‘I thought my baby names were a classic choice – but nobody can pronounce them’

The mum can understand when a small error is made with her kid’s names but she has been taken aback by some of the unexpected mistakes people have made over the years

Parents hope to choose a baby name that’s unique and special to their little one, but one of the main problems that crops up with unusual monikers is mispronunciation.

But for one mum her efforts have been in vain as her kid’s names are often misconstrued, and not just by a single letter.

The fuming mum of two took to the ‘Am I Being Unreasonable?’ forum on Mumsnet to explain that her two kids are called Beatrix and Lois but that sometimes people and even her own family will get these names wrong in pretty spectacular ways.

In the post, the mum, who remained anonymous explained: “I have two daughters, Beatrix and Lois.

“I thought these were two classic names with a single settled pronunciation each, with minimal room for misinterpretation, at least by native English speakers. Both was I wrong!”

The frustrated mum went onto say that they pronounce these names in the normal, phonetic, way but people often get very confused when trying to pronounce them and go very wrong.

She said: “My first daughter is often called “beet-rix” and Lois is often called “Loyce”, as in rhyming with voice.

“I usually let the first go as I just think “close enough”, but I can’t resist correcting “loyce”.”

The mum continued by suggesting that some mistakes people make are understandable but when it is family that make them, she can’t help but feeling a bit annoyed.

“Beatrix is sometimes also called “Beatrice”, which is an understandable mix up that we did expect but is annoying when even family do it, and Lois is often misheard as “Lewis” so that people assume she’s a boy,” said the mum.

In response, many have been quick to say whether they would pronounce these names right or wrong as one person pointed out: “I had no idea how Lois was pronounced until I read down, I would have guessed Loyce too. I’ve never heard of it before. Beatrix I pronounce be- a- trix not be -uh- trix..”

While somebody else noted: “I’ve honestly never heard anyone pronounce the “a” in Beatrix apart from with an Italian friend. I thought the standard British pronunciation was 2 syllables (beer-trix / beet-rix).”

Do you have a story to share? We want to hear all about it. Email [email protected].