Active discussions

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Original poster

How would you pronounce Esme?

70 replies

JojoMags · 09/05/2013 17:43

I think this is beautiful pn Es-may but ordinary pn Es-me. Would I be fighting a losing battle against a tide of Es-me if we used this?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Set a reminder
poppyknot · 09/05/2013 20:07

Or Emzy as did used to say.....

ShadowStorm · 09/05/2013 20:07

Es-mee

Original poster
JojoMags · 09/05/2013 20:09

Goodness. Fifty-fifty by the sounds of it.

OP posts:
Ohhelpohnoitsa · 09/05/2013 20:11

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

EskSmith · 09/05/2013 20:12

Dd2 is an Esmé ( pn Ez May)

She corrects people who pronounce it Ez me (she also insists on her accent which I always said I wouldn't be precious about)

I am of course biased but it is a lovely name ;)

daisydoodoo · 09/05/2013 20:13

My dd2's name and its pronounced ez may. Never heard es me before.

TreeLuLa · 09/05/2013 20:13

Es - me.

Makes me think of a pale, pasty child. DOn't know why - I have never met an Esme!

daisydoodoo · 09/05/2013 20:14

Dd2 is only 3 and we call her ez mainly but she does say ez may if asked her name.

EskSmith · 09/05/2013 20:14

She is 4 btw. What helped cement the proper pronunciation with extended family was that dd1 used to call her May-May :)

TobyLerone · 09/05/2013 20:15

It's Ez-me. It's Ez-may if it's Esmé.

DD is an Ez-me.

Geraldandhisgiraffe · 09/05/2013 20:16

I knew an es me growing up. Ez may sounds very strange to me.

TobyLerone · 09/05/2013 20:17

And nobody has ever made a joke of it (can't remember who said it was a 'joke' name). She's 12, so there's been plenty of opportunity.

TidyDancer · 09/05/2013 20:21

I know two people with the name Esme, and both go by ez-me.

Much prettier than Es-may IMO.

miffybun73 · 09/05/2013 20:22

Definitely Ez-may to me, rather than Es-may or Es-me, but maybe I'm wrong. Beautiful name :)

Cocodale · 09/05/2013 20:25

Esmay x

squoosh · 09/05/2013 20:26

I think the Es-may pronunciation is much, much nicer. Es-me makes me think of a mousy little old woman in a tweed skirt.

You could put the accent on it Esmée, people would be more likly to pronounce it in your preferred way then.

EleanorFarjeon · 09/05/2013 20:27

I know one and she's Ez-me, which is far nicer than Es-may imo.

zzzzz · 09/05/2013 20:28

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

NumTumDeDum · 09/05/2013 20:29

Ez may. It's in the Twilight film. So it's law.

oldfatandtired1 · 09/05/2013 20:32

Ez-may. (There's an 'acute' on the end 'e' in French, no?)

LaydeeC · 09/05/2013 20:45

Es-me definitely
Es-may sounds odd to my ear.
I have known three of them (inc my 14 yo) all pn Es-me
Love it, obviously!

chattychattyboomba · 09/05/2013 20:51

Ez-may to me. You could avoid the Esme pronunciation by writing it Esmé or Esmae?
Don't usually go for unusual spelling though.

LemonBreeland · 09/05/2013 20:57

I think it depends on where you live as to how it would be pronounced.

I'm up north and would say Esmee, but feel southerners would be more likely to say Esmay.

TobyLerone · 09/05/2013 21:03

I'm a southerner. Everyone says Ez-me.

It was also an elderly relative's name and she was Ez-me and from Belfast.

Ham69 · 09/05/2013 21:11

I'm a southerner and my DD's Esme pronounced 'Ezmee'. Whoever said it's a 'joke' name must be 'hilarious'. Not heard that one and my DD's 4.