# Is my name that damn hard to spell??? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 1, 2001, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254 "2001-06-01T20:22:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2001, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/101 "2001-06-06T23:54:57Z")
originally posted by **ENugent:** > [@](#): > > My maiden name was a spelling problem, too - “Earhart”. Did you ever get “Earnhardt”? ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2001, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/102 "2001-06-07T00:33:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Neidhart \* > originally posted by **ENugent:** > > > [@](#): > > > > My maiden name was a spelling problem, too - “Earhart”. > > Did you ever get “Earnhardt”? Surprisingly, no, I didn’t. Just Ehrhart, Ehrhardt, Earhardt, Erhardt, and Earheart. ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2001, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/103 "2001-06-07T14:05:31Z")
Dale Earnhardt must not have achieved fame yet. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2001, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/104 "2001-06-07T15:15:01Z")
I think **kabbes** was joking, yes? Because who would ever actually start calling someone Lizbet? Unless you’re doing it in your best _Sanford and Son_ voice, in which case it’s funny. Once. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2001, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/105 "2001-06-07T17:37:31Z")
My married name is West, like the direction. That’s what I say: “West - like the direction.” Whereupon, someone will say: “Is that W-E-S-T?” uhmmm, DUH! And my daughter is Sarah-with-an-H - which has been spelled Shara and Sarha. My husband is Steven-with-a-v I’m Michelle-with-2-l’s We’re a family of spelling fools. ---
**Author:** ![AuGratin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e95f7d/32.png) [@AuGratin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuGratin)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2001, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/106 "2001-06-07T20:18:52Z")
Brent. Which I’ve seen and heard as Bert, Brad, Brunt (WTF?) and, on one memorable occasion, Bent. Written on a birthday cake. From a message my mother had written out and handed to the cake-lady at the grocery store. Impeccable handwriting, my mother’s, beaten into her by legions of Catholic nuns. Clear and beautiful. Still: Happy 30th Birthday Bent!!! I never laughed so hard; I still call him that at least once a week. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2001, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/107 "2001-06-07T23:59:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by FairyChatMom \* > My married name is West, like the direction. That’s what I say: “West - like the direction.” > > Whereupon, someone will say: “Is that W-E-S-T?” > > uhmmm, DUH! > > And my daughter is Sarah-with-an-H - which has been spelled Shara and Sarha. > > My husband is Steven-with-a-v > > I’m Michelle-with-2-l’s > > We’re a family of spelling fools. Michelle, Next time someone asks you, “Is that W-E-S-T?” answer with, “No, it’s O-H-Y-O-U-I-DOUBLE L-I-T-E-R-A-T-E-DOUBLE-A-S.” Please report here on when the individual stops writing that. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2001, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/108 "2001-06-08T00:13:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Monty \* > Next time someone asks you, “Is that W-E-S-T?” answer with, “No, it’s O-H-Y-O-U-I-DOUBLE L-I-T-E-R-A-T-E-DOUBLE-A-S.” “aas”? ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2001, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/109 "2001-06-08T00:56:44Z")
{Big sheepish grin emoticon here} Well, let’s amend that to “…A-DOUBLE S.” Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Rasa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rasa/32/3578_2.png) [@Rasa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rasa)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2001, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/110 "2001-06-08T22:55:30Z")
My last name is Elliott. Two l’s and two t’s, thank you very much. I have to fight tooth and nail to get that last t in there! Every place I’ve worked has misspelled it. My first “real” job had to redo my name plate for my cube 4 times. First time it was spelled “Eliott”, second “Elliot”, third “Eliot”, fourth time they got it right. My first and middle name… don’t even get me started on them. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Apricot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bcef8e/32.png) [@Apricot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apricot)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2001, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/111 "2001-06-10T16:31:00Z")
The worst misspelling I’ve heard is for Amal. When your grandma makes you a birthday cake, she should really remember that a cursive “m” has three humps, not two. Otherwise you get “Happy Birthday Anal!” Not good at all. I’m still laughing over “Bent.” ---
**Author:** ![Billy\_Rubin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billy_rubin/32/3622_2.png) [@Billy\_Rubin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Rubin)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2001, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/112 "2001-06-10T17:28:35Z")
Surname: Hardig Not: Harding( I’m really not related to any dead presidents or figure skaters) Not: Hardin Nor: Hardon(don’t go there!) nor for that matter: Hardesty hartwig Hartick hardick hardy hardang hardoang hardly Nelson(WTF?) or any of the other people mail seems to be addressed to here. I literally got the list above from looking at a pile of the last month’s mail. My AMEX card said Harding when I first got it. I called AMEX: “American Express Cardmember services, how can I help you?” “I have my new Amex card. The name is spelled wrong.I spelled it right on the application.” “The name on the account?” “Hardig” Pause. Lots of keyboard clicking. “I’m sorry, we don’t have an account for a Mr. Hardig” “Herein lies the difficulty. My name is Hardig but my account is under Harding” “I’m sorry, you can’t access an account under someone else’s name” Several phone calls later: Manager-“Hello, I’m here with the person who processed your application- how may we help you?” “My name is spelled wrong on my Amex card”(I explain whole sordid story). Application processor-“I read that, and I thought it was a mistake, so I corrected it” Manager “I think it was a great initiative on his part to do that! Have you ever considered changing your name to Harding? it would be far less confusing”**(I’M NOT KIDDING! HE ACTUALLY _SAID_ THIS!!!)** Eventually I got it straight. But I have to spell it multiple times every day. B. ---
