How do you feel about less-common name spellings?

[Susie]

Calvin and I have different perspectives on this, so I'm interested in some others as well.  I have a first name that is spelled somewhat unusually.  Not weirdly per se, but not the way most people would guess.  Think, Jayne instead of Jane.  Calvin OTOH, was one of like 10 kids in his class who had the exact same first name, so everybody needed to have a nickname/go by last name to differentiate.  He hated the nickname he wound up with, so he is disinclined to pick a common name.  Neither extreme is ideal.

We saddled DD with an unusual (but again not unheard of) spelling -- she is Catherine after my mom, and goes by Cate.  The "after my mom" bit justified her future inconvenience ("It's Cate with a C") for me/us.

We currently have two contenders for boy names, one of which is Sean (not Shaun, and not Shawn).  We have different opinions on the merit of the Irish spelling.  While it's the only one we're entertaining, after a lifetime of "Jayne-with-a-y," it makes me lean toward our other name.  OTOH, it makes Calvin lean toward Sean over our other name (which is currently Colin, leaving few alternate spellings for people to guess wrong).

The grass is always greener, right?  Anyway, any thoughts on going with names that are spelled the specifically more or less popular way?

[minionkevin]

My default way to spell Sean is S-e-a-n. I would only spell it differently if I was told beforehand. I presume alternate spellings arose from people not knowing the Gaelic pronunciation and saying “seen” or “say-on”, like how my cousin Siobhan in her teens went to a phonetic spelling of Chevon.
Colin I default to 1 l. I think both are the traditional/normal way.

My mom is a Catherine and goes by a spelling of (phonetically) Cathy I have never seen used by anyone besides her. My friend with a DD Catherine spells it Cait. It is a name with many options, moreso than just about any other besides Elizabeth and Margaret.

[cactuscookie]

I think Sean is a name that's going to have spelling confusion no matter how you spell it, because while Shawn might be more common, Sean is a perfectly normal way of spelling it too.

FWIW, my name has multiple possible spellings, and it's never bothered me. My spelling is the most common, but people still seem to get it right about as often as they get it wrong.

We strongly considered Lila/Lilah, so I asked my sister how she feels about her name - Sara. She said that both spellings are common enough that people often just ask her whether to add the 'h' or not.

[pandorica]

I think of Sean as the default way to spell the name, so this is interesting!

I also grew up with a super common first name and hated it. However, I would never think of a unique spelling as making the name stand out. The kid would still be Sean X. or whatnot if it's a popular name since they all sound the same.

I don't like made up spellings, but in your example I think either works.

[gastro]

Sean is the way I would spell it. I’ve seen the others but Sean is the variation I’m most familiar with.

[namasteak]

Sean doesn't stemlike a less common spelling to me. In general I don't like alternative spellings but Sean doesn't seem strange to me at all.

[scm1011]

Sean is definitely the traditional/default spelling in my mind.

[brooklyn]

I don’t think Catherine or Sean count as unusual spellings. They are both the default ways I’d spell those names.

[hamster]

I'm a hard pass on unique spellings, but Sean is totally normal here. It would be my preferred spelling I think.

[namasteak]

Jan 2, 2019 21:50:58 GMT -5 hamster said:

I'm a hard pass on unique spellings, but Sean is totally normal here. It would be my preferred spelling I think.

Agreed - I think it’s the more traditional spelling which I like.


IE: We considered Rhys (traditional spelling) for all 3 boys but I’m pretty sure we won’t use it because people can’t pronounce it and it’s mostly a girls name here.

[miamigirl]

Sean is the way I woukd spell it, unless I was told otherwise, and Colin with only one L.

Fwiw I think both names are beautiful and woukd work with your DD’s name.

[CrazyLucky]

Sean is the way I spell Sean, so I'm with Calvin on this one. In general, minor spelling changes like Jayne don't even make me think twice.
DS has an Irish name. The correct Irish spelling is to start with a C, but we started it with a K, the Americanized way, to help with pronunciation. For all the times we have to correct people, we should have just went with the C.

[icedcoffee]

Sean is not an unusual spelling to me.  None of these names seem unusual to me.  I don't think you can go wrong with Sean or Colin.  I think they are both strong choices.

Most names will require some explanation when dictating the name to someone else.  I mean my name seems simple, but it's one where the same spelling has like 12 different pronunciations and they're all correct.  I go by the less common European pronunciation (because English was not my first language and it more directly translates with the European version).  It's never been a big deal.  I correct people sometimes (generally only if I will see them again), other times I just go with the flow and ignore.  Funny story:  At my last job I had been there almost 4 months when my boss called me into her office to yell at me for not correcting her.  I guess someone else in the office corrected her.  LOL  Oops.

If you're going to be bothered if people misspell your kids name Shaun then I wouldn't pick it.  Otherwise just go with it.  It's definitely not uncommon.

[ivy]

I agree with the others. Both are great names, and as you have proposed them is how I would default spell them. I share your daughter's full name and nn but spell both differently. I strongly suspect she will be spelling out her full name at a much higher rate than a Sean (there are just too many legitimate variations).

