Do Kre8iv Spellings Make Names More Special?

I haven’t even finished reading the post yet, but I just felt compelled to say that the photo of that baby in the hat scared the crap out of me when it loaded! LOL.

Okay, now I’ve gotten past the photo and read the post:

Jill–that was fabulously put. I’ve often wondered many of those same things.
When I was younger (I’m talking, oh, second grade here), I lamented that my name had no “fun” letters like Ys or Zs, but alas, we don’t spend our entire lives being seven, and never realized until the recent surge of name spelling insanity how lucky I am to be Katherine and not Khatheryn, or better, Qathryn.
It just seems to me that if you think crazily spelled names are cool, you should change the spelling of your own name, rather than foist one on an unsuspecting child

I really feel that you should not even be allowed to put these kinds of names on a child’s birth certificate. Why can’t the government step in on this one?

I’m nootral.

I think many of us name nerds get worked up about Maddiesynne and Qaidynne, but are just fine with variants like Katharine and Isobel.

There aren’t that many girls answering to Delayni or Briyanah, but there are plenty of girls called Madelyn and Haylee. Yes, they’re trendy names, and yes, they’re not the most common spellings – there’s clearly a nod towards the “yooneek” in both cases.

While I’ve give you that Tyffani probably had a hard time of it, Tiffanie wouldn’t be so bad – at least not any worse than “Catherine with a C” or “Elisabeth with an s” or “Geoffrey with a G.”

Standard spellings are relatively new, and there are plenty of names where it is difficult to argue that there’s any “right” version.

All that said, it can easily go too far – Mykailah hurts my eyes.

It’s a plague around here… I know a little Maddisyn, a Jaxton, and a Kaytlyn. I am sure there are more, but I choose not to think of them. As someone that grew up constantly having to correct the spelling of my name, I can honestly say these parents are do their kids NO favors by using a Kre8iv spelling.

Mark me down as another “nootral.”

As an anagrammatist, I’m sometimes guilty of torturing a name into “yooneek” spellings in order to get it to fit the ‘gram. Whether the name delights or appalls, I leave that up to the person for whom it was intended.

Fun blog, Jill!

– Nephele

Some of those spellings look illiterate to me. I’ve seen Heather spelled Heatthyr and Addison spelled “Addisn.” The latter’s mother was rather annoyed with me when I assumed it was a typo and spelled it “Addison” when I put it in the paper. She’d left out the “o” deliberately and assumed everyone should know that it was the right spelling as “Addisn.”

Illiterate is exactly how the parents come across when they give their children “yoonik” spellings. Okay, that’s harsh, I know, but whenever I see names like this I judge, as I’m sure most people do. Why give your child a name that people are going to negatively judge him/her and their parents on? Kids and adults have enough troubles in their lives they don’t need to worry about their stupid names.

Also, to the above poster than mentioned variations of names.. there’s a reason why people aren’t bothered by names like Katherine and Isobel. It’s because they are geographical variations, and not simply “yoonik” spellings for the heck of it.

I used to work at a children’s hospital and being someone who has always been interested in names, looked at all the names coming in. There were lots and lots of unique spellings. It is very, very common around the St. Louis area apparently. I wonder if it varies by area.

It definitely suggests your socio-economic/educational level. I hate to see that, but it’s true.

I agree with the comments above and say that it makes me (not so secretly now) judge the parents just a little. I feel like butchering a name for a yooneek spelling isn’t cute or fun, but illiterate and quite possibly ruining your child’s chance for success in life.

On that note, I came across a baby (I work in the hospital) named, I kid you not, Shardawnaye. Ok, first of all: you’re naming your child after an alcoholic beverage? And secondly: You’re trying to hide that fact with a yooneek spelling? Not pulling the name over anyone’s eyes, parents.

I don’t hate them but I’m not neutral, either. It’s a useful thing to not have people roll their eyes when they see your name so I always take this into account but the standardization of spellings, especially when it comes to names, has taken time. I guess this is why some unusual spellings bother me more than others–it mostly bothers me when the name barely resembles the original name which it is pronounced identically to but there are so many names that have been spelled multiple ways for generations that I feel it’s hardly fair to be too hard on those.

yooneek name spellings just remind me of those kids in high school who liked the band KORN (backwards R) and would make up screen names that would be considered “EMO” if they hadn’t misspelled it (ie., my little brother’s screen name “blakrose” which he later got tattooed on his arm with a picture of a black rose.)
Instead of mispelling names to make them unique, I would suggest digging deeper for something special.

I wonder if her name is actually pronounced – Mi-kai (rhymes with eye)-la.

Excellent blog, Jill!

I guess I’m neutral on this issue. For example, I can’t stand it when a name’s spelling is changed just to be cool or different. However, if the spelling is altered because of cultural reasons, that’s perfectly fine with me.

Great blog. You definitely make a good point about these yooneek names causing their owners to be considered somehow less professional or competent. I am an attorney in a large firm and we go through a big recruiting rush every September where we look through a LOT of resumes of law students. Those youneek names definitely stand out and not in a good way. I’ve heard my co-workers comment on names that were not spelled “right” and while I don’t think anyone would consciously reject someone based on the spelling of their name, I think it does subconsciously create one more hurdle that the applicant will have to get over in the interview process, and it causes them to start out a bit behind their peers.