**Author:** ![Blueberry\_Buckle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3bc359/32.png) [@Blueberry\_Buckle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blueberry_Buckle)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2001, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/113 "2001-06-10T20:07:50Z")
LACINDA Granted, it is so much more difficult to say than LUcinda, and it is much more difficult to spell than LUcinda. So my mother watched too much “As the World Turns” when she was pregnant with me. She didn’t care for the “LU” in the name, so she changed it. Quit calling me LUCY, there are no “U’s” in my name. Do not pronounce it LUcinda, it is LAAAAAAAAAAAcinda". It is not LU-canda, nor is it LuKinda, nor is it Lacretia. Just LaCinda. After almost 30 years, you would think I would’ve become used to mispronunciations by now. Oh well, guess that is why the just refer to me as “B\*tch” now, after correcting them. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2001, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/114 "2001-06-11T08:21:24Z")
Billy Rubin, I can’t believe that guy! The noive! My name is Kyla. It isn’t Kayla. It isn’t spelled Kayla and it isn’t pronounced Kayla. I don’t mind nicknames at all (Kylie, Ky, and Cat-Scratch Kyla - yup, my coworker called me that - are all fine), but **do not call me Kayla**. To make this even more fun, I have a hyphenated last name. The joys. A lot of forms don’t have room for a hyphen, so my name gets run together. Boy, do I hate this. We get a lot of weirdly addressed junk mail thanks to the hyphens. Pretending my mom’s name is Mary Jones-Smith, she gets _a lot_ of mail for Smith M. Jones. Oh, and the next person who asks me if I am going to hyphenate another name on if I get married gets throttled. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2001, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/115 "2001-06-11T14:16:35Z")
My name is Robin - not Robyn. And my grandmother wrote Robbin all her life. You’d think she could spell her own granddaughter’s name! My maiden surname was Beesley. It was always misspelled Beasley. Thank God I have a simple surname now. I don’t have the problems all these people have, thank God! ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2001, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/116 "2001-06-11T17:09:56Z")
First name: Carol. Occasionally I get Carole or Carrol or Carroll. The last two are kind of weird, because they are more surnames than first names, but that’s not something you can bet on. The problem I usually have is people calling me Caroline or Carolyn. Nope, sorry, it’s just Carol. My parents liked the idea of a short name, and didn’t think the -ine or the -yn was needed. My mother struggles through life with Jeannette - note the two N’s in that - JeaNNette. People can’t grasp the concept of an extra letter in the middle, and usually leave it out even when the name has been spelt to them. Funniest example - Mum had a fall, and wasn’t hurt seriously, but still needed to have a doctor check her out. We’re at the hospital, and I’m reading the signs on the wall. One is addressed to the hospital staff, and it’s a whole page telling them not to assume they know how to spell the patient’s name, and to ask for the spelling - it even had examples of common alternative spellings to illustrate the point. I move my eyes slightly to the right to see the computer screen with Mum’s details on it, and they’ve spelt her name wrong. 🙂 I’ve had to spell our “Top 20 English Surnames” surname to people, but on the whole I’ve been lucky. Worst mistake ever made with my name was when I took an aptitude test for a male dominated field, and got my results back addressed to **Mr.** Carol … I mean, come on, Mr CAROL?? Possible, but unlikely! ---
**Author:** ![kabbes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e99b99/32.png) [@kabbes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kabbes)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2001, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/117 "2001-06-12T16:05:13Z")
Well my tongue was firmly in my cheek 🙂 (thankyou **delphica**. There is a point here though: I find four syllables tough in the context of chummy times. Three I can mostly cope with (OK Katherine?), but I always feel awkward saying “Fancy a pint Elizabeth?” When the rest of the sentence is shorter to say than the name, you know you’ve got a problem. So I do my best, really I do, to respect a person’s desire to be called what they want to be called. But if I know an Elizabeth well enough, it’ll inevitably slip at some point. I’ve just known too many Liz’s and the transition is too easy. It’s either that or me feeling self-concious the whole time I’m socialising with good ol’ Liz. May I be forgiven. Also, even though it’s only three syllables, I seem to be physically incapable of calling someone Timothy. It always ends up as Tim. Go figure. So I apologize to all the Elizabeths and Timothys out there who want to be known by their full names. I hope that we won’t fall out over something as trivial as a nickname. pan (who has had many nicknames, not all of them polite or flattering) ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2001, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/118 "2001-06-12T23:30:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kabbes \* > So I do my best, really I do, to respect a person’s desire to be called what they want to be called. But if I know an Elizabeth well enough, it’ll inevitably slip at some point. I’ve just known too many Liz’s and the transition is too easy. It’s either that or me feeling self-concious the whole time I’m socialising with good ol’ Liz. May I be forgiven. You’re forgiven. It’s the yahoos who don’t even try that get my goat. (In fact, anyone who successfully made the transition from Lizzie to Liz when I was in high school gets a bye on having to call me Elizabeth now). ---
**Author:** ![Verrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/46a35a/32.png) [@Verrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Verrain)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2001, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/119 "2001-06-13T03:29:22Z")
My last name is DiTullio pronounced Dee, too, lee, o. I understand the capital T throwing people, but they always seem to lose the i’s. I either get, “Is Mister Di-tull-o there?” _click_ Or my mail gets sent to Mr. D. Tullio. \ ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2001, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254/120 "2001-06-13T07:46:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by cazzle \* > \*\*Worst mistake ever made with my name was when I took an aptitude test for a male dominated field, and got my results back addressed to **Mr.** Carol … I mean, come on, Mr CAROL?? Possible, but unlikely! \*\* Then there was the letter the Anglican Church addressed to “Dr. and **MRS.** David McLauchlin”… _wrongggggg._ **DR. LYNN** and **MR. DAVID** McLauchlin stopped going to that church shortly thereafter. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-name-that-damn-hard-to-spell/67254.md?page=7)