Unusual Spellings of Names

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I discovered today that we have a Lindsie working for us. Now I've met Lindsays and Lindseys and even Linseys, but Lindsie is a new variant as far as I'm concerned.

Do you know of any ppl with quite ordinary-sounding names with odd spellings?

― MarkH (MarkH), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:05 (twenty-three years ago)

I suppose as well as Mark and Marc, its conceivable that there's a Marque out there somewhere....

― MarkH (MarkH), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:06 (twenty-three years ago)

I'm Irish. We add 'gh' 'dh' and 'aigh' to the end of nearly everything.

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:09 (twenty-three years ago)

yes, I've seen Padraigh I think.

― MarkH (MarkH), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:10 (twenty-three years ago)

And Clodagh and Shonagh and Tadhg and Murtaigh.

I thank my parents for their lack of patriotism in choosing my name.
.

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:14 (twenty-three years ago)

ha ha ha

― Tadhg (llamasfur), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:21 (twenty-three years ago)

A few years ago the Irish golfer Padraig Harrington played in Australia for the first time and when he led into the second day of the Aus Masters the newsreader giving progess reports kept pronouncing his name the proper Irish way, ie 'Porrig'. As BallyK was unknown in Aus at that time, nobody knew that was correct and the switchboard was jammed with calls accusing the newsreader of calling him 'Porridge' and taking the mickey.

― Fred Nerk, Friday, 24 January 2003 10:38 (twenty-three years ago)

I know a guy who spells Iain as Eeyin

― smee (smee), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:40 (twenty-three years ago)

He is a fule.

My friend Grainne spent a year in Sydney being called 'Groin'.

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:40 (twenty-three years ago)

how the hell does one pronounce "griannon of aileach"?

― Tad (llamasfur), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:44 (twenty-three years ago)

Gree[as in green]-Anne-On of Al [like in Alan]-Och[as in Scottish Loch].

So: Gree-Anne-On of Al-Och.

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:47 (twenty-three years ago)

"My friend Grainne spent a year in Sydney being called 'Groin'."

Groin aint that far away from Groin-ya really!

― smee (smee), Friday, 24 January 2003 10:59 (twenty-three years ago)

That sounds like something someone might use as a threat, "If you do that again I'll groin ya!"

― MarkH (MarkH), Friday, 24 January 2003 11:00 (twenty-three years ago)

my sister is Filippa with an F, not a Ph.

― chris (chris), Friday, 24 January 2003 11:08 (twenty-three years ago)

I have met a Collin and dated a Coleen.

― Colin Meeder (Mert), Friday, 24 January 2003 11:08 (twenty-three years ago)

my old flatmate was at one time going out with a girl called Lynn, which just happens to be his Dad's name too.

― chris (chris), Friday, 24 January 2003 11:22 (twenty-three years ago)

Picture the text message confusions brought about by:

Boyfriend: Nick
Sister: Nickie
Boss: Nigel

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 11:24 (twenty-three years ago)

We called each other "Col-head".

― Colin Meeder (Mert), Friday, 24 January 2003 11:25 (twenty-three years ago)

Chris's post reminds me of a conversation Somebody Told Me They Heard (ie I can't vouch for its total truth) between two Scotch College students (SC being THE school of choice for the 'born to rules' of Melbourne) on the tram going home. The names are made up. I mean no offence to him or anybody else.

NIGEL: One way you can tell what religious background people have is by asking them to spell the name 'Phillip'.

TARQUIN: How does that work?

NIGEL: Well if you went to a Protestant school like Scotch, you spell it with one L. If you went to a Mick school like Xavier, you spell it with two.

TARQUIN: What if you didn't go to a church school at all? What if, for instance, you went to Broady High School?

NIGEL (looking puzzled for a moment before replying:) Then you'd most likely spell it with an F!

― Fred Nerk, Friday, 24 January 2003 12:00 (twenty-three years ago)

surname Hooly, Holly, Hoolee Holy Hawlee
Hugh de Lee!... some small man wandering around a meadow in fourteenth century Yorkshire; the Archbishop of 9th century Rouen or some Viking from futher up the Continents. I must confess my surname is some sort of an old joke.

― Gordon (Gordon), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:03 (twenty-three years ago)

I know a chap called Simon de Bouvier de Lisle. He is an arse.

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:04 (twenty-three years ago)

So am I... not Eirse... Arse? Ass? Bugger? A fearsum Edjit? Totally useless heterosexual. Dresses nicely sometimes.