I accept varying spellings to a point (hello my name is Brandi, that’s with an I). However these over the top kre8tiv gems serve simply to announce to the world that you are an immature, ignorant parent. And right off the bat that bodes ill for your parenting skills. Good luck, kiddz (lol)!

You tell ‘em, Jill! Great blog!

i definitely take off points for the parents of the yooneekly named person. want to make the name “special”? go research the meanings of the names, pick something from your ethnic background, choose something not in the top 10 list. my children’s names are “special” (ie, you dont hear them every day) yet the spellings are traditional. i can tell you the meanings and backgrounds of their names, which makes for a better story than if their spellings were butchered.

This blog addresses a horrible fashion that I hope will die out, and leave more classic spellings to prevail! I don’t think this topic includes names that have global variations – obviously there are different versions of names that come from different languages and many of us have a favourite variation. It would be churlish to say a spellling is ‘wrong’ if it is just a French or Scottish spelling for example. The issue here is the gravity of a name, it follows you everywhere and it is a shame if no one can understand it or take it seriously.

Thanks for another fantasic blog Jill!

Thank you to everyone who has commented! I wanted to include a poll because I figured that a lot of people may not be comfortable openly discussing their views about this topic, so please know how much I appreciated reading your thoughts!

Kate: I’m still laughing about your baby photo comment.
I like your idea of having parents give themselves yooneekly spelled names before giving them to their children. Like you said, the kids who receive such names have no choice, and I think it’s really sad that spellings they didn’t choose may reflect poorly on them.

Heather: From what I understand, some countries have laws about names, but not the U.S….I personally hope that this trend becomes a thing of the past–and fast!

Abby: I see your point, and I suppose I geared this blog to the extremely yooneek names. I don’t view names like Isobel as yooneek though, because Isobel is the Scottish form of Isabel. I discovered your blog, and think it’s fantastic!

Guest: Jaxton? Seriously? That’s one I hadn’t heard before!

Nephelina: I love your anagrams, and completely understand the need to add letters in order to create new names when need be. You’re still Nephele to me, though, and not Nehffelle.

Andrea: Addisn with no O? That reminds me of Kaydnz, one of the names given to a celebrity baby this year. Who needs vowels, rght?

Liz22: As someone wrote on a Nameberry thread not too long ago, the parents are trying to do something special for their kids by giving them yooneek names, but I think it’s sad that more thought isn’t given to the potential consequences of having a yooneek name.

I sometimes also wonder if the motivation has less to do with wanting a child to appear special, and more to do with the parent simply thinking it looks cool.

Diana: It must have been fun to look at so many names! I agree with what you wrote. I think it’s an uncomfortable reality, but it can’t be ignored.

Annabelle: Shardawnaye?! Oh dear…I’m speechless, and that’s a rare thing!

Teabee: You made some really good points, and I share your feelings about names that are misspelled beyond recognition.

Mrs.Woolf-Simmons: I like your analogies, and I agree about digging deeper for something special!

Tirzah: At first I wondered about the pronunciation of her name, too, but I heard a friend of hers call her Mick-Kay-luh, like Michaela.

Sally: I completely agree with you, and I was definitely referring to names that are spelled yooneekly just for the thrill of it. I’m glad you liked the blog!

Elizabeth: My worries about the names being perceived negatively by employers were purely theoretical, until I read your post. Thank you so much for sharing!

Brandi: I was definitely referring to the over-the-top spellings, and I thank you for posting!

Susan: Awe, thanks! You’re great!

Ann P.: I couldn’t agree more! Thanks for stopping by.

Rosamund: I’m glad you liked it, Rosamund! You’re so sweet!

Thanks, everyone!

Violet: Hi! For some reason, I missed your post, and I’m really sorry! I second everything you said, and I sincerely thank you for the clarification! As you said, I wasn’t referring to global variations, but rather to names that have been intentionally misspelled and may have difficulty being taken seriously.

Take care!

Yeah, I judge. But should I? Parents can’t control what other people think of their children, but I can control what I think of them.

So I picked “nootral” because that’s what I strive for.

As one whose name is just 1 letter off the norm, I can not begin to lament about all the times that I’ve had to spell my name to people. Alas my last name is not too bad, but the same applies. (Think “from the river” in spanish)
As a former cake decorator having to write names on cakes, became a challenge when you get a name like, Jarmyiah (Jeremiah with a twist), and Nevaeh (Heaven backwards – but this one was quite nice) Hyanthi (Apparently a combination of mom and dad’s names – poor baby), and my all time favorite – drum roll please – Abcde. Yes, I did not misspell it, the parental unit pronounce it A-ba-CEE-dee, another same spelling pronouced it as A-BE-cee-dee. Yes, there are 2 of those running around central Florida. We always had to pause and say “The normal spelling for that name?”
Adding Y’s and ‘ in the middle of a name does not really make it yooneek, it will give the child such a difficult time, that the one letter is my name is nuthin.
Ok, I’ve vented. Thanks.

