# "Creative" name spelling- your opinions, please

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [April 2, 2007, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422 "2007-04-02T14:39:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 8

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**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/141 "2007-04-04T01:24:37Z")

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[QUOTE=5-4-Fighting]  
[They still ask, “Is Vernon your first name or your last name?” The format – LastName [comma] FirstName – clearly lays out which is which.  
[/QUOTE]

Anyone else wondering if **5-4-Fighting** ’s last name is Dursley?

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**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/142 "2007-04-04T01:34:53Z")

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If I ever have a daughter, I’m going to name her Sera, (pronounced “Sarah”). Why? Because my last name (Serum) has always struck me odd. I figure why not have a little fun with it?

For those of you who don’t get it…

“sera” is the plural of “serum.”

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**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/143 "2007-04-04T01:38:28Z")

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[QUOTE=Rysto]  
Anyone else wondering if **5-4-Fighting** ’s last name is Dursley?  
[/QUOTE]  
You, in the closet under the stairs, this instant!

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**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/144 "2007-04-04T02:05:27Z")

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[QUOTE=Mirror Image egamI rorriM]  
I wish people would actually say their names instead of saying “Well, most people spell it with a C in the front and then PH in the back, but I spell it with a K in front and an F in the back.” Because, honestly, it might make sense to you, but it confuses me.

For the record, the once slightly unusual spelling of my name is now becoming more popular due to Lindsay Lohan. Now it’s more likely for people to write Lindsay then Lindsey.  
[/QUOTE]

Two things (and I say this as a Lindsay ;)). First, while Lindsa/ey isn’t a _hugely_ popular name, I’ve actually met more Lindsays than Lindseys. Growing up, it always seemed that both spellings got equal play (to where I was always asked “is that a-y or e-y?”).

Second, I have to call you out on that last sentence because for some reason, lately _every goddamn person wants to spell my name with the goddamned ‘e’_. That never _ever_ happened before about 5 years ago. Since Lohan spells it like me (and hell, Lindsay Wagner\* does, too), I have no clue why the consensus seems to be assume that it’s spelled Lindsey.

- [sub]My namesake. My dad had a huuuuuge crush on the Bionic Woman. It could be worse. He first suggested that I be named Farrah. That wouldn’t date me at alllllll… [/sub]

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**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/145 "2007-04-04T02:08:13Z")

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[QUOTE=Litoris]  
Let me clarify – when my son was due, husband decided no matter what, his name would be connor. I dislike the name, and I especially dislike the idea that he was to be named after a television/movie character. I have always said I would name my son Niquolos – like I said, I loved the name when I knew 2 guys who had it when I was younger. When we agreed on a name for him, I honestly wanted him to go by Aedin (and yeh, I do pronounce it with the AE as in aesop, so “eden” is not too far off, although it is more gutteral), but husband decided connor it was. Ok, whatever. My son is highly intelligent and at age 5 decided that when he started kindergarten, he wanted a very specific haircut, a very specific type of clothing and oh by the way, I don’t like the name Caughner, can I go by Niquolos? He has been very individual since birth, this didn’t surprise us, and we agreed. He did agree to shorten to Niq, based on how much fun it is to announce “my name is N I Q, Niq”

\>snip\<

Honestly, I don’t feel like I am being "picked on"I am just amazed at how _angry_ people seem over my choice of names. What’s funny is that we have had very few issues with people mispronouncing our son’s names – as for misspelling? Sure, but we figured that would happen and don’t get bent out of shape over it.

Hopefully, this clarifies a bit for people. While I know the annoyance of always saying “no, my name is not joann, joanne, johann, johanna or janice (???),” my kids have yet to have those problems. I donno, perhaps they are lucky. Of course, it does help to have unusual names or go by your middle name when screening calls – “Hi, may I speak to koffner?” immediately identifies a phone solicitor.  
[/QUOTE]

The thing that got to me, most of all, was the “I don’t like what the person who contributed half my son’s genetic material wants to name him, so I’m going to punish my son” attitude. I have no children - and want none - but children are at least given two names. Couldn’t you compromise with the father without punishing your son for the rest of his life?

