Arkady, Anatoly, Artem

[sillydecision]

These are very old school (apart from Artem) Eastern European names, you wouldn't see people using them now, but I have started to think they are actually quite nice sounding?

Artem - nn Artie
Anatoly - nn Toly
Arkady - nn Arky?

What do you honestly think of those?

Hi again Op, I've been mulling your dilemma and I thought maybe a solution to the pronunciation difficulty with Artem could be using the nickname Tom/Tommy; if your son is generally known as Tom or Tommy, correct pronunciation of Artem follows naturally.

Is it

Arcade-y

Or Ark-kady?

Fine for Russia, though I was used to hearing Tolya there. I actually like all three names.

For all that is holy, however, don't call a child in Scotland Toly - here it means "a piece of excrement". https://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/sndns3884

(Also, don't call a child in Russia Hughie. It sounds too much like a Russian word for '"prick.")

I really like Arkady and Artem! Not so keen on the nicknames though

No. The end sound isn't "tom" in Russian, it's "tyom".

I like Arkady but it’s because I associate it with a character from a series of books, not so keen on the other two.

If it’s your heritage fine. Otherwise it’s weird.

Yes I know how to pronouce Artëm. My point is that English speakers given the clue "Tom" would be more likely to get it right.

Yes, use an Estonian name ...
Marek
Raul
Igor
Olaf
Alek

All the names are lovely!

As someone with a name that is constantly mispronounced (as are my DDs), I would advise choosing one that’s easy to pronounce for people in the country in which you live.

I think, as most of us on here are not Estonian or Russian, it's difficult to comment.

Awful OP. I’m sure they are lovely names in Estonia but in the UK please don’t.

I watch NCIS Los Angeles... all the Russian mobster names. Would have a negative connotation for me.

In my accent everyone would think Arkady was ‘our Cady’ , ‘our’ bring the usual regional prefix when discussing any family member.

I like Artem / Arti
And Toly

But I agree, in our S London schools kids and parents are completely used to the idea that names come from all over the world and manage to use Polish, Vietnamese, Nigerian, Portuguese, Irish etc etc names without the sniggering or other reactions from a typical MN thread featuring names that are not rooted in Anglo Saxon or the bible.

I love Anatoly! Because of war and peace I think

I was just about to post the Little England comment myself!

I’m actually a lover of a staid, trad British name but wow: what a lot of small-minded rudeness on this thread!!

Normally MN likes to think of themselves as “ cul-chured” because they sometimes go to France or Spain or even “somewhere in Asia” on holiday. Obviously these names were a little outside their frame of reference …

Of these names, Artem my favourite op and I’m not sure it needs a Nn. Artie is often used as short for Arthur but growing up the one I knew was called Farty Arty so I wouldn’t bother: just stick with Artem. There are a few Artemises popping up now ( Little England CAN manage classical studies and seem to like to think of spawning a little God or Goddess) so I can’t see why Artem should be too much of a stretch.

Rude, small-minded posts on this thread. However the “poo” comment might have been helpful if not buried amongst such disparaging replies. I’d avoid that Nn.

The poor kid 🙁 they'll be teased for life!

I think it’s pronounced with an “s”: “ Sarky Lady.”

Having looked this up out of interest, it turns out they are all Greek in origin, ie they are Slavic/Russian versions of the names I had associated them with. So much for the snotty comment from PP.

Go for it @sillydecision if you like them, although I think the Greek versions may be more recognisable to a British ear.

I never met a nice Artem, so I dislike that one. I like Arkedy, but d worry he'd have a life time of being called shopping centre in some parts of the UK.
My DC have traditional Irish and Welsh names, that no-one can spell or pronounce initially, and it's never been a problem.

Well it’s probably not been a problem because most people make an effort to be culturally respectful and learn to pronounce things properly without just saying:” yuk! That sounds foreign. Let’s give them a hard time about it.” I cannot believe this thread.

If these names are from your culture then it’s absolutely right that you should choose a name reflecting that culture and people will get used to them, just as they have got used to all the other names from cultures they weren’t bought up with. I don’t think it’s a good idea to post on a mainly British forum as ask what people think of the names per se, as you will get some of the responses already seen here. Some posters are unable to see outside of white, middle class and whether they think a name will suit someone as a high court judge in future 🙄

Could you possibly go with Artur, as it might be more easy across both languages. Otherwise I think Artem is good, however he will have to constantly tell people how to say it. What about Anton?

I LOVE Arkady! There’s a very cool character in a book I love with this name but I have no relevant heritage so didn’t call my child this. But you should 😊