Have any of you seen the e-mail about the name Le-a, with the comment “the dash ain’t silent”?

Tha name is pronouced – Le-dasha

I’m sure I would have had to write that one on a cake…

I can see the draw of purposely misspelling names. As one of 3 Jennifers in a class of 35 (that would be 35 kids in the eighth grade, not in the classroom), I got a wild hair to start signing my name ‘Genna’ so I could be unique. That lasted until my art teacher gave me (and my best friend Christy aka ‘Crista’) a zero because she couldn’t figure out who ‘Genna’ was.

As with a few others who’ve replied, I work in a hospital and I’ve stumbled over names that once I got past the miscellaneous consonants and sheer lack of vowels were very ordinary names.

I suppose that at the end of the day I don’t really care how a parent spells her name, and it’s become prevalent enough that I just ask everyone to spell and pronounce now. I guess that what really bugs me is that people seem to be under the misguided impression that Aleyshe is as distinctive a choice as Aviana just because it doesn’t appear on the social security index.

I’m definitely not nootral or neutral but I am also guilty of liking the name Alyx for a girl :/. I think there are plenty of unique and more rare names out there that should be used instead of yoonek spellings of more common names.

Great post Jill!

I seem to remember playing around with interchanging i/e/ee/y’s in names when I was about 10. Thank goodness I got over that!

I think a good deal of the misspellings are coming from my generation now that we’re old enough to start procreating. With the advent of blogging, texting, YouTube and the general feeling of self-importance the internet has given each of us, it doesn’t surprise me that we as a whole are determined to set ourselves apart when it comes to naming our children.

Here in my area, the only “yoonik” names are very common names: variations of Aidan, Michaela, Katelyn, etc.
I think that parents like a name but realize that it’s popular so they try to make it more distinct. I was almost tempted to do so myself when Caden (a favorite for years before) rose to meganame-dom. Thankfully I opted to branch out and find a different name, because Caden, Caeden, Cayden, Kayden and Kaiden are all the same!

That’s what baffles me most: how parents can think it’s really any different or better with an extra “y” or an interchanged “i”.

Then again, my friends have a daughter named Kaela, chosen because that spelling was listed in their name book as Hebrew, meaning sweetheart. I’m fine with reasoning like that!

As previous posters said, parents should just spend some time researching and find a name that reflects their style and taste without simply manipulating the spelling of the most common name options in your area.

Sorry I know I repeated a lot of points that have already been made– I’m just ranting!
Thanks again for the wonderful blog!

P.S. The picture on this entry made me chuckle! I love babies!

I agree with Nephele, and I actually think parents chose kreighaytyve spellings for the aesthetic rather than the actual name. As in, they like the name, but they want it to look more unique. I too, remember playing around with i/e/a and Ys. Honestly, my general rule is if it looks like people can pronounce it, its fine. As in Kristyn and Caryn are ok.

Annelise: Thanks for posting! I can relate to your “Yeah, I judge, but should I?” question. As much as I’d love to be able to look at a name like the aformentioned “Shardawnaye” with neutrality and not bat an eye, I have to admit that it did shock me when I read it, and the same goes for Ivonne’s example of “Abcde” as a given name. Sadly, norms do exist in societies, even when it comes to names, and I think it’s only natural for people to taken aback by certain spellings, even if it’s only on a subconscious level.

Ivonne: Hi! You used to decorate cakes? That sounds like fun! Abcde? Seriously? Wow! That’s a new one. (I had to laugh when I read about you having to ask the parents if it’s spelled the normal way.) Wait. The string of letters is pronounced a-BEE-CEE-Dee? Is it just me, or does anyone else think that sounds a bit close to the word “obesity?” If Abcde is now considered a name, can Wvxyz be far behind? And La-a is Ladasha? Uh…wow. Thanks for posting!

Jen: Thanks for sharing! I agree with what you wrote about equating misspelled names with names like Aviana. A lot of people don’t realize that after awhile, the misspelled names aren’t even “yooneek” anymore because of their popularity (Haylee/Hayleigh etc. come to mind).

Disa: Hi! I agree that using rare names is a great idea; there are so many wonderful names out there that have yet to be used! Thanks for posting!

Dove: Hi! I’ve seen the Michaela, Caitlin, Aiden variations, too, and it seems as though the misspellings outnumber the original forms these days, which makes me wonder how they can even be considered unique anymore, you know?

I like your theory of people trying to help their children stand out in this age of technology.

I’m glad you liked the blog, Dove, and I’m glad you posted! (And that baby’s photo made me laugh, too! I love that baby!)

Lucy: Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I totally agree about the aesthetics, and like you said, if a name can be easily pronounced, it’s a good thing!

Thank you so much, everyone! I really enjoy reading your thoughts!

Have a great night!

Wow Jill! What a fun and relatable post!

I saw the name “Keightey” the other day. And I swear I looked at it for a full minute before I realized it was “Katie”.

I am not a fan of the kreeghitive name.

I also have heard of a “Kaytlyn”. And she goes by “Katie”, not “Kayty” (thank heaven). A Kymbree. A Braxtyon (Hicks?) A Kayden. A Kenlee. A Taelee. A Kaambry. And a Kinnadyee (I wept for humanity)!