[scm1011]

FWIW, we're spelling DD's middle name Clare vs. the more popular Claire. I'm guessing it will be misspelled a fair bit, but its a legitimate spelling and we have reasons for using that version (its after DH's aunt and my Nana's place of origin, both which use that spelling).

I think that's just how having a name with many legitimate variations goes (as you know with your first name). Neither are younique. If you were all "we're thinking of spelling it Shawnne" I'd be all girl, no lol.

[Susie]

Interesting that so many would default to Sean.  If we lived in Ireland, then I would expect that but did not expect it in the US.  When I think about the Shawn/-un/-ean's that I know IRL, I can think of 2 Shauns, 1 Sean, and three Shawns... and one side of my family is entirely Irish!  If we're considering Sean strongly, I'm glad to know others see it more frequently.  I am not here for younique, or even perceived younique name spellings.

As far as Colin is concerned, yes, "one l" would be the default - I have never really seen it another way.  Did not mean to suggest there's an alternative.  Where I was going with that was that one of our names has several known/reasonably common variants, while the other does not.  One would lend itself to constant "it's Sean with an -ean," while the other would much more frequently just be "I'm [Colin]."  As between Sean and Colin, that is emerging as a basis for preference (in opposite directions) for Calvin and I, and it's not helping un-complicate this.  Sigh.

[scm1011]

Jan 3, 2019 9:21:44 GMT -5 Susie said:

Interesting that so many would default to Sean.  If we lived in Ireland, then I would expect that but did not expect it in the US.  When I think about the Shawn/-un/-ean's that I know IRL, I can think of 2 Shauns, 1 Sean, and three Shawns... and one side of my family is entirely Irish!  If we're considering Sean strongly, I'm glad to know others see it more frequently.  I am not here for younique, or even perceived younique name spellings.

As far as Colin is concerned, yes, "one l" would be the default - I have never really seen it another way.  Did not mean to suggest there's an alternative.  Where I was going with that was that one of our names has several known/reasonably common variants, while the other does not.  One would lend itself to constant "it's Sean with an -ean," while the other would much more frequently just be "I'm [Colin]."  As between Sean and Colin, that is emerging as a basis for preference (in opposite directions) for Calvin and I, and it's not helping un-complicate this.  Sigh.

Maybe its regional, since I live in a highly Irish area (you can't shake a stick without hitting a Sean in Boston). Of the about dozen Seans I know only one has an alternative spelling (Shaun).

I do see your point in the as far as this emerging as a basis for preference, but to me it seems like it will be generally a non-issue and shouldn't be used as a deciding factor.

[dragon's breath]

I'm in the PNW, and I would default to Sean. I think I've only known one person who spelled it differently.
I'd also think Colin would have to explain "one l" because I've seen it with two ls many times, so if the thinking is "he'd have to explain Sean, but not Colin", I wouldn't base the name on that assumption.

I have a foreign last name, and people can never spell or pronounce it correctly. Rather than asking, they just assume something, and it does get annoying. I used to give them the name, then spell it for them, but they would decide they needed to capitalize one of the letters. So now, if they are writing it, I just spell it for them before I tell them what it is, if the spelling is going to be important. It was funny, because when I got married, I was looking forward to get this nice, easy to spell, no way to screw it up last name. I was wrong. People screwed up the easy, common name almost as much as my own. After the divorce, I went back to my maiden name. Even if I were to ever get married, I'm keeping my name forever, even though it comes with having to spell it out or pronounce it every time (I don't bother to correct people at the grocery store, but I didn't correct a security guard years ago, because it was like a revolving door with them, and he still pronounces it wrong. Every time he says it, I debate if I should tell him or not.)

[hamster]

Btw, you can download state specific name data from SSA. At least in Oregon, Sean was twice as popular as Shawn. Shaun was between 0 and 5 babies.

www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/limits.html

[pooh8402]

I think Sean is still a common spelling and wouldn't bat an eye at it. Same for Colin/Collin. There are several names with multiple common spellings (female names are at the top of my head because I have to pay attention to these in my line of work): Brittany/Britney/Brittney, Elisabeth/Elizabeth, Katherine/Catherine/Kathryn, etc.

There are lots of times people have to spell out their common name. Even my name, which really only has one common spelling, has been butchered before.

When I hear about "less common" spellings, I think of younique spellings and people inserting extraneous "y's" or "-eigh" when an "-ie" is the common spelling. This is not what you are doing. You're choosing a regional/cultural spelling.

[raangoli]

I don't go here, but I have a foreign first name and maiden name, and my married last name is stupid long. It is just habit now to say "I'm XXX, I'll spell that for you". It's not a big deal.

[noodleoo]

Honestly, having an ethnic name myself, this is a non-issue to me. Both names are super common around me and not in any way unusual or unique. I feel like you guys are over thinking this!

(PS. I don’t go here either! Congrats!)

[krystee]

I don’t go here, but I love Sean! I also see that spelling most frequently.

[spk926]

When I think of that name and how to spell it Sean is what comes to mind first. I think spelling it Shaun would be the most un-common followed by Shawn. But all are acceptable and not made up spellings.