For what it’s worth, I say you are right, ascenray and her father is like those people who pronounce “Caitlin” Kate-lyn". Ha! Gold star for you. And I feel grumpy about anybody pronouncing “Ian/Iain” as Eye-an too. Grumpy grumpy me today.
How about Duncan, Alasdair, Stewart, Gordon? And I shouldn’t think there are all that many U.S. boys named Murdo.
(That’s enough thinking from me for now - it’s long past sleep-time here.)
I see someone has already mentioned Graham. My father’s name is Graeme, which is pronounced the same way, but I noticed that some Americans try to call him “Greem”. Graham/Graeme are very common here in Australia, and apparently in the UK too.
As an American, I can pop a few of these bubbles. In my (very) rural elementary school, we had a Roland and a Rhiannon (female, probably named for the Fleetwood Mac song). In the nearby beach town the summer guests are all D.C. Catholics of Irish descent - at least on my street - so Celtic names never went out of fashion. We had Conor, Devon, Brendan (those three are brothers), Patrick, Caitlin (Kath-LEEN), Cainywyn (!), and Gael (male name). None of these names were common in any other part of my life, though.
No Siobhans or Gemmas… yet. Conor’s almost 20 years old, so his name probably pre-dates the trend.
Obviously, my authoritative input is desperately needed at this juncture. Unlike virtually everyone else who has posted thus far, I have actually been to England once. Without a doubt, the names, Rupert, Percival, Graham, Horatio and Ali account for 98% of English male fist names. The majority of the remaining 2% are typically what we Americans would consider to be silly and/or effete. Anglo surnames are always a bit colorful as well, leading to such combinations as: Rupert Peckerpimple, Percival Wigglebottom, Graham Krackerkrum, Horatio Whoreblower and Ali Ollyoxenfree.
All right, to be technical, I didn’t actually visit the “England” in the U.K., but I did go to the English Pavilion at Epcot Center, Florida, so I believe my authority stands on this subject.
…oh, there were quite a few Mickey’s floating around there as well.
Anyone want to weigh in here? I am precisely in the age range of the Jeremy flood… and while it’s not unheard of, I wouldn’t label it as immensely popular.
In the same vein as Jeremy, which I am surprised to learn enjoyed some popularity in the US, how about Julian? A popular name here around 30 years ago, I have never heard of an American Julian.
Usram, the very few Julians I’ve heard of have been African-American men in their 50s or 60s. It’s not a common name at all for the 30ish crowd of any race, at least to my knowledge.
I’m a 29 year old American Colin (pronounced Kah-lin, thank you very much, Mr. Powell). I also notice that there is one other American Colin posting in this thread, which I’ve noticed because he always beats me into the “what’s your first name?” threads :mad:
But yes, I’ve noticed this name getting more popular amongst the youngsters. Still can’t find that license plate or mug with my name on it, though … I guess I should have been named Bort.
I’ve also noticed a slight difference in pronunciation between the UK and the US. Americans tend to pronounce it “Gram” (as in “kilogram”), while Brits make it sound more like “Grey-em.” Which way do Australians pronounce it? And am I correct in noticing these different pronunciations?