Sorry, have to add to the Abcde name…

I figured one of the following children would be named after the really long letter in the middle of the song, you know, “Lmnop”! And the last of course “Xyz”.

What’s next? Add a number to the name?? I’ve seen apostrophes, and numerous silent letters, why not a number. “Here’s my youngest “4man”, and my daughter 4-2na”

Thanks all for reading my rantings.

Hahaha “Lmnop” oh lets hope not. All though seeing spelled Ellamenopy wouldn’t suprise me for some reason.

Mimi: Thanks! Kinnadyee?! Is that code for “Kennedy,” or is it pronounced Kin-uh-dye-ee? Keightey is one I’ve not seen before, but it made me cry a bit inside.

Ivonne: Oh no! I pray that numbers don’t become the new thing! Please, no! 4-2na cracked me up!

Disa: Hi! Ellamenopy? Hehehe…Sadly, I can see that catching on.

Thanks for reading my blog and commenting!

I have a friend who named her daughter “Desteny”. When I asked her why she spelled it that way, she told me it was because she didn’t know how to spell it. I can’t imagine growing up with a name your parents admit was misspelled on accident. But when I see oddly spelled I tend to think it’s because their parents were either illiterate or pretentious. Probably not a great first impression to be leaving your kids with. Although I named my daughter Zoё and I’m quite particular the umlaut is there or otherwise the pronunciation is Zo. Which might be a little pretentious as well.

Hi Charity! Destiny accidently misspelled as “Desteny”? Ouch. I really like the umlaut on your daughter’s name! Thanks for reading and commenting!

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I picked “nootral”. Quite honestly, like most people said i think to an extenct yooneek names are rediculous. The Michaela variation you listed (i cant even type it!) really made my eyes hurt and i actually had to sit there for a sec and go what does that say? But i dont quite understand why -leigh instead of -ly is bad. I like Everleigh, leigh, nor ly. Because leigh feels more feminine to me while ly feels very unisex. I think that as long as names are not so redicoulsly yooneeky its ok, i can deal with Tori, Brandi, and even tolerate Maryson, But some like Bhrytnyee and Qtlynn really bug me cause in all honestly and no offense it makes a name look cheap. And i think THAT does say alot about the parents socio-economic.educational level. Haha sorry im ranting:) I jsut dislike that -leigh is considered yooneek, i guess haha but overall i really enjoyed your post jill! ge8 jobb jiil! haha

Jill,

Yes, Kinnadyee is code for Kennedy!

I don’t think that the people who give their kids yooneeklie spelled names are thinking about the stigma – in their eyes, there is no stigma. We (the people who hate the ridiculous names) are thinking about it from one POV: our own. Think about it fom the POV of the namer, she’s thinking about pretty, and fluffy, and different. She’s not interested in pronunciation, she doesn’t care about authenticity or tradition, and she really doesn’t see how a uniquely spelled name could spell touble. She’s just not on that side of things.

That said, I hate ‘em. I hate those crazily spelled names.

This is such a mormon thing to do!

Coming to the discussion late, but I wanted to weigh in… I agree with the majority here that some of the truly “tortured” names leave a bad impression on many people who see them, not to mention subjecting their owners to a lifetime of extensive spelling corrections. Whenever I see an altered name, however, I now always think of a story that I believe I read in an early edition of our favorite name book–the one about the woman whose about-to-be-deployed husband asked her to give their unborn daughter an unusually-spelled name if he didn’t make it back, so that every time she had to correct the spelling, she would think of him (fondly). And indeed he didn’t make it back, and indeed she was named Jeniffer or something like that, and indeed she thought of him (fondly) every time she had to correct the spelling. I always hope/pretend that Shardawnaye or Braxtyon’s parent had a reason like that behind their choice… even though I know that’s likely not true in most cases.

I am somewhere between nootral and h8 it in this one. I actually stumbled across this page originally after googling the different spellings of Hailey, since my searching for the few that I knew was not pulling up a long lost friend of mine.
I do have to say that silent letters that would not normally be silent are the most annoying.
“Yeah, my name is Gary…that’s with an M, please.”

I believe the womans name is pronounced ma-kay-la!
I have three boys and they have I guess what you woul refer to as yooneek names even though they really aren’t.
KiEran, KiAntae, and JaiVeon. And for those wondering no Im not of poor economical background and yes I have a very good education I just liked them spelled this way.

Hi, new here, but pretty familiar with naming trends in general… I’m on the baby name section of Y!Answers all the time, and you would not believe the kinds of things people come up with. On the subject of Yooneekness, I’m neutral. It is one of those things where a line need to be drawn.

I pretty much hate all “made up” names. People just slap random letters together and think it makes them special.
On another site, I read a post by a man who named his daughter Teuslauna. A week later, someone asked how it was spelled, his wife didn’t know, and it took him a week to remember exactly how it was. Seriously, what motivated them to just pick that? She will have to have that for life (or until she changes it).

