What do you think?
A couple sought advice online about the name they had chosen for their daughter – Felicia.
Their reason for asking people’s opinion was down to the pronunciation of that name which they wanted to change. You’d probably read Felicia as “Fel-eesh-ia” right? Well, they want people to say “Fuh-liss-ee-a”.
They wrote on Mumsnet:
“My husband and I like the name Felicia. But we would pronounce it ‘Fuh-liss-ee-a’ rather than like ‘Feleesha’.
What would you think if you saw a baby with this name? Would people always pronounce it wrong?”
This did not go down well online. Here is what some users responded:
One person said, “I’d hate you for it. You can’t go using a name and choosing your own random pronunciation for it and not expect your child to be properly p***** off with you.””Don’t give your child a name you are going to deliberately mispronounce.”
While another commented, “Don’t give your child a name you are going to deliberately mispronounce.”
One other user said, “Could you change it to your spelling? It might look a bit odd but there would be no mistaking how it should be pronounced.”
And another added, “You’re sitting there tossing names about between yourselves, and yes, you’re naming your child, but at the end of the day, what is more or less an academic exercise for you is going to be something your daughter has to live with for the rest of her life (or until she turns eighteen and scrapes together the money for a name change). Don’t do it.”
One other, slightly angry person said, “Don’t do it. People will use the correct pronounciation mispronounce her name for all her life. Either use the common pronounciation or give her a different name.”
