Please give me your gut reaction too… Alima

[Picklemom]

Interested in anyone's first reaction to that name.

soap.. the sort thats supposed tomake your skin softer.. sorry

typing error would be my first thought if i saw it written down

sorry

It sounds Arabic to me. I think it's very pretty but then I love Arabic names.

Sounds like a car model....'The new Nissan Alima'
Yeh, don't do it

Sounds made up and a cleaning product.

A lemur.
Closely followed by Alimony.

As HamSandwich says, Alima means 'wise and learned woman' within a specifically Muslim context. It's also the title of what looks to me to be an admirable educational/development newsletter, though I have only given the website a very quick read-over.
see www.ikat.org/alima/

Great if you are a Muslim or a feminist devoted to women's educational opportunities, perhaps not advisable otherwise.

I had a good friend at school called Alima, although I think her full name was Alimatu. It's a lovely name, but then again she was a lovely person so I'm biased

It's almost as bad as Daelyn.

Makes me think of some sort of drug that helps with digestion! Don't like it at all, sorry

Alamo car hire

...but it's ok, you would get used to it

A-lee-ma or Al-i-ma?

Lacks strength and sounds made up.

I thought it sounded gynaecological so wasn't keen, however if it is a common name outside of the UK I think it is fine.

A lemur. Sorry.

A lemur. Lemurs are lovely.

Is it pr. a-LEE-ma or AL-i-ma?

If it's from another culture though, I'd just think 'that's a name from another culture' and immediately accept it as the child's name.

Also Lima bean and Llama - cos Lima is the capital of Peru and Llamas live there.

It's Arabic and it means a female scholar or someone knowledgable/expert. Wouldn't personally go for it.

The Alima I know (who is very lovely and suits the feminist/scholar definition given up thread uncannily well) pronounces it a-LEE-ma.

Thing is, being introduced to someone with any name creates a totally different impression from looking at a name on a page.

So, in person, I'd think 'nice girl, her name's Alima'. In that context, I'd be more likely to think of other names; Alison, Selina, Amelie, Salima (is that a name? Pops up in my head) as I'd be making sure I'd distinguished it mentally, so might remember it properly.

"Lacks strength and sounds made up."

I see these comments on MN, and they really puzzle me having grown up in zone 2 London. Perhaps it's because since childhood (80s!) I've know Alimas and other Arabic names all the time. So to me it's completely normal.

I wonder if there's a middle-Eastern mumsnet where they say "Sophie/James/Tarquin ... sounds weak and made up."

Ive heard of a halima if that helps

I thought slimming pill too! Probably one that gives you the sharts.

Sorry

A Lima Bean