Straw Poll - How would you pronounce the name Esme?

[SweetEm]

My dd is called Esme (we don't bother with the acute accent). I pronounce it "Ez-me" but she is always getting "Ez-may". I know both ways are valid pronunciations. Just wondered whether I was in the minority/majority.

I say Ez-may

Ez mee

Ez Mee. A lof of people think it's French, because it sounds French, but it's not used in France.

It was first used in Scotland as a feminine form of Edmond or a short form for Edwina.

Just because a name sounds French doesn't MAKE it French, but lots of people have over the years got carried away and thrown an accent on it.

Their perogative if it's their daughter of course!! But, origins aren't French.

Ez-may

My dd's friend hates Ez-me, and only likes Es-may!

essss-may soft ssss emphasis

Ezmee

Ez may

Pretty evenly split then!
We are up north, btw, and both pronunciations are in use around here.

LiffeyMermaid - I did not know that about the origin of the name. We picked the it from a baby name book (which I'm sure said it was french in origin but will bow to your superior knowledge ).

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esm%C3%A9_Stewart,_1st_Duke_of_Lennox Boy's name] - with an accent!

Ahem

Boy's name - with an accent!

Actually, I was aware it could be used as a boys name. But like evelyn and hillary I bet you don't get many of those these days...

ess may in scotland

Ez - mee

No offence to your baby book, but I bet it just lazily re-hashed a commonly held misconception!

My great aunt Esme was born 1908. She was named after her Scottish Mother .

My Dad's sister is xxxxx Esme and my cousin's dd's mn is Esme. So I@m fully esmed up to the eyeballs! A friend has one too. She calls her Ezmay though, which is a kind of torture for me

I once read the informtation about it being Scottish etc in an old hardback dusty name book, which predates the resurgence of Esme by at least 40 yrs!

Ez-may

Ez-may

ez may

Ez-may for the one I know. Her parents call her Ezzie as a NN.

that sounds too close to lezzie

dd2 ia es-mee, but she often gets called es-may...

Ez - may for me too
never ever heard is pronounced Ez - meee !