― Gordon (Gordon), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:11 (twenty-three years ago)

My sister named her kids Erynne and Darragh. (pronounced Erin and Dar-ah)

― Kim (Kim), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:17 (twenty-three years ago)

V. Irish-American.

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:19 (twenty-three years ago)

A friend is called Caelen. There aren't a lot of Caelen, cause his parents made the name up.

And a friend called Eoghan (Owen) spent a fair amount of time in the states when younger, with the result that he's now known as Yoggan.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:24 (twenty-three years ago)

having been stuck with an ethnic first name (and mine wasn't even the worst when i was in grade school -- imagine being some poor schlumpy kid with a name like Wassyl, Claes, and Moishe), i really don't know why anyone would want to saddle the kid with such a thing. my kids are going to have names like "paul" or "lauren," thank y' much.

― Tad (llamasfur), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:26 (twenty-three years ago)

Siobhan Fahey OWNS this thread!

its pronounced Shi-varn or Shi-vorn depending on whether you're Irish or English I suppose...only Irish girls are called Siobhan I guess - I knew a couple at school but have met none since...

― stevem (blueski), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:28 (twenty-three years ago)

Siobahn is a k popular name is Scotland.

― smee (smee), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:29 (twenty-three years ago)

And Ireland. The Gaels are kicking bottom!

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 12:30 (twenty-three years ago)

i have an unusual spelling of my name. most spell kilian as killian or cillian. Only one 'l', see? CRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAZEEEEEEEE!

― weasel diesel (K1l14n), Friday, 24 January 2003 13:07 (twenty-three years ago)

Hurrah for an Irish last name but an abrupt Anglo-Saxon first one. ;-)

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 24 January 2003 15:19 (twenty-three years ago)

that basketball player called anfernee

― minna (minna), Friday, 24 January 2003 15:40 (twenty-three years ago)

Lots of girls in the US are named Caitlin, which they pronounce "kate-lin." Isn't it pronounced differently in Irish/Gaelic?

Isn't there some heavy-metal boob named Zakk Wylde, or some such?

― JD (JND), Friday, 24 January 2003 15:41 (twenty-three years ago)

I grew up caught between tons of Mormons who tended to name their kids weird (actually most common was to name all twelve kids with names starting with the same letter and then you start running out of good names at the end) and mexican/mexican-american population that was really more rooted in Apache or Tohono O'Odham or Aztec tradition than any latin influence. The Aztec names were the worst for an anglo like me...I actually dated a guy whose name I never learned how to pronounce. I think there were at least two x's. He was known as Cookie for some reason. 'Chuy' (chewy) was also a common nickname for the aztec boys. I remember Xochitl as a common name for boys and girls.

― teeny (teeny), Friday, 24 January 2003 15:52 (twenty-three years ago)

Caitlin is pronounced Kate-lynn. However if spelled with a fada on the last 'i' it would be pronounced Kathleen.

Most Gaelic names are crud.

― Lara (Lara), Friday, 24 January 2003 15:56 (twenty-three years ago)

Xochitl is fairly common in Mexico, as is Cuauhtemoc. Some patriots there even go so far as to name their children things like Xoxopehualoc or Huitzilxochtzin.

― JD (JND), Friday, 24 January 2003 16:07 (twenty-three years ago)

We hosted an exchange student for a summer - his name was Chiyasit Chaichanasuwat. Kinda cool sounding, I thought. But his nickname (which he explained was a dimunitive of his first name) was Beeac (pronounced Bee-uck). Not totally applicable to this thread, but I love walking around saying "Chiyasit Chichanasuwat." It's rhythmic and calming - a little mantra.

― LCD (Ms Laura), Friday, 24 January 2003 16:10 (twenty-three years ago)

Crystal, Chrystal, Crystaal, Crystall, Christale, Cristale...and then of course you spell it with a "k" for even more possibilites.

― Genevieve, Friday, 24 January 2003 16:18 (twenty-three years ago)

Bryon, Bryan

― A Nairn (moretap), Friday, 24 January 2003 16:20 (twenty-three years ago)

My dad has a name that used to be more a boy's name and is now more a girl's name, so once this girl asked me, "Your parents are LESBIANS?" that's not spelling-related though.

Ashley and Stephanie have lots of different spellings. Also Lauren/Loren/Lauryn/etc.

― Maria (Maria), Friday, 24 January 2003 16:24 (twenty-three years ago)

I know a Sian who is spelt 'Sjaan'. And a Tamsin whose dad couldn't pronounce her name (makes you wonder why they chose it) so they changed it to Tasmin.

