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Original poster

Pronunciation of Esme

172 replies

Halfpastfreckle · 02/09/2018 09:56

We had pretty much decided on this name if this baby (currently 32 weeks) is a girl. I think of it as es-may. However at the park yesterday I heard one little boy call out to his sister Es-mee. Don’t like this at all and frankly it is putting me off. Is this a common pronunciation of the name??

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MikeUniformMike · 03/09/2018 19:53

R'nay

Mayhemmumma · 03/09/2018 19:55

I thought esmay too but a friend has an es me....I like both.

Glumglowworm · 03/09/2018 19:57

I prefer Es-me

I don’t speak French at all (did German at school) so the accent on the e doesn’t tell me how to pronounce it as I don’t know the rules of French pronounciation

OhBergine · 03/09/2018 20:37

Only ever heard Ez-mee. I don't like Ez-may at all.

Sunflower321 · 03/09/2018 20:44

Esmé is pronounced Es-meh, to rhyme with Café or Nestlé. It's a sound between meh and may, hard to describe in English.

And yes, Esmée is feminine and Esmé masculine in French.

TheDowagerCuntess · 03/09/2018 20:58

R'nay

Exactly. Can't imagine anyone pronouncing it R'nee.

CormoranStrike · 03/09/2018 21:15

I have only ever heard it pronounced Ez May.

hellsbells552 · 04/09/2018 07:37

Dowager - that’s because the accent on the first e tells you to say ‘ay’. If the spelling was Rene then we’d be having the same debate, although if I saw that I’d assume they’d forgotten the accent and would still pronounce it R’nay, but only because I’ve never heard R’nee used - unlike Es-mi.

TheHollowLeggedGoat · 04/09/2018 07:48

I always would say Ez-may unless corrected; I see it as a French origin name with an accent on the E.

n0ne · 04/09/2018 07:57

I've never heard the Esmee pronunciation, how odd! It's Esmay to me, Esmee sounds really weird.

And I feel your pain about Louis - such a lovely name and clearly not pronounced Lewis!

Sunflower321 · 04/09/2018 09:15

the accent on the first e tells you to say ‘ay

The é accent tells you to say é or eh, not ay or ee. It's a French sound that doesn't really exist in English.

OutPinked · 04/09/2018 16:01

Ez may

TheDowagerCuntess · 04/09/2018 18:13

although if I saw that I’d assume they’d forgotten the accent and would still pronounce it R’nay, but only because I’ve never heard R’nee used - unlike Es-mi.

Well, that's kind of my point.

Why does a different, arbitrary rule apply to Esme, such that people would pronounce it Es-mi? If you (generic) would pronounce it R'nee under the same circs, why would you pronounce it Es-mi?

Sunflower321 · 04/09/2018 18:58

Probably best to use the accent, Esmé. That makes it clear that it should be pronounced the French way.

Esme, Esmae or Esmi can be pronounced differently.

Lookingforadvice123 · 04/09/2018 20:25

BIL's daughter is Esme and I thought it was Es-may, (it only makes me think of Ren-esme from Twilight Grin) but I did check. They do say Es-may but I can imagine it's one of those names that's pronounced both ways, sorry!

Meltedicicle · 04/09/2018 20:32

I would say Esmee. There is an Esmai DD’s school and the mum spelt it like that to ensure Esmay pronunciation!

tazzy73 · 04/09/2018 21:57

Never heard Es-mee pronunciation till this tread!!

It's Es-may sound in Ireland Smile

Original poster
Halfpastfreckle · 05/09/2018 06:42

Thanks so much for the on-going replies. I totally get that esmee (with an accent over the second e) is the correct French spelling for the feminine and that is important to me (to get it right) however I wonder if that would just encourage the es-mee/es-mi pronunciation??
Reading back through the replies I think somebody said it doesn’t matter so much as a potential middle name but it’s the potential first name (family names will be middle names).
My son seems really taken with Esme over Isla and says it clearly with a little smile on his face ❤️❤️ Which is swaying me back to it a bit. Surely I’d only have to correct people once if they said it wrong and there’s enough people on this thread adamant it’s es-may to give me some comfort?!

OP posts:
Sunflower321 · 05/09/2018 06:57

If you prefer the French pronunciation, I'd spell it with the accent. Pronounced Es-mé.

In English you could also spell it either Esmae (Es-may) or Esme (often mispronounced Es--me).

TheDowagerCuntess · 05/09/2018 07:44

I really wouldn't let the fact that some people mispronounce it put you off.

DD has a name that can be pronounced one of three ways. Yes, people sometimes get it wrong first off, but once they know her pronunciation, they don't make the mistake again.

dancingunicorns123 · 05/09/2018 10:55

Ez may

hellsbells552 · 05/09/2018 16:33

@Sunflower321 yes I know, but with an English accent it will be ‘ay’!

Sunflower321 · 05/09/2018 16:55

If the English pronounce Café and Esmé as Cafay and Esmay, ok then Smile.

Anylouu · 05/09/2018 17:03

I personally have never heard as Es-mee,
I love the name Esmé but would pronounce it as Ez-may

MadisonAvenue · 05/09/2018 17:07

The only one I’ve ever known was a customer at a hair salon I worked at in the 80s and we - and she - all pronounced it as Ezmee.