Secondly, butchering classics (I’ve seen Lezlee and Elyzzabyth etc) can be super terrible. This is more of a gray area for me though, because some of my favorite names have lots of different spellings. Like Gwendolyn, which looks slightly better to me than Gwendolen. Changing things to y’s or other minor things might not be so bad. It really is hard to define the line on this though…

Lastly, I can’t stand when people mizspelle actual words-turned-names. Like Rain. I don’t like it much as a name, but every time I see it, it is Raine or Rayne or Rayn. Winter is another one. I’ve seen people suggest Wynter or Wyntr. Why? These especially make them look illiterate, in my opinion.

I don’t actually care how people choose to spell their child’s name. Every parent chooses a name for their child and hopes that their child will grow up liking their name. Some people like classical names (ie, Charlotte, Samuel and Erin), some like more fadish names (ie, Aiden, Payton and Chloe) but still others like names that sound traditional but look new age (ie, Kaeden, Raygan and Jaesin).
Each parent has the right to name their child what ever they want without having to think about other adults thinking less of them. By the time these kids are in school a child named Charlotte might be thought to have a stranger name than a child named Mikyl.
The only issue I ever see with different spellings is when it isn’t obvious how to pronounce or when there is a ton of extra letters that aren’t there for any obvious reason (ie, Vayrronnykkah for Veronica or Vichthorya for Victoria)
I have only had one of my friends complain about their name. My friend Netasha (rs. Natasha) but that was because her mom really didn’t know how to spell her name properly.
Some spellings I have seen:
Alyx
Ryann
Jaesin
Dylin
Renae (Rene)
Matsyn
Madylin
Rowin

All these names are spelled differently than what most are normally used to, but the person who wears this name has the same chance of liking their name as anyone else. My name is Sarah and I have always disliked it immensely as being too boring and common.
I think as long as the parents like the name they are using then it doesn’t much matter what anyone else thinks. If the child doesn’t like it they can go by a nick name or change it when they get older.
Just my opinion on the matter, I think they are good for those that want to use them, my children will be blessed with more ‘normal’ names like Evalynn and Elliott spelled just like that regardless of what people think of the way they look.

ok so… my name (pronouced sore) is not some ‘yoonik’ spelling or anything. Its irish for sam. I grew up in this tiny village (honestly, 11 n my class and 65 in the school) and thought ‘awesome Samantha, nobody is called that. Sadly, i got older, stopped helping out on the farm (o to be covered in chicken poop again) and started watching american tv and learned about the internet and was like no! oh its awful so thanks to my irish teacher’s elated shouts calling the roll with ‘SOMHAIRALíN!!!’ somhair was born. sadlywe’re back on sam mostly because my surename is now D’arcy and frankly, somhair d’arcy is not something to be pround of…

Back to the point, i’m okay with certain names being spelled differently like, if the ‘i’ you want to substitue for ‘y’ is pronouced like in Christian (my eldest boys middle name only Krystian) i’m okay but if it is like ee as in Louisa no.

My youngest daughters name is Orla, but spelled irish (Órfhlaith) has prooved a bit much for my Husbands french family.

‘Lucas’ is the middle name of my son Blaise (blez to my husbands side but blaze to mine) but I preferred to spell it Loukas which, though some people think I was just messing about with the spelling but thats the original Latin spelling… I also have a bit of a battle with my best mate on my ‘outrageous’ baby names. She refuses to spell them right because they aren’t pronouced that way. For example, my eldests birthday and christmas cards all have ‘Afeea’ written on instead of ‘Apphia’ but that sthe way it was spelt when i found it in the bible doing dreaded RE homework when I was 12. She also spells Órfhlaith Orla, Chaské (that acent sort of attached itself with help from the husband) as chasgay (it isn’t in fact pronouced that way. Off topic slightly, but she basically refuses to call my 9month old son by his propper name, Percy, and just writes James on all of his cards and calls him wee man.

So, I realise I’m rambling a wee bit but if I was talking, it would be really quick because I’m from Fermanagh and its what we do.

One last thing, in secondary school I had a friend called Michaela except it was pronouced like My cal a, she gave up trying to tell people how to pronouce it and let them call her ‘the tacky american name my mam almost called her’

I though tI had better include the middle shild too because she’s the only left out, I called her Theo even though people kept telling me it was a boys name.

ok yea that was REALLY LONG

I personally hate yooneek names for one reason – they don’t make it a different name! I know a Sydni and feel quite bad!

My two adorable next door neighbours are named Jaxon and Jazmyn…and personally i adore those names…and i love Aeryn…

Last year, my intern named her daughter Maticyn (pn Madison). I nearly vomited.

These names always immediately remind me of the Australian TV show Kath & Kim where they name their baby “Epponnee-Raelene”… obviously a joke aimed at ‘yooneek’ spellings!

I am an Alice and my parents toyed with the idea of using the Welsh version, ‘Alys’, which I think is acceptable in that it is at least a traditional spelling and not just something somebody came up with on the spot – but now I am glad they opted for the normal spelling! Saves a lot of explaining!

