Spelling of name

[essexmuma]

We've decided to call our daughter, due soon, Esmèe. We're decided on the name & love it so please no hate, but we can't seem to decide / agree on the spelling. We want it to be pronounced Ez-may not Ez-mee hence the accent use. Whilst I agree Esmè looks a bit neater, I can't shift the thought that I know Esmèe is the correct feminine spelling of the name and Esmè is masculine ( I speak French although am not French ) & thought if we're going to use it we should it properly but now I feel unsure. Thoughts?

I would stick with Esmèe. Beautiful name, good luck OP.

I think it should be an acute accent rather than a grave

@Mustangsallyis

I think it should be an acute accent rather than a grave

You are totally right! I meant Esmée ( I've spelt it wrong already- not a great sign )

We want it to be pronounced Ez-may not Ez-mee hence the accent use.

I wouldnt worry too much about the spelling. I think it's one of those names that regardless of which you choose it will be pronounced both ways.

I had a friend at school whose name involved an acute accent. It caused her a total nightmare and still does, many digital forms don't allow you to add the accent too.

Esme or Esmee is fine as it is, I think.

Esme/Esmé is the more common spelling, but Esmée is fine too. Definitely not Esmèe (ez-meh) though

I know what the accents SHOULD mean, but my instincts (and I suspect those of a lot of Brits) is to pronounce one E as "Ez-ME" and EE as "Ez-MAY". You will always be correct, but unfortunately that won't stop the wrong pronunciations.

Appologies, I really should learn to proof read. One E would equal Ez-MAY, two would equal Ez-MEE.

I've only ever seen the spelling of Esme with the pronunciation of 'ezmay'. If I saw Esmee I would immediately think 'ezmee', accent or not.

Could be different here in Australia than in the UK but for what it's worth, I really like Esme.

Too E’s would make me pronounce it Ez-mee one Ez-may.
Sorry.

Just throwing this into the mix...I have 2 currently in my class, both spelt with an 'a' which I hadn't encountered before...like this: Esmae 🤷‍♀️

(Neither with any kind of accent on...but I guess at least with the 'mae' ending, there's no disputing the pronunciation 🤣)

I would pronounce Esmee without the accent as me, not may, and since in English most accents frequently get missed off I don't think it will solve your problem. Might as well use Esme (unless you genuinely prefer Esmee).

Fwiw I pronounce Esme as me, but Esmae and Esmee-with-accent as may by default. But if I met one who corrected my pronunciation it wouldn't be a problem.

My son went to primary school with two Mias - both pronounced differently - one my/ya the other Mi/ya - it never posed a problem

Esmé is the traditional male spelling, Esmée the feminine spelling.

In England people will mispronounce the name a lot. It's neither Esmee nor Esmay. It's a sound inbetween that doesn't exist in English.

But if you want it pronounced Esmay I'd spell it Esmay or Esmae.

I think you are VASTLY over estimating the knowledge of the general population of the UK, of French pronunciation, and of the use of accents.
I would go with Esme for the spelling (which I would say "Ez-may") and just accept it is one of those names people say differently and your child will spend their life correcting people. It will be a LOT easier for them in life to say "My name is Esme, spelt E.S.M.E" than trying to explain to everyone in a call centre / hospital / million and one other places where you have to give your name that it needs accents and this accent is a slpey line one way and that accent is a slopey line the other way, and then this is how you get that on your keyboard .......

at least with the 'mae' ending, there's no disputing the pronunciation

Exactly

My perspective. I have a name people struggle to pronounce and spell here in England.

It’s ok. Spell it properly as Esmée. People will get it wrong sometimes but it’s fine. Even if you spell it phonetically as Esmae, people are still going to pronounce it wrong. Just spell it right, it’ll be fine.

The Esmé spelling and accent has been used in the UK for about 400 years so although Esmée is the French standard form, I think people will have less trouble with the one "e". Historically, the British name (short for Esmeralda when first introduced) was pronounced /ezmi:/ then as the French version also became popular the pronunciation shifted to be more like that.
On another thread I (boringly) go on about the phonological difference between a French /e/ and an English one.
Without the accent, I think you'd get a combination of /ezmei/ and /ezmi:/ pronunciations.

Lovely name.

I've only ever seen the Esme spelling.
It has always been pronounced EZmee.

I've only learned of the Ezmay pronunciation through Mumsnet.

The correct spelling is Esmée, pronounced Esmay.

She will likely be Ezmee, Ezmay, Ezmay, Esme, Esmee, Esmèe, Esmè, Esmé

Nice name but the other spellings would put me off

You’ll get different pronunciations- is it an ay sound or ee sound? Is it a z sound or an s sound? Then you have the spelling… Do not spell it with a grave accent. Ever. Do not spell it as Esmae. Ever. Esme or Esmée are your best options. But they’ll both get mangled.

English speakers won't know the meaning of the accent though so please don't bother with it. Just call her Esme.

@KirstenBlest

The correct spelling is Esmée, pronounced Esmay.

She will likely be Ezmee, Ezmay, Ezmay, Esme, Esmee, Esmèe, Esmè, Esmé

Nice name but the other spellings would put me off

Unless you're using one of the other correct spellings like the one that's been used in the UK since the early 16th century.

@CloseYourEyesAndSee

English speakers won't know the meaning of the accent though so please don't bother with it. Just call her Esme.

Speak for yourself

@Geamhradh I speak french myself, but it's a fact that the vast majority of English (as a first language) speakers don't
Silly to pretend otherwise