My given name is not unusual - Madeline - but it can be spelled so many ways I have stopped trying to count. I have never once received anything monogramed (including from the woman who wrote out my paychecks!) that had the correct spelling.

EDIT - I got a trophy from the Cottonmouths Booster Club that has the correct spelling. 🙂 Since I got the trophy for being Corresponding Secretary and I give everything to the Prez in writing…

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**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/146 "2007-04-04T03:46:21Z")

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[QUOTE=Priceguy]  
You know, I can’t see much venom or anger.  
[/QUOTE]

I do.

Cheers,

Brynda (with a y, blame my parents, not me)

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**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/147 "2007-04-04T03:50:50Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> Many of us ended up basically giving up in the face of bullying and dreading school for the majority of elementary and middle school.

I understand this. I was an overweight child, and got a bit of teasing and bullying. It was awful. But does a _name_ usually provoke this level of bullying? Aren’t most bullies a bit more discriminating about the kids they really let have it? Usually awkward kids, “nerds”, overweight kids, insecure kids, etc.

I mean to say, if the only thing you are being teased about is your name, you probably have an opportunity to build a bit of a tougher skin.

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**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/148 "2007-04-04T04:00:40Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> But do you really think that if your mom had named you Sharon, you wouldn’t have also learned to speak up for yourself or to speak in front of others?

Yeah. I am the big mouth type that would learn to speak up for myself regardless. But, it still seems to me that an unusual name is not a bad thing. Again, not just made up names with all kinds of crazy spellings. But names that have a meaning to the parents that happen to be unusual.

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**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/149 "2007-04-04T10:24:11Z")

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Creative name spelling leads to a life of explaining the correct spelling to third persons entering your details for any reason (a phone order ,Dr.s appointment etc.),ridicule from other kids at school who CAN spell and also leaves a lot of people thinking that your parents were either ignoramuses or immature.

Believe me I feel for those kids who have had to suffer from this.

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**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/150 "2007-04-04T10:43:59Z")

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[QUOTE=Brad Serum]  
If I ever have a daughter, I’m going to name her Sera, (pronounced “Sarah”). Why? Because my last name (Serum) has always struck me odd. I figure why not have a little fun with it?

For those of you who don’t get it…

“sera” is the plural of “serum.”

[/QUOTE]

In that case I hope you never,ever have kids ,it means that if you do actually have a daughter then she will have to put up with something that is , to me anyway, is not even remotely witty or amusing for her entire life .

I would imagine that after enduring the ridicule stage(and endlessly hearing her name mispronounced by others) for so many years and then the incredible irritation phase followed by the ,every time she heard it it was causing her mental torture phase (all because her father found it funny) then she would grow to hate you .  
Rightly so in my opinion.

I am praying that you are actually joking and that I have just been wooshed!

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**Author:** ![Secret\_Volcano\_Lair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Secret\_Volcano\_Lair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Secret_Volcano_Lair)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/151 "2007-04-04T10:48:37Z")

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Stickers like [this](http://y-coach.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/toetL.gif) or [this](http://y-coach.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/hockeyL.gif), which I see all over the place now, annoy the hell out of me. I find them even more annoying when the kid has a “creative” name.

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**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/152 "2007-04-04T11:11:08Z")

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[QUOTE=Litoris]  
Of course, it does help to have unusual names or go by your middle name when screening calls – “Hi, may I speak to koffner?” immediately identifies a phone solicitor.  
[/QUOTE]

Having a hard-to-pronounce-and-spell surname, I’d assumed the same thing. Turns out that important stuff like job offers and financial matters also fall into that category. My parents aren’t to blame (in the same fashion, at least) for my surname and yet issues with its spelling caused a flag from the IRS over a tax return, among other problems. Needless to say, there are benefits in not being overly complicated with naming that you do have a choice in.

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**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/153 "2007-04-04T12:01:24Z")

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[QUOTE=delphica]  
Could I ask why Despina makes your list? It doesn’t seem like the others to me, it’s a traditional Greek name that’s been around forever. Little old Greek ladies are named Despina. It never really crossed over to mainstream American naming trends, but it’s stayed fairly popular with Greek-Americans.  
[/QUOTE]

I compiled the list over several months so I can’t say what I was thinking at the time. It may have struck me as a variation of “Destiny” or somesuch. At any rate, given the number of little old Greek ladies in this town and the amount of Greek food I’ve enjoyed at Greek festivals, the name is hereby stricken from the list. “Channel” (did the parent mean “Chanel”?), however, stays!

