
It is an easy to pronounce name.
Think Mr Wedgwood.

People call me Mrs Josini, joshi, josiana, joshie.....
What is WRONG with people.

Just say it like it looks you dumbasses.

squoosh · 08/06/2012 15:16

Louis should be pronounced Looey as the French do. I'd imagine most European people would pronounce it this way.

In America they will definitely pronounce it Lewis. The American city St Louis is pronounced St Lewis.

It?s all a bit odd, the USA and UK seem to cherry pick which French words are pronounced in the French manner. The Americans pronounce fillet steak as fillAY, but we pronounce the T. We say valET, they say valAY.

Good name though!