― Archel (Archel), Friday, 24 January 2003 16:35 (twenty-three years ago)

and then she had a big hit with Sleeping Satellite.

― MarkH (MarkH), Friday, 24 January 2003 16:37 (twenty-three years ago)

Oh, I forgot this thread was about unusual spellings, not just unusual names. the mormons own this thread, see my above link. I knew a Stephfanii. (ph + f = why god why?)

― teeny (teeny), Friday, 24 January 2003 19:05 (twenty-three years ago)

I once worked in a building (72 employees, including cleaning staff, maintenance, etc.) where there were:

Two "Laura"s
One "Lara"
Two "Laurie"s
One "Laurey"
One "Lora"
One "Laurel"
One "Lawrence"
One "Larry"

An my friend of fourteen years still spells my name "Lorra."

― I'm Passing Open Windows (Ms Laura), Saturday, 25 January 2003 06:21 (twenty-three years ago)

i once heard of a girl in wales whose parents named her yvonne, only they thought it was pronounced Y-vaun-E and thats what everyone called her.

i have a friend whose sisters name is shona, spelt seonad. it's galic aparently.

― Dave (Dave), Saturday, 25 January 2003 11:08 (twenty-three years ago)

A friend once lived with a girl named M'lissa.

― Amateurist (amateurist), Saturday, 25 January 2003 21:27 (twenty-three years ago)

apostrophes in names are cool

― A Nairn (moretap), Saturday, 25 January 2003 21:57 (twenty-three years ago)

Whenever I have to spell my name I feel very rebellious 14-year old. Which is all-together too true.

― Mandee, Sunday, 26 January 2003 01:08 (twenty-three years ago)

('postrothy rox! heh, heh)

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Sunday, 26 January 2003 01:13 (twenty-three years ago)

('''''''P'' !!!)
(oh shame)
(*weep*weep*)

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Sunday, 26 January 2003 01:15 (twenty-three years ago)

I went to public school in Chicago so I've met a lot of big black girls named Shavon, but then I met this tiny pale white girl named Siobhan... Same pronunciation.

― phil-two, Sunday, 26 January 2003 01:38 (twenty-three years ago)

i know of someone named fanesia, but she claims it is pronounced phoenicia.

― keith (keithmcl), Sunday, 26 January 2003 01:43 (twenty-three years ago)

an old friend of mine once babysat for twins named "lemonjello" and "orangejello" -- leMAHNzhello and orAHNzhello.
hi.

― kirsten k (kirsten), Sunday, 26 January 2003 02:31 (twenty-three years ago)

You are Kirsten and I claim my ten pounds

― N. (nickdastoor), Sunday, 26 January 2003 02:35 (twenty-three years ago)

i am kirsten, but why do i owe you ten pounds?

― kirsten k (kirsten), Sunday, 26 January 2003 02:37 (twenty-three years ago)

It's a Brighton Rock thing.

Richard just pointed out to me that you has posted

― N. (nickdastoor), Sunday, 26 January 2003 02:39 (twenty-three years ago)

Oh god, not the Orangejello and Lemonjello twins.

― rosemary (rosemary), Sunday, 26 January 2003 02:50 (twenty-three years ago)

oh dear, are lemonjello and orangejello a joke? i was so excited when my friend told me about them. if it was a lie, i'll be crushed.

― kirsten k (kirsten), Sunday, 26 January 2003 02:54 (twenty-three years ago)

I dated someone who played football with them

― luna (luna.c), Sunday, 26 January 2003 07:11 (twenty-three years ago)

At the school across the street from us, there's a kid named Jaqcob.

― Poppy (poppy), Sunday, 26 January 2003 07:17 (twenty-three years ago)

SanDeE* (Sarah Jessica Parker in L.A. Story) owns this thread. Actually, my sister owns this thread - she used (silent) numbers, among other things.

apostrophes in names are cool
n.b. Michel'le

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Sunday, 26 January 2003 07:48 (twenty-three years ago)

three years pass...

i know a jenifer (one n) and a cymon (lucky bastard; why couldn't i have had that?) and right now i'm working with a larraine.

my life rocks.

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Wednesday, 19 April 2006 21:56 (twenty years ago)

I'm friends with a Kr1st3f3r (OK, I've googleproofed that in case he finds it, he doesn't actually spell it with numbers in it, but that would be way cooler if he did).

I'm a bit surprised that people think that traditional Gaelic spellings of names come under the same categories of unusualness as things like Fanesia or Cymon.

― ailsa (ailsa), Wednesday, 19 April 2006 22:12 (twenty years ago)

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