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**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/154 "2007-04-04T12:05:24Z")

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[QUOTE=Ferret Herder]  
Having a hard-to-pronounce-and-spell surname, I’d assumed the same thing. Turns out that important stuff like job offers and financial matters also fall into that category. My parents aren’t to blame (in the same fashion, at least) for my surname and yet issues with its spelling caused a flag from the IRS over a tax return, among other problems. Needless to say, there are benefits in not being overly complicated with naming that you do have a choice in.  
[/QUOTE]

My first married name (only married name, I kept my maiden name the second time around), had a space in it. To make matters worse, I’d moved my maiden name to what I’d hoped would be seen as a second middle name. This funtionally gave me five words in my legal name - Christina Ann Maiden von Last - and caused about four years of bueaurocratic nightmare. Sometimes my last name would be filed under Maiden von Last. Sometimes I was von Last, and sometimes I was Last.

My son has two middle names and the experience I had made me question whether I REALLY wanted to burden him in such a fashion. But he is a Korean adoptee, so his second middle name was his birth family name (and he has one of the “easy in English” common Korean family names) and we felt it important to honor that.

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**Author:** ![scareyfaerie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scareyfaerie/32/3135_2.png) [@scareyfaerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scareyfaerie)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/155 "2007-04-04T12:15:05Z")

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[QUOTE=Siege]  
“Channel” (did the parent mean “Chanel”?), however, stays!  
[/QUOTE]

In the past I’ve had my name misquoted as “Chanel”, or even worse as “Chantelle” instead of my real name - Sionell.

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**Author:** ![Marienee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@Marienee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marienee)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/156 "2007-04-04T12:59:04Z")

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[QUOTE=Brad Serum]  
If I ever have a daughter, I’m going to name her Sera, (pronounced “Sarah”). Why? Because my last name (Serum) has always struck me odd. I figure why not have a little fun with it?

For those of you who don’t get it…

“sera” is the plural of “serum.”

[/QUOTE]

I think you should go for the real knee slapper and give her the first name “Que”. For added giggles you could spell it “Che”.

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**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/157 "2007-04-04T16:33:46Z")

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[QUOTE=Brad Serum]  
If I ever have a daughter, I’m going to name her Sera, (pronounced “Sarah”). Why? Because my last name (Serum) has always struck me odd. I figure why not have a little fun with it?

For those of you who don’t get it…

[/QUOTE]  
Ah, Major Major Major’s dad’s psychic twin.

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**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/158 "2007-04-04T16:37:35Z")

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[QUOTE=SnakesCatLady]  
\<snip\>My given name is not unusual - Madeline - but it can be spelled so many ways I have stopped trying to count. I have never once received anything monogramed (including from the woman who wrote out my paychecks!) that had the correct spelling.

EDIT - I got a trophy from the Cottonmouths Booster Club that has the correct spelling. 🙂 Since I got the trophy for being Corresponding Secretary and I give everything to the Prez in writing…  
[/QUOTE]

I can’t count the number of certificates, etc. I have with my name spelled wrong on them. The one that I couldn’t let stand was my marriage certificate, though. You know, woman who officiates weddings for a living, you might want to look into actually reading the names before you type them up on the legal, binding, official document. I had to go back to her, of course, and get it re-done so that I could get my name changed properly on every other piece of identification I own. :mad:

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**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/159 "2007-04-04T16:39:58Z")

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[QUOTE=amarinth]  
Ah, Major Major Major’s dad’s psychic twin.  
[/QUOTE]

Heh - I read that as “psychotic twin” at first.

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**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creative-name-spelling-your-opinions-please/398422/160 "2007-04-04T16:41:52Z")

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[QUOTE=SnakesCatLady]  
My given name is not unusual - Madeline - but it can be spelled so many ways I have stopped trying to count. I have never once received anything monogramed (including from the woman who wrote out my paychecks!) that had the correct spelling.  
[/QUOTE]  
Don’t you just need to know the “M” to get a monogram correct?

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