How about Esper for à boy? Derived from Jasper.
In high school German class, we had an Italian foreign exchange student. A common name that came up in the dialogues was Knut (pronounced ‘K-noot’). The Italian guy giggled each time the name was mentioned. He said that in Italian it was a vulgar term, but he never said what it meant.
My kids went to grade school with a kid named Michael Hunt. I’m sure junior high was… lots of fun.
My cousin has a patient called Shakira, I suppose it’s not that out there but it just seems a bit stupid to me. There are also a couple of Pocahontas’ in Dublin. I wonder if their middle names are Dorothy.
In the Navy, I worked with a guy named John Darling. In the military, one often refers to another by last name. Anytime someone would say “Hey, Darling”, he invariably answered “Yes, dear?”
The variations for Richard seem endless. I knew a Dick Peters, a Phil Dick, a Dick Lipp…the misery goes on.
I had a childhood friend with the last name of Crouch. His parents named him Harry. Are you shitting me? Harry Crouch? Puberty in the locker room was a nightmare for him: Hey, hairy crotch!
The trend (which seems to have largely died out) of naming children with as many “Ys” in a name as possible was just. . .stupid. It resulted in abominations like MyKynzie, Alycya, Mykle, and other lyfelong burdyns for kyds.
I’m pretty sure that is a story from the 1982 remake of the film “Cat People.”
This one was in the paper the other day. My wife and I both had a good laugh over it.
Wilford Molester Galloway
There’s even Mykelti (Williamson from Justified)
I suppose we may as well mention La-a (pronounced La-dash-a) as an example of non-letters becoming ever more popular in some names’ spellings/pronunciations.
I have no cite, so don’t ask… but a friend of a friend told my wife about a student named Le-A.
When handing out diplomas the principal asked the mother how to pronounce that name (good kid, never met the principal before) :
Principal: Is it LEE-ah, Lee, le-AY, what?
Mom: (indignant) It’s Le-DASH-ah. The dash don’t be silent!
(probably not a true story, but I so hope it is - I repeat it as if it was)
In that case, I anticipate that somewhere in the world is a little boy named:
- eel.
Last edited by Nature’s Call; Today at 11:58 AM. Reason: well played, oh ninja Zeldar!
I like your version better; mine’s from memory and unlikely to be a different story.
Reckon will he be writing some detective stories?
I encountered a young woman whose first name was Shennon. Her middle name was Doah. Apparently, her parents thought Shenandoah was just too long for a first name.
Definitely.
Trying to find who murdered his name.
As a FFVI fan, I approve of this one name in particular.
Couldn’t they have simply spelled it Shen&doah?
The ampersand don’t be silent!
Or would that be pronounced William Octothorpestone
If I have a son, I’m going to name him something traditional. Like &rew or R&y.