I always feel sorry for kids with these kind of names. I know a boy who’s mother named him Keven. Why? Everyone will ALWAYS spell his name Kevin and he will have to correct it. That said, I named 2 of my boys what I thought were fairly “normal” names- Dylan and Ian. You would not believe how difficult these names are for people to spell and/or pronounce. Dylan has had to answer to Die-lan and many want to spell it Dillon (both correct spellings). Ian answers to both a long “e” sound and a long “I” sound. (both of which are correct pronunciations.) Now this one is the kicker— A relative is a labor and delivery nurse and a newborn there was named La-a …….. Pronounced LaDasha. Sorry, but that’s just crazy.

There are literally millions of names. Multiply that by the number of languages in which variations of that name are found and the number is truly mind-boggling. With a few moments of research, anyone can find a creative – and correct – spelling of pretty much any name.

Misspelling names, adding punctuation marks (which are used in grammar as opposed to diacritical marks which guide pronunciation), and inserting capital letters in the middle of a name are all red flags for lack of either education or taste, I think.

Hi there,
I stumbled upon this blog while randomnly searching the web, and I love it! You have some very great insights Jill.
When I first read “Mykailah”, I actually had to think for a minute before I understood that it was Michaela.

The topic of unique spellings is something I am very interested in. I’m a young person myself (16), and I know a lot of friends and friends’ younger siblings who have different spellings. For example: I know Kaitlyn and Caitlin, Katrina and Catriona, Christy and Krystii, Steven and Stephen, and others.

For me, small changes to the spellings of names are perfectly acceptable. Catriona’s parents spelled it that way because her mom is Scottish and it’s the traditional Gaelic spelling. Same with Caitlin. Different spellings help me to differentiate between the 2 people in writing, and they also become a part of that person. I would never spell Krystii’s name Christy, because that’s not who she is. Krystii is a short, red-headed, bubbly and girly person, while Christy is a tall outdoorswomen with sandy blonde hair.

That said, I HATE names that are spelled differently just for the sake of it. Madeline as the traditional Hebrew spelling (the more common being Madaleine) is one thing, but Madylynne just to make it more unique makes me mad. When naming your child you have 2 options: give them a REAL unique name so that they’re original, or give them a more common name that you really like. Giving your child the name Lynnsee doesn’t change the fact that her name is still “Lindsey”- it just creates hardships and frustrations in the future.

I also find that a lot of names that have “unique” spellings don’t age well. “Mekensey Smith, MD” just seems stupid compared to “McKenzie Smith, MD”. Sure, Kaetii may be cute for a 4 year old, but writing that on a resume or insurence application doens’t work for anyone who’s looking for more than an after-school job flipping burgers.

There’s a difference between unique and obnoxious. It may be becoming less obvious in today’s world of Raychills and Allasynns, but it’s still there.

I don’t think it’s a big deal, as long as the name “reads” like it should. My name was the most common spelling, and I still have to spell it out every time I tell it to someone (Carrie).
We decided to name our daughter Brynlee (a family surname – Brinley), because we loved the nickname Bryn. If she wants to look professional she can choose to write her name as Bryn on a resume. I generally prefer traditional spellings, but it should be decided by the parents.

Oh god do I pray for naming laws in North America like in France and Scandinavia. Some nurse in L&D when my daughter was born actually ASKED me how I planned on spelling Stephanie. My answer “the normal way”.

I named my baby teuslauna, and as long as it is pronounced correctly (i.e. by someone who has respect for other people) TYOOS-LAWNA most people say it is pretty, then ask what it means.( who cares? it means she is unique, cause NOBODY else has that name.) it’s unique and different, and I gave it to her, and it’s not recycled from your grandma eunice, bernice or beula which i guess you would be fine with, heather c. i made it up, yes. but it is pretty as well as unique, and not weird like moon unit or dweebil. sorry i am not a baby name copycat so you can like it. when i made it up i was only semi serious, but we love the name as well as the beautiful little girl who has it. she’s 2 now, and has been taught to be particular about those mispronouncing it, as some who care only of their own comfort and ease will slaughter it to be jerks.

My name is Sophia, but you can call me Iya… and I have a lot to pour out. I just don’t think that butchering a perfectly good name and contorting it with strange additions and exclusions to make it kre8tiv or yooneek or dystincktyvx or ohreegynalhe or ahrtysttick or eemagynnatieve in any way. It just makes you sick and nauseated, thinking how to pronounce it, or is this even a correct spelling, or who named this poor thing?

And I don’t like your name Sevannahx or yours Aadinn or yours Maccenxzie.

I don’t mind some “yooneek” spellings. Like Kathryn instead of Catherine, yada yada. But I work with a Typhanea, and the spelling of her name irks me SO MUCH (and she’s not so fond of it herself)! I guess it’s just a major pet peeve of mine, though it appears I’m not alone. I don’t mind names that actually ARE unique…but trying to turn more common ones into something they’re not is just annoying

I’ve known several variants of common names, but one that always seems to stick in my mind is Elysia (pronounced Alicia).

Xtian is pronounced Christian.

I know somebody who planned on naming her twin girls:

L’ove (Apparently pronounced Elle-Oh-Vay) and Mahcinleigh.

Oh, and that baby with the hat is just too cute for words!

