# Who is the most famous person whose name is routinely misspelled? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 26, 2023, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710 "2023-11-26T10:50:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/81 "2023-11-29T00:31:33Z")
Ralph Fiennes ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/82 "2023-11-29T00:32:51Z")
The OP wanted this to be about given names, but perhaps that ship has sailed. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/83 "2023-11-29T00:38:04Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > The OP wanted this to be about given names, but perhaps that ship has sailed. Ralph _is_ a given name, but as it’s pronounced ‘Raife’ I’ve seen it misspelled as such. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/84 "2023-11-29T00:47:58Z")
Oh, huh. I guess I’ve never seen that. Thought you were going for the last name. Well, TIL I’ve been pronouncing his first name wrong all my life. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/85 "2023-11-29T00:48:47Z")
Hm, how about routinely mispronounced? (Rupert Pupkin) ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/86 "2023-11-29T01:58:38Z")
Pro wrestler Larry Zbyszko has had his last name misspelled often, To top all of it is not even his real name he took it an tribute of an earlier wrestler-- Stanislaus Zbyszko–who incidentally have both **his** first and last names misspelled routinely in newspapers when he was competing. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/87 "2023-11-29T02:54:33Z")
It’s not always pronounced “Raife” - in the US it’s normally pronounced with the “l” , in the UK it’s sometimes pronounced Raife” ---
**Author:** ![UDS1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e47774/32.png) [@UDS1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS1)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/88 "2023-11-29T03:13:20Z")
Ralph Fiennes, though, is a _Rafe_, not a _Ralf_. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/89 "2023-11-29T14:05:58Z")
Pharoah Sanders ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/90 "2023-11-29T16:01:18Z")
And [American Pharoah](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Pharoah) (ok, not a person). ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/91 "2023-11-30T00:27:11Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > It’s not always pronounced “Raife” - in the US it’s normally pronounced with the “l” Which is wrong, something he has pointed out time and time again. This isn’t aluminum/aluminium, it’s his name. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/92 "2023-11-30T00:54:15Z")
I think you are misunderstanding me - yes, it’s wrong to pronounce the “l” when you are talking about Mr. Fiennes. For many , many other people it is properly pronounced with the “l” - and I doubt the person I was replying to meant that he has mispronounced Ralph Fiennes’ name all his life. I think he was talking about pronouncing the names of other Ralphs who likely pronounce it with the “l” like Ralph Kramden. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/93 "2023-11-30T04:33:08Z")
Timothy Spall had the right idea when he named his son [Rafe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafe_Spall). Eliminate any ambiguity. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/94 "2023-11-30T07:33:22Z")
Stephen Hawking, online at least, seem to be ‘Hawkins’ more often than not (and also suffers from the ‘Steven’/‘Stephen’-issue). ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/95 "2023-11-30T07:37:37Z")
Note that the difference between the two pronunciations involve not just whether there is an l there. In the American pronunciation the a is a short a, while in the British pronunciation it is a long a. I think you can mostly ignore the differences in how it’s pronounced. If you hear someone pronounce it in the American way, you can explain (if you have time) the difference between the two pronunciations, but it’s not that big a deal. You don’t have to pronounce everybody’s name in their own accent. I think the problem is bigger with a name like Saoirse Ronan. You are more likely to not know how to pronounce her name at all. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/96 "2023-11-30T12:36:37Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > you hear someone pronounce it in the American way, you can explain (if you have time) the difference between the two pronunciations, but it’s not that big a deal. Rowlf the Dog, on the other hand…. > **[What's the Name of That Dog? - ToughPigs](https://toughpigs.com/whats-the-name-of-that-dog/)** > > The great mystery of Rowlf. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/97 "2023-11-30T17:23:09Z")
Shari Lewis. Brendan Fraser might qualify for both names. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2023, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/98 "2023-11-30T17:30:32Z")
At what point is it no longer a misspelling but rather an instance of being mistaken about the name? “Michelle” instead of " Michele" or “Greg” instead of “Gregg” or " Brendon" instead of “Brendan” are obviously misspellings but what about " Brandon" instead of “Brendan” or vice versa - those are two different names ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/99 "2023-12-03T01:38:26Z")
Macaulay Culkin has to be on this list right? he was on the new today and my first thought was “I had no idea his name was spelled that way”. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710/100 "2023-12-03T06:04:34Z")
Englebert Humperdinck? Efram Zimbalist, jr? I remember a lot of conversation about how Cyndi Lauper spelled her first name when she came on the music scene. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-whose-name-is-routinely-misspelled/993710.md?page=6)