First, it’s He-LAY-na.
HELEN-a is my preferred mispronounciation.
He-LEE-na makes me cringe.
I have a love-hate relationship with my name, but that’s because it’s apparently the hardest-name-ever-in-the-whole-world to pronounce. I frequently have conversations like this:
“Hi, I’m Helena!”
“Colleen?”
“Helena”
“Ha-LEE-na?”
“Helena”
“Helene?”
“Sure.”
People get a limited number of corrections to keep things from getting awkward.
My sister has a different problem. People hear “Kerry” just fine but write “Carrie”. My mother, Sarah, gets her h dropped frequently.
Perhaps I should have stuck with my childhood nickname of Lena, devised by my mother when my peers at preschool had issues with polysyllabics.
My mother swears that this issue is not my name, but that people don’t take the time to listen. I know that responding to my own host of name-variants has made me very aware of other people’s names. I ride in like a name-knight to make sure everyone’s name is said correctly.
Correctly or not, He-LAY-na, HELEN-a, and He-LEE-na are all quite rare (at least in my circles). I don’t really know what it feels like to have someone else have “your name”. Any other Helenas in my life have been fleeting (though not solely for that reason). I like knowing that when someone calls “Helena” (or “HELEN-a” or “He-LEE-na”) they are likely calling for me.
I’ve always sworn that my children would have simple, common names. I no longer stand by that promise. Even simple, common names are mispronounced.
Perhaps mispronunciations build character, teach patience, and reward flexibility. I’ll keep telling myself that.
Melbourne on my mind says
I feel your pain, I really do. I get called Kristy or Kirsten or Kristen far more than people get my name correct. I even get Kathy or Christine from time to time. And that’s before we even start on my full name – Kirsti is an abbreviation for something that shall remain a secret from the internet. My all time favourite misspelling was Kriisiti. At least that one was via email rather than in person so I could full appreciate its awesomeness.
And it’s a valid point on the common names – a lecturer once asked a guy in one of my undergrad classes how he spelled Bob…
Helena says
Double the i’s! Very exotic!
renita says
Oh god, do I feel your pain.
When people ask my name at restaurants (like Panera) I usually say Lyn instead… last time I got “ERNITA” on the receipt. Right letters, wrong order.
My name has been spelled and pronounced more ways than I ever would have imagined. 🙂
Helena says
Ha, when Starbucks asks my name (most just call out the order now, but some still write your name on the cup) I get ALL KINDS OF THINGS. At restaurants, I always use someone else’s name.
renita says
As long as you remember what name you gave them… 🙂
I’ve also had plenty of problems with my maiden and current last names but at least THAT I can understand.
There’s a reason I made sure I was pronouncing your name right before we met in person… 🙂
Lisa says
It’s funny. People always mispronounced my last name as far back as I can remember. I’d get “KENnelly” most often. I just got used to having to correct people to “Ken-NELL-y”. I thought when I married David that the madness would stop, but people even have trouble with “Wilhelm”. They like to try to make it one syllable (it’s actually two – it’s exactly how it looks). Or they’ll say “Williams” for some reason. I was baffled, because it seems so self-explanatory. I really think your mom is right – people just don’t take the time to listen and process.
Clare says
Oh names are a funny thing. I’m glad I was mentally pronouncing your name correctly! My husbands name is Noah and people are constantly saying “Neal” “Noel” and even “Owen”. It’s ridiculous. I have to agree with your mom that people don’t take the time to listen. Even when I introduce myself sometimes people will say “Chris?” Ugh, no. Some humans are hopeless!
Helena says
I imagine you have spelling issues with the i, right? I love the way you spell Clare (like the county in Ireland!) but I can see people wanting to put an i in there!
Helena says
Oh, last names. Mine (presently) is Butters. I’ve actually had it mispronounced – once – as BUTTE-ers.
Maggie Rose says
I get “MEGgie” (ugh), Megan, Margaret… the old ladies at church when I was a kid were especially bad. My full name is Magdalen and while I’ve never gone by that I do have a few friends that use it regularly – even the HR at my old job used to tack an “e” onto the end of that. I’m like, is my retirement account going to be f-ed up because of your inability to spell my name?? My boyfriend is Ryan and every single time he’s asked for his name there is a Ryan/Brian exchange that makes me cringe!
Helena says
Ha, my dad is Brian and has that issue in reverse!
Hemborgwife says
Totally feel your pain too! I get Billy tons and then most people when they meet me for the second time 9 out of 10 times they call me Brandy which just bugs me so much!
Tammi says
Oh, I’m glad you wrote this post. I’ve been reading your name as HELEN-a, and now I will correct myself! Your mom has a point about people not listening, because my name is pretty easy and I’ve been called Debbie more than once 🙂
Will's mom says
Oh—- just wait until you have the last name SWYTER….LOL….
MOST people pronounce THAT wrong,too… SW-EYE-Ter…It annoys me…( as it does you with your name) When I was young( Yes, really, I was young once.) I always had trouble with people-mainly the nuns– saying my last name incorrectly–It is pronounced Don-a- heee–However… TEACHERS who did not bother to read the ENTIRE name–on the paper-or whaever- would call us DONAHUE…Arrrgh! Oh well…I just stopped answering when they would call my name–then at the end of the roll call they would ask.. Is there anyone who did not have their name called?? –> Being the smarty pants I was.. I would raise my had and proudly state my name with CORRECT last name pronunciation…Usually, the teacher would just stare at me. LOL
brianne says
I get Diane. I guess the “Br” sound is too much for many people. Oye.
Theresa says
Because the rest of the world pronounces my name differently (Tur-EH-za), and I say it the American way (Tur-EE-sa), I sometimes get crazy spellings when I pick up orders. One of my recurring favorites? Tiressa.
Sarah Cooley says
I thought we would have scarred Peighton P8N, (it’s the old Irish spelling) for life with her name. It is true she doesn’t get to buy pencils with her name on them, but she has adapted. No, she was not named after Peyton Manning. Mypick was actually Jillian Raye, Jillie as a little girl and then a grown up name, Chris said with a G or a J…so people can call her Gill e–an her whole life, no thanks! I knew there was a baby boy in my belly so Andrew Thomas it was…or not:) Insurance companies just think Drew is a boy, but we did give her 4 names so when I called my very best friend in the middle of the night to tell her our sweet baby Drew had arrived, her response was how will we ever monogram anything. I guess I hadn’t thought that through, pick 3 I said. Naming my children ranks up there as hard as birthing them!
Helena says
I love the look of Gillian with a G, but it does pose a problem with the shortening.. Gilly looks like “fish gills”.
Tow New Braunfels TX says
471122 63369As I site owner I think the topic material here is real wonderful, appreciate it for your efforts. 505038
Villas in Hyderabad says
282771 134409Black Ops Zombies […]some people still have not played this game. Its hard to picture or believe, but yes, some individuals are missing out on all with the enjoyable.[…] 174316