I hate misspelling for the sake of uniqueness/”cuteness”, but if you must, at least limit yourself to changing one letter. I can tolerate “Krystal-with-a-K” or “Brittani-with-an-I”, but not “Maddasyn-with-two-D’s-and-an-A-instead-of-an-I-and-a-Y-instead-of-an-O.”

my middle name is kathryn and I always liked that it is a less common spelling. It made me feel more special since my first name is fairly common and my last name is really common (on par with smith).
But that isn’t quite the same thing as all these crazy weird spellings, which I’m not too fond of.

have a friend whose husband’s name is “matt” and she wanted to incorporate his name into her daughter’s name…which ended up being “mattyson” (aka – madison). i. can’t. get. over. it. blech…

Having a name constantly misspelled is a pain in the workplace, at school, and even among friends. I have so many people tell me that the email didn’t go through, because they spelled my name wrong. I would never do this to a kid. Though I have many friends who have changed the spelling of their nicknames to have a more yooneek name. That is a person deciding for themselves though – like my friend Mycha (pronounced Mycah)and then one who changed the Y and I in cyndi to make it more unique to her.

Today I met a little girl named Iden and I had to turn my head to even tell what it was: Eden. Even then her mother had tot tell me his name . I met a Marisolea as well.

My name is misspelled by ONE letter & I’m sick of correcting not only people’s spelling of my name, but their pronunciation. I’ve gone through school dealing with it and I’m just sick of it. No, I won’t legally change the spelling of my name becuase it’s just weird. It is me. I can’t change me. But that doesn’t mean I can’t dislike it. My children’s names will be spelled correct.

I will say, however, that some misspellings don’t bug me so much as others. Aiden, Madelyn, and Michaella don’t bug me, while Aydhynn, Madehlenn, and Mykaelah do. I do, still prefer the correct spellings though (Aidan, Madeleine, & Michaela).

I agree yooneek names are okay form me if its one letter but what can you do when you meet a little girl named K8 and you realize that on your daughter’s party invitation her name is spelled Kate not K8 and that her mother is mad at you for mispelling it.

That little girl is in for a tough ride when she goes to school and when she has to get a job.

My favourite is still Antqwan with the silent q.

Honestly, I think it makes the parents look so ignorant, and often (at least where I live) they are. Had a student whose middle name was Jerone — his grandmother meant for his father to be Jerome but misspelled it, so instead of correcting it (which is relatively easy to do), they left it at Jerone. I know so many students in this situation. And I know so many with joke names, such as siblings Shaka and Te’Quilah Booze. Or siblings Sir and Lord Jones. I even knew a child named Sir Charles.

I think spelling a child’s name in weird way to make your child “unique” just causes problems. And kids have enough problems without their names adding more.

It really depends,
Sometimes sacrificing an “Ai” or “Ay” for and “Ae” works wonders,
Rai-Ray-Rae
Elisabeth-Elizabeth
Clare-Claire-Klare
Isabelal-Isobel
But sometimes it just plain messes it up,
Mckaila is a messed name already, don’t torture it and make it worse
Makayla is horrible,
Aliz is cool (Alice)
Lelie is cool (Lily)
-aeden -aiden -ayden names are just unacceptable

How the hell do you pronounce Shardawnaye?!

A few letters of the norm does not doom a child for life,
Someone with a yooneek or kre8iv spelled name is just as likely to succeed as anyone else,
Excluding Makayla, Mykaila and Maykaylay because that’s just awful, (All pronounced Muh-kay-LA)
Personally, I’de rather be a Aliz then an Alice, but I’d rather be dead then Maykaylay, (I know someone with that name, her mother was 17 as you can tell)
And if I had to have a Mckaila name it would be Muhkayla,

Well I have a traditionly spelled name Alix (Alex) I constantly have to spell it, identify that yes I am a girl and yes my name is spelled correctly. I am identified in all my classes as Alix with an I so not to confuse me with all the other Alex’s. The thing is, people are complaining about unique names and how the kids constanly have to correct and pronounce them. I think my name is easy to identify as Alex but I have been call Alice, Alikes etc. So even traditional spellings can cause problems for kids. But I will admit working in the education system I have seen many names that make no sense to me and I just asked the kids to tell me their names rather than try to read it off a list.

Awesome blog!

I hate, hate, hate this annoying trend which hasn’t completely gripped England thankfully. These spellings which are supposedly creative and interesting are actually tacky and even though I shouldn’t – i’m human – and yes I do judge these children with misspelled names. Yes my spelling/grammar isn’t great but parents do this dilberately to make they’re children ‘stand out’ and to follow the ‘trend’ it’s awful. I even dislike simple changes like instead of Caitlin it’s Katelynne which is common. Some a have been around for years Elizabeth/Elisabeth and Katherine/Kathryn and my tastes have grown to accept this and in some cases like. But normally I perfer the original. In my eyes the original spelling is always the best.

My middle name is Elisabeth, which is the German version of Elizabeth, not a yooneek spelling. My parents just liked it better.

My friend just told me about reading about a boy named Jaykob nicknamed Jayk. I can’t believe it. What the freak!

