do those of you with hard-to-pronounce foreign names (or names that are not necessarily foreign, but are still unusual or difficult to pronounce) ever find that when you pronounce your name correctly, people get confused and don't know who they're talking to? twice in the past week, i've called people i know and had interesting introductions. they weren't my friends, and thus didn't have my number programmed in their phones -- but they were friendly acquaintances whom i had to call for some logistical or administrative purpose related to on-campus activities. each exchange went like this:
me: "hey [name of person], this is naseem. what's up?"
other person: "who?"
me: "naseem."
other person: "who?"
me: "naseem."
other person: "oh. nuh-seeem. hey, how are you?"
i think the issue is that i say my name correctly: "nah-seem." the "a" sound is short, like the "a" in "apple." but english-speakers seem to have serious problems with it. why, i don't know. they can obviously say "apple." but they can't say "naseem."
people always seem to turn my name into "naw-seem" (where "naw" sounds like "saw") or "nay-seem" (where "nay" sounds like "day) or, by far the most popular, "nuh-seeem" (where the "nuh" is a short, rushed "u" sound). every time i introduce myself to someone, i say "hi, i'm naseem." and they say "nuh-seeem." they butcher that "a" and they put all the stress on the second syllable. and then, no matter how many times they hear me say my own name correctly subsequent to the introduction, they just can't get it right. hence, i have phone conversations like the one above.
in the past few years, i've made special efforts to put emphasis on the first syllable "NAH-seem." but then, for some strange reason, they never hear the "m" at the end. so they call me "nasee." sometimes i just get so irritated-- i don't know that i'll ever understand why intelligent people, most of whom have acquired second or third languages successfully, can't repeat the sounds they hear so clearly -- especially in a name that's only two syllables long and is spelled quite phonetically.
just wondering if anyone out there feels my pain...
Posted by naseem at September 15, 2006 12:15 PMYes, as eh-Steve, I commiserate with you :)-
Posted by: Steve at September 15, 2006 03:43 PMTrouble is, you are probably the 13th of 14th Naseem they have met. And all the Naseems, Nasims and Nassims that have gone before you have not corrected them. Thats what you get for having such a common name... :)
Posted by: greg at September 15, 2006 03:59 PMhahaha yeah. Shirley, Shiloh, Sholah...the list goes on. It isn't that hard: pronounce it like it is spelled, with the emphasis on the first syllable. *sigh*
Posted by: Sholeh at September 15, 2006 04:59 PMThey could start calling you by your real first name and that would REALLY trip them up.
Sometimes I have to see something written down. When I do, it doesn't easily leave. Of course, it has to be accompanied with some kind of audible pronunciation. For example, my landlord's name is Dawit. In Illinois we knew a Dawit and it was pronounced da-wit. My landlord is Ethiopian, so it's actually da-wheat. Of course, I called him by the old way of saying it until I heard his wife actually call him da-wheat, and then I promptly changed my ways. I want to be respectful of his name, so I pronounce it da-wheat, but I know for others this kind of pronunciation can be hard. Why? I don't know. But my brother I know has taken at least 3 semesters of Spanish and still says "Coe moe es-taaah?" Welcome to the south. And hello spanglish.
The past few years have given me the opportunity try and understand Persian pronunciation, and the short "a" like apple is probably the most abused letter. So many want to "aah." It irritates me, too, sister, when I hear people mispronouncing your name!
Posted by: Lacey at September 15, 2006 05:32 PMPeople pretty much know how to say George. Spelling it, however, gives many difficulty. Thankfully my name is old enough to have a cognate in many other European languages. I do so adore being called Jorge or Giorgio or Georg or Georges.
When it comes to others' names, I'm like Lacey: visual representation helps, and I go out of my way to pronounce it correctly. Our names are so central to who we are; it's important to get them right. I understand why it irritates you so, and I'm annoyed when others can't say your name too.
Honestly, it's disrespectful not to make a genuine effort. When I meet someone new with a name I've never encountered, the conversation almost invariably begins with a call-and-response until I get their name just right. Sometimes I have to have it spelled out or written down, but by God I'll get it eventually. And it's always interesting to me to then learn about the name's meaning, language of origin, and root culture, not to mention then getting to know the person who embraces the moniker and absorbs it into their identity.
Posted by: george at September 16, 2006 07:45 PMI was going to say what George said.
- estephens
Posted by: Stephen Fuqua at September 17, 2006 01:13 PMit hasn't been an issue in awhile, but when i was a kid there was a mom at nursery school whose kid was in my class who insisted on calling me mayuh. it was irritating. what's your real first name???
Posted by: maya at September 17, 2006 05:03 PMWhy can't people say Artemis....ssssoooo easy!And better yet why can't they read it? I get Art-team-us all the time. Yeah I have noticed that people think the "a" in your name sounds like the "a" in the word saw.
Posted by: Artemis at September 17, 2006 07:51 PME-z-r-a.... ez like in "pez" ; ra like the end of "Sarah". Its not rocket science, but I get:
* Israel
* Izra
* Esra
* Ezera
I feel your pain. My name is Mouzhan - need I say more?
Posted by: Mouzhan at September 18, 2006 09:59 AMI'm with you, Mouzhan! :) The worst is that people who have known me for a VERY long time still don't realize my name is pronounced "MOO-jahn" not "MOE-jahn." I realize that it's confusing, but when you've known me for over five years...?
Posted by: +mojan. at September 21, 2006 09:46 AMHey, yah I feel your pain. My names "Nasima" and no one ever pronounces my name right. Their like..Naasema..or Nazema?..I'm like there clearly is an "s" there not a "z" and I'm like the "a" is pronounced like an a...lol, i know, it makes me mad too..lol.
Posted by: Nasima at September 21, 2006 05:30 PMNas, I feel you on this one....Luckily, I have so many nicknames that it doesn't even matter anymore....
Posted by: Pierre at September 26, 2006 11:33 PM