Haha, I laughed out loud after I heard fryze. Anyways, I was in my hometown visiting my family and I met up with my cousin who was the same age as me. Her name was Addison. one day, I went to sleep at her house and I saw her school card which had Addissyn written on it. I was so shocked. I spent my whole life spelling her name Addison when it really was Addissyn even though her sisters name is the semi-popular Olivia. But since I stil go to school I have seen some pretty Krea8iv names such as:

Hailiee and Haeleigh
Alixandria and Alyxandria
Danyella
Jazzmin
Briauna
Qala
Madely *mix of Natalie and Maddie pronounced Mad-uh-lee*

Well, people consider my name differently spelled- Micaela
Plus, my mom is Misti, unlike Misty
I know someone who’s middle name is Alisabeth for Elizabeth. I like little changes like that. I like to see new spellings and think they are unique. Though I do agree that spellings could get out of hand.

My grandma’s name is Isobel because she was born in Scotland so its how its spelt over there making the only spelling i would use. I know an Elisabeth who gets called Lizzie (spelt with 2 z’s because she doen’t want to be called Lissie) but she was called this because that was how it was spelt in the bible her parents used. I know a Jaclyn but that might be easier for little kids to spell. My neice is called Catherine because thats my mums name and shes french. I hate yoonek spellings Emily is better than Emmaleighy or Emyli etc.

A friend of mine has the name Madylin because of the Everybody Loves Raymond actress Madylin Sweeten. Personally, I think some yooneek names are kind of different in a good way, but when they get to outrageous like Qaiden, I’m not a big fan. Names like Abegayle, Madesynn, Renae, or Remi are not that bad for me.

I agree with many of the comments about how a simple–still understandable–change (Kathryn vs. Katherine) is fine. As long as I can pronounce within five seconds of looking at it, I’m okay. I even think that slightly more unique spellings are generally acceptable as long as they have a reason (family, religious, cultural, etc.) behind them and are still pronounceable. That being said, I know people with these names:
Alexx–yes, TWO x’s. I’m not sure if she has the given name “Alexx” or if it is a longer version (eg Alexandra) or if she just decided that she wanted a second x.
Liisa–yes, TWO i’s.
Jahsulyn–pronounced “Jocelyn.” Her parent’s names are Susan and Lynn and they also added “Jah” the Rastafarian God.

My name is super common (Sarah) and I still have to spell it out for people sometimes. I’m fine with saying “Sarah with an H,” but when I say that and people spell it “Shara” I cry a little on the inside.

a girl I use to go to school with has a younger sister named “Lisa”.
I have known this girl since she was born and she is now 15.
I stumbled across her facbook page a few months ago (as she is friends with my cousin) and 15 years later I learn her name is not Lisa, but Leesah.
I was shocked!!
The older siblings are Kimberly, Travis and Ashley (I know that’s what they are as I have been in sports/classes/work with those 3 and have seen their names spelt).

This is the only time I’ve personally come across a yooneek spelling.

I think there’s a line to be drawn. If you don’t like Isabelle, you’re perfectly justified to spell it Isobel, that’s a legitimate variation and therefore fine by me. Same goes for Isabel. However, if you spell it Izabehll, you are making life unreasonably difficult for your child. If you want to spell Katherine with a C, Sophia with an F or even Jocelyn with an S before the C, go right ahead, they’re easily explainable, but if you spell them Quatharynn, Sohfeeah or Joscilynne, I have news for you, you look illiterate.

So, simply, though little Catherine may be saying “Catherine-with-a-C” for her entire life, (like I have to say “Nora without the H”, for example), it’s a heck of a lot easier than “Q-U-A-T-H-A-R-Y-N-N”. And that is the line I draw between “variation” and “Kre8tiv”.

Hi my names Ebony but I sometimes have to say how it is spelt. It is just lazy to spell an actual word wrong. In my little sister Adele’s birth cards she got Edel and Adel I got Ebonie and my middle Anne was spelt Ann. I plan on naming my first daughter Isobel because it is my grandma’s name, an Elisabeth nicknamed Lizzie (Not Lissie as she thought it would be pronounced like the end of Melissa with an ie)

There’s only one thing a person can do when they hear that poor Olivia’s name is spelled Alyvia: face-palm.

There’s a fine line between creative and illiterate. I’m fine with “Kristal” instead of “Crystal”, but “Khrystal” is pushing it and “Krhysstil” makes me gag. Just use common sense. And remember that they will have to spell it out for the rest of their lives. I am Alison but I go by “Ali”; spelling it out is a mild annoyance, but at least it isn’t Ahllee or something…

“Jennifer,” the “classic” spelling of an extremely common name, is the result of centuries of yooneek spellings of “Guinevere.” Relax people – it’s not that serious.

I absolutely loathe unique spellings. They’re terrible and I think less of the parents who inflict these names on their children.

I haven’t come across any yooneek ways of spelling names surprisingly, but one of my friends is named Sara and with me being Sarah, people confuse us all the time. We look absolutely nothing alike and both our names are spelt and pronounced what I think is the traditional way. People always ask me if my name is with a h on the end or without, and even my best friend spelt my name ‘Sahra’ for donkeys years. I know Sara gets annoyed when people pronounce her name as Sarah, as